Intoxicating and Dangerous Plants: Henbane, Blue Agave, and Wormwood

Why did we choose the theme of intoxicating and dangerous plants?

We chose the theme of intoxicating and dangerous plants for the same reason(s) people want to get intoxicated. People everywhere have done it and continue to do it. They seek the experience itself and the visions that come along with it. People will do the most extreme things just to experience intoxication. For example, they will confess themselves, sit in dark places for long periods of time, and take poisons or substances that aid them into another world. On a sociological level people get intoxicated to escape from the harshness of their own lives and enter into a magical world. As we were thinking of reasons why people want to get intoxicated, it only seemed fit to include the dangers of the intoxication. Henbane, Blue Agave, and Wormwood are all dangerous for varies reasons:

Henbane: Every part of henbane is poisonous, well known since the remote past. It is amazing that henbane produces a huge amount of seeds–from 10,000 to half a million per plant–and as few as 10-20 are enough to poison a child.


Blue agave : Also know as Agave tequilana is known for its use in the creation of tequila. The sap from the heart of the plant is fermented and distilled to produce some of the worlds finest tequilas.

Wormwood: The Wormwood plant is best known for its part in the drink absinthe in that if you ingest a high amount of it you are in danger of having a seizure, hallucinating, or even dying.

Henbane for Sharae
Blue agave for Ryan
Wormwood for Noel