July 2001 found me in Kakamega Forest landscaping a friend’s garden and chatting to Patrick Inziani about the trees of the wonderful rain forest; amongst the many fascinating stories he shared with me was the Luhya belief that wayward young men would adjust their anti-social ways if they spent a few days sitting in the shelter of the Mirembe (Muhoti) tree. He also told me of a traditional Luo belief that fires should not be lit with its wood, at the risk of attracting lightning. 

Undaunted by these beliefs, children throughout the region use its shiny, red seeds as jewellery and playthings, although it is said that each seed contains enough curare-like poison to kill a horse. Fortunately the seeds are so hard that if a child happens to swallow one, they pass easily through the system and out the other end without harming her.