Like all monkshoods, this Aconitum contains aconitine, a lethal neurotoxin. Recognized for over two millenia as one of the strongest poisons, it is not surprising that accounts of aconite surface often in mythology.

This particular species is native to Korea (and planted in the UBC Asian Garden), though the genus is distributed throughout the temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere and subtropical southeast Asia.

Botany resource link: From Florida State University, Microscopy of Thin Tree Sections features microphotographs of wood from North American trees. I find them compelling both scientifically and artistically. One of my favourites is the cross-section of Tilia americana (basswood).