From: klier@iscsvax.uni.edu Newsgroups: rec.gardens Subject: pOISONOUS PLANTS LIST Date: 21 Feb 93 15:24:14 -0600 Organization: University of Northern Iowa Lines: 295 Plants poisonous to humans: the list is divided into those known to have caused fatalities in humans and those with significant quantities of poisonous substances ***************************** Plants known to have caused human fatalities: List includes only North American natives and plants commonly grown in North America Poisonous parts* Scientific Name (fls=flowers; frt= (spp. = species fruit; lvs=leaves; Plant plural) rt=root) ---------------- --------------- ------------------- Angel's trumpet Datura all, esp. seed, lvs suaveolens Azalea Rhododendron lvs, fls spp. Baneberry Actaea spp. frt; rt Belladonna Atropa all, esp. frt, rt belladonna Black Cherry Prunus serotina bark, seed, lvs (frt OK) Black Locust Robinia pseudo- seed, lvs, inner acacia bark Black snakeroot Zigadenus spp. bulbs Buckeye Aesculus spp. seed, lv, stem, fls and honey made from nectar Caladium Caladium spp. all parts Carolina jessamine Gelsimium all parts sempervirens Castor bean Ricinus seed communis Chinaberry Melia azdirach frt, lvs Daphne Daphne mexereum all parts Death camas Zigadenus spp. bulbs Dieffenbachia Dieffenbachia all parts spp. Duranta Duranta repens frt English ivy Hedera helix frt, lvs False hellebore Veratrum spp. all parts Foxglove Digitalis all parts purpurea Golden chain tree Laburnum seed, fls anagyroides Horse chestnut Aesculus spp. seed, lv, stem, fls including honey made from nectar Jequirty bean Abrus seed precatorius Jimson weed Datura all parts, esp seed stramonium and Datura spp. Lantana Lantana camara unripe frt Lily of the valley Convallaria all parts majalis Lobelia Lobelia spp. all parts Mistletoe Phoradendron frt spp. Monkshood Aconitum spp. all parts Mountain laurel Kalmia lvs, stems, fls latifolia Moonseed Menispermum frt canadense Ne'em Melia azdirach frt, lvs Nightshade Solanum spp. unripe frt Oleander Nerium oleander all parts Poke Phytolacca rt, mature stems americana Precatory bean Abrus seed precatorius Rhododendron Rhododendron lvs, fls sp. Rhubarb Rheum leaf blades rhaponticum Rubber vine Cryptostegia all parts grandiflora Sandbox tree Hura crepitans milky sap and seed Tabacco (incl. tree Nicotiana spp all parts, esp lvs tobacco) Tansy Tanacetum lvs, fls vulgare Tung tree Aleurites all parts, esp seed fordii Water hemlock Cicuta spp. rt White snakeroot Eupatorium all parts rugosum Yellow oleander Thevetia all parts, esp frt peruviana Yew Taxus spp. all parts but "berry pulp" ____________________________________________________ PLANTS WITH SIGNIFICANT QUANTITIES OF POISONOUS SUBSTANCES Amaryllis Amaryllis spp. bulb Autumn crocus Colchicum all parts autumnale Bittersweet Celastrus seed scandens Bleeding heart Dicentra spp. all parts Bloodroot Sanguinaria all parts canadensis Blue cohosh Caulophyllum frt, lvs thalictroides Boxwood Buxus lvs sempervirens Buckthorn Rhamnus spp. frt Bushman's poison Acokanthera spp all parts Buttercup Ranunculus spp. all parts; toxicity varies from species to species; mostly causes blistering Buttonbush Cephalanthus lvs occidentalis Chincherinchee Ornithagalum all parts thyrsoides Colchicum Colchicum all parts autumnale Crown of thorns