Ad 1) - I thought rotting kiwis already spawn carnivorous plants? if not, I must have mixed it up with something. In that case: +1 to that.
Ad 2) - I would hate to see all status conditions on the screen. I think the choice to hide some conditions (ecpecially leprosy, tele and confusion) was deliberate and good - all of these would become insignificant if they couldn't surprise the player.
Tele and confusion are both harmless enough that they should stay the way they are, but I would argue leprosy should also be hard to notice at first. I still remember when I first started with IVAN and suddenly, my arm dropped off. I had no idea what was going on, but it was interesting and very different from other roguelikes - plus I figured without a limb, the best thing to do would be to find a priest. Then, I figured out your limbs still carry a leprosy if you attach them after being cured...
It's not that likely to contract leprosy after each zombie fight, plus it's quick and easy to check yourself with a stethoscope. This might be one of the reasons stethosope is in the game, after all. And having a limb fall off in the middle of a fight - I don't think that's all that much of a common occurence. It definitely happened to me more than once, but it was more an "oh crap" moment that I managed to survive (unless it happened on UT:1 or UT:2) and that made the game more fun, than something I would see as a cheap shot at my character. Still, it's much more likely you'll simply be walking down a corridor when one of your limbs falls off - and I find this cool.