Here we are again “OVER
THE GARDEN FENCE with Daisy Mae” with part 2
of these articles about toxic plants that you may never
have known were in fact toxic to humans or animals, or even
both…
Lily of the
Valley
This plant's toxic effects are as strong as its medicinal
ones. It blooms in early spring with beautiful little white
bell-shaped petals, for which there's a legend. It's considered
that this plant appeared after Jesus was crucified and,
from the tears of Maria Magdalena, the flower grew. A completely
different myth suggests that here in Britain, the lily-of-the-valley
grows in the forest, where the hero Leonard defeated an
enormous dragon. The hero's blood drops that fell on the
ground, turned into the flowers whose bells rang to celebrate
his win….
The lily-of-the-valley can
easily induce fatigue, diarrhoea and vomiting. Extreme poisoning
after ingestion of the plant leads to irregular heart beat
and mental confusion. Always wash your hands well after
touching the plant – better yet, use gloves. Even a
small dosage is enough to lead in a fatal end in pets and
children….
Symptoms: irregular heartbeat and pulse, mental confusion
and upset stomach
Dumb Canes
(or dieffenbachia)
There are over 50 different
sorts of dumb canes (or dieffenbachia) growing around the
world. They differ by their leaf form and colouration, overall
size and other specific biological factors. Usually, its
leaves are a motley combination of dark green, light green,
white and yellow… You can see dieffenbachia in almost
every home or institution. People prefer it as a foliage
plant namely because of its patterned leaves. It can reach
up to two metres in height….
Dumb canes are indeed toxic,
but not as dangerous as to threaten a human's or pet's life
in general. However, the name doesn't come in vain –
some severe cases of swelling after ingesting the plant
lead to losing the ability to talk. In any case, an overdose
of calcium oxalate leads to intense pain and burning sensation,
that won't go away for at least half a day. Be careful not
to touch the sap of the plant and if you happen to do it,
wash your hands before reaching for your face or eyes….
Symptoms: intense burning and irritation, tongue swelling
Ficus
is a preferred decorative plant,
mainly because of its beautiful and thick, tree-like crown,
which you can easily form with a bit of care and perseverance.
In warmer climates, the Ficus can easily thrive on the outside,
too. The birthplace of the pretty boy is South-East Asia
and Australia…. All of the Ficus plants are evergreen
trees or bushes, with small, shiny leaves which can be either
plain green or dark green, motley (different combinations
of green, dark green, white and even grey), smooth or curly
– with pointy ends. Domesticated house plants can reach
up to 3-4 metres, whereas in nature, the Ficus tree can
grow higher than 20 m….
The Ficus family consists of
almost 800 different species of shrubs and trees –
also called rubber plants. They easily thrive at home environment
and that poses a danger for children and pets, since the
plant is toxic. Yet, it's not as severe as other poisonous
plants. Children can get an itching or rash when they touch
the sap, whereas pets might have a worse reaction and have
stomach aches and diarrhoea….
Symptoms: rashes, itching and stomach ache.….
Desert Rose
Also known as adenium, is an
extremely interesting plant with a peculiar shape. The representatives
of its family belong to the tree-like succulents.
The cultivated ones are quite
picky when it comes to living conditions. Not only that,
but they also happen to contain one of the deadliest poisons
known to man….
It is said that African tribes
dip their arrows before a hunt in the extracted toxic sap
of the flower – a single arrow can kill an elephant
after several hours. The toxin here is ouabain – a
cardiac glycoside, which causes vomiting, diarrhoea, mouth
and throat blisters, drooling and intestinal pain….
The good news – it's fairly
difficult for your body to extract on its own the poison
particles of the sap. In any case, protect your pets and
your children from coming in close contact with this deadly
flower….
Symptoms: malaise, dizziness, vomiting and nausea….
Belladonna (Deadly Nightshade)
Is a perennial shrub from the
Solanaceae family. Out in the wild, it grows in Europe,
Northern Africa and Western Asia. It's also naturalised
in different regions of North America. In native climate
regions, it can last several years. The tallest height it
can reach as a mature plant is about a metre….
