Laburnum is a beautiful plant with beautiful flowers and little pea shaped pods, but it is very dangerous. It is not something you would normally expect to find in the wild, but I have seen it there, especially in hedgerows. It contains a compound called cytisine, which is chemically similar to nicotine. I am not entirely sure how it works, but I do know the symptoms are nasty. It is an alkaloid, a very dangerous one. Anyway, it is a lovely plant, but one that should be used to educate children