A spiny story

Hi! I'm Oliver the EIGHTH. I know little about my ancestors, only rumours overheard from my neighbours.
I heard they all died a TRAGIC death at a young age.
The first two drowned in the GREAT FLOODS. Oliver III faded slowly in the following DROUGHT.
Oliver IV went for a SOIL CHANGE. Five days later, he was dead.
The fifth was raised in a collective. He was three weeks old when an EPIDEMIC broke out. There were no survivors.
Grandpa perished in an accidental DROP (suicide wasn't ruled out). Never met my dad, but I hear he was a bad lot, ROTTEN to the core.
Don’t know WHAT WILL HAPPEN to me, but I'll stand tall until the end!
This story was inspired by real events. Certain names have been changed to protect the character's identity. No plants were harmed during production. If you liked this story let me know and share it with other plant killers lovers out there!