Belladonna is one of the deadliest
plants on Earth. A small chewed leaf is enough to kill an
adult, let alone little children and pets….
Its flowers are as beautiful
as the plant is toxic, therefore it's often grown as a decorative
shrub. It also doesn't require a lot of maintenance and
is a fitting plant for newbie gardeners….
Belladonna is named after the
oldest of the three Ancient Greek goddesses of destiny –
the moiras. Atropa is the one that is responsible for cutting
the final thread of a human's life – which brings death….
Apart from dilating pupils
and dry mouth, with Belladonna poison come hallucinations,
very loud heart beats which even people standing close to
you can hear, convulsions and coma. These symptoms can occur
hours after ingesting the plant or even a few days later
on, which means you have to be extremely cautious with the
plant….
DID YOU KNOW THAT…belladonna
is in the nightshade family (Solanaceae), which it shares
with potatoes, tomatoes, eggplants, jimsonweed, tobacco,
wolfberry, and chili peppers….
Symptoms: intensive digestive disturbance and death….
Rhododendron
Belongs to the same family as blueberries and azalea. It's
grown in thousands of different shapes and reaches up to
5 metres in height. There are both evergreen and deciduous
sorts – all of them having oval leathery leaves. They
bloom in April and May for around 3-4 weeks in different
colours – red, violet, white, pink, yellow and blue,
as well as in different combinations of those….
All those factors make them
a great addition to your garden, but be warned – the
honey extracted from rhododendrons is referred to as “mad
honey.” In ancient times, Roman troops were given honey
made of rhododendrons and the unsuspecting soldiers got
poisoned. Vomiting, confusion, and cardiac problems are
some of the severe side effects of grayanotoxin – the
toxin contained in all parts of the plant, particularly
the nectar….
And, even though in a raw condition
you have to eat hundreds of flowers to get poisoned, as
little as 0.2% per body weight for a smaller animal, such
as a cat or a dog, is enough to result in bad poisoning….
Symptoms: vomiting, nausea, difficult breathing, prostration
and coma
Aloe…
It’s a succulent plant
species, which includes around 180 varieties in its family,
which are native to South Africa. Aloe is widely used in
medicine and in textile industry. Several types are decorative
and are grown in home. Its leaves are thick and juicy –
a bitter gel is extracted from it. The juice has an antibacterial
effect and soothes burned skin…. A thin layer of Aloin,
a yellowish toxic substance, however, covers the gel and
it's highly toxic. Ingestion of large quantities leads to
stomach disorders, anorexia and depression. Tremors are
seen in rare cases….
Symptoms: tremors, depression, stomach disorders….
The Angel's
Trumpet (also known as Brugmansia)
It is an easy to grow shrub that adores tropical and subtropical
climate with cool nights and warm days. It originates from
South America and has flavourful, heavy flowers which resemble
trumpets. They reach up to 20cm in length and bloom in different
colours – white, yellow, pink, orange and creamy. Its
leaves are large, dark green and shiny. The plant is quite
tall – it reaches at least 1.80m in height and can
grow up to 6m….
However, it's also a member
of the nightshade family, where, despite having tomatoes
and potatoes, which have edible non-poisonous parts, all
parts of brugmansia are toxic. The plant contains highly
toxic and potentially deadly alkaloids such as scopolamine,
hyoscyamine and atropine, but not only. The highest concentration
of these toxins is found in its seeds and leaves….
A very unfortunate case of
a young 18 old man intentionally ingesting burgmansia tea
has been reported. The boy performed self-amputation with
pruning shears under the influence of the plant. Reportedly
the dosage boiled was just two flowers of Angel's Trumpet…
The patient confirmed a complete
amnesia during the amputation. If you are going to handle
the plant, it's recommended to use gloves, because one of
the easiest ways for the poison to penetrate your body is
through touching your eyes or food with contaminated hands.
It has been used as a hallucinogen,
yet, high dosages can lead to severe poisoning with a fatal
outcome…
Symptoms: : fast heartbeat, difficult breathing, nervousness,
hallucinations, loss of memory, coma, paralysis, coma and
death
Aconitum,
also known as Monkshood & Wolfsbane
Is a highly poisonous plant. It's scientific name Aconitum
probably originates from the Akonitos mountain in Anatolia.
