My wife, Denise, and I love to add a tropical flair to our garden. Last year, we repeatedly passed a house a couple of miles down the road with this large-leafed, tree-sized plant with huge red fuzzy flowers. Finally, Denise couldn't resist stopping to ask: "What is that remarkable plant?"

Barbara Zeglin answered the door and was kind enough to not only give us information on the castor bean plant (Ricinus communis) but also a seed pod so we could grow our own.

Castor bean is native to Africa and belongs to the Euphorbia family. Oil derived from the seeds is used not only as a foul-tasting cure-all remedy but also in the manufacture of nylon, paints and varnishes, as a water-resistant coating for fabrics and, recently, in cancer research.

The plant is easily started from seed, which is the size of a large coffee bean. We propagated 32 plants from a single pod after soaking it for 24 hours or nicking the seed coat with a knife. Once germinated, these seedlings immediately displayed their incredible size, sporting 2- to 3-inch-wide primary leaves as they began growing.

After giving several young plants away, we were left with 20 to plant in various beds on our 2-acre property in Penn, Westmoreland County. We already have plants that tower over our heads, but when the castor bean plants took hold, we really had a jungle.

Over the course of the summer, they have stretched to 10 feet tall with leaves up to 3 feet wide and upright red flowers more than a foot long. The flowers are monoecious with male and female flowers on the same individual. Once the flowers mature to spiny seed pods, the exploding carpels propel the seeds like peashooters.

The maroon-colored trunk and branches sprout young red leaves with blood-red veins. As the leaves grow wider, their tint changes to a Christmas-like green with lustrous red overtones, but the veins retain their heart-pumping color.

This sun lover basks in the heat, needs plenty of water and will tolerate most soils if these conditions are met. Hardy to zones 9 and 10, it's grown as an annual here. The seeds' coats contain ricin, a deadly poison, so be careful with this plant around children and pets.

A recent Old House Gardens catalog showed a Victorian pattern bedding arrangement featuring the castor bean as the main attraction encircled by cannas and elephant ears. The palmate lobed leaves of the castor bean look quite at home in the company of these other vigorous growers.

Several other cultivars are available. Some are much shorter than the species, almost 5 feet tall. They are:

'Carmencita Bright Red' -- red stems, dark purplish leaves and red seed pods.

'Gibsonii' -- red-tinged leaves with reddish veins and pinkish-green seed pods.

'Carmencita Pink' -- similar with pinkish-red stems.

'Impala' -- maroon to carmine young growth and sulphur yellow blooms.

Gurney's Seed & Nursery Co.: www.gurneys.com

Main Street Seed & Supply Co.: www.mainstreetseedandsupply.com

Nature Hills Nursery: www.naturehills.com

Seeds & More: www.seedsandmore.net

William Dam Seeds: www.damseeds.com

TRYOUT is a collection of mini-reviews and news about plants and products for the home. To submit ideas, e-mail Home & Garden editor Kevin Kirkland at kkirkland@post-gazette.com or call 412-263-1978.