Self Destructing Palm Tree

Reminds me of science fiction story I once read by Larry Niven where aliens genetically engineered palm trees that grew into solid booster rockets (they called them "stage" trees). You can find the story in some of his collective works.

Botanists have discovered a new species of giant self-destructing palm on the island of Madagascar. The tree, described as the nation's largest palm species, is unlike anything else ever found on the island before, say scientists. Although villagers knew of its existence, none had witnessed the tree in flower. When this finally happened last year, botanists found that the tree spent so much energy flowering that it died...

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