There, according to Greek mythology, Hercules led the three-headed
dog Cerberus out of the underworld kingdom of Hades. The
dog's saliva gives birth to Wolfsbane….
The aconite leaves are deeply
pierced. Its flowers grow at around a metre of height. It
blooms during July and August….
The plant is one of the most
poisonous in the world and is sometimes used in phytotherapy
due to its low therapeutic index. It has soothing and homoeopathic
action….
Every part of the wolf's bane
will kill you. Even if you touch the plant with bare hands
and then you touch your face or food, you may have to be
taken to a hospital. It was used by hunters to dip arrows
in poison and hunt game….
In the past, the flower was
used as a tool to find werewolves. When the flower was close
to the chest of the suspect and a yellowish shadow thrown
from the plant appeared, the person was considered, in fact,
a werewolf….
The beauty of the flower comes
with a heavy price. All gardeners are advised to proceed
with extreme caution…
Symptoms: burning, tingling, numbness, gastrointestinal
problems and subsequent death….
Heliotrope…
Toxicity results from ingestion of a large quantity over
an extended period of time. All parts of the heliotrope
are poisonous and will cause gastric distress in humans
and animals. Major species that are effected are Herbivores,
cattle, horses, pigs, poultry, and sheep (which are less
vulnerable). Heliotrope has slow acting liver toxin, which
causes liver damage (atrophic hepatosis).
Sometimes it has a high death
rate in cattle; no known human losses have been reported
in USA. In most cases of toxicity, animals consume large
amounts of the heliotrope over an entire season without
any developing signs. However underneath, the hepatocyte
changes continue until the second season, when the affected
animal will have serious poisoning.In addition, consumption
of this plant may effect milk quality…
Toxicity Signs…
The toxin causes progressive
changes in characteristics of liver atrophy, and might cause
photosensitization. A sudden hemolytic jaundice as a response
to the toxic, and eventually death….
The poison of heliotrope is
from two types of pyrrolizidine alkoilds and their respective
N-oxides. Also allylic esters of pyrrolizidine alkaloids
which are also hepatotoxic. The plant contains about 3%
alkaloids, mostly as N-oxides. [5] Two pyrrolizidine alkaloids,
Indicine (1) and lycopsamine (2), have been isolated from
Heliotropium… ,
Symptoms: loss of memory, coma,
paralysis, coma and death
FOOTNOTE
No matter if it’s you,
your family, or your pet, if you suspect you or a loved
one has been poisoned due to exposure to plants, here is
what to do: Recognise the symptoms. The poisonous plant
substances would most likely either cause a skin rash from
external contact or digestive trouble from swallowing parts
of the plants. The latter can cause vomiting, fainting,
and seizures….
Call a doctor, or a vet. Immediately
call a professional physician once you see somebody showing
symptoms. There is a 24-hour service under the name of Vetfone,
similar to NHS in the UK,…
Provide some comfort. While
waiting for the specialist, you can help by making the victim
comfortable. If the poisoning is external, remove the contaminated
clothes. If poisoning occurred due to ingestion, remove
anything still present in the person’s (or pet’s)
mouth. They might keep vomiting, even if they have fainted,
so you have to turn them on their side, so they do not suffocate….
CPR in extreme cases. Unfortunately,
poisoning with certain plants can cause fatality before
the medical staff arrives. If the person is not showing
any sign of life, you’ll have to administer CPR –
it might save their life until the doctor arrives….
I hope you've enjoyed this
article; it's off to help Daisy in the Greenhouse for me,
as there is always plenty to do no matter what time of year
it is, an amateur gardener's work is never done. Do look
out for any of our other articles, but most of all........
"HAPPY GARDENING until
we all meet again Over the Garden Fence with Daisy Mae"
our resident green fingered amateur gardener As we continue
to "Motivate & Empower, both men & Women,
in the home for Business, Health and Leisure. Please share
this article with all of your friends, provided all links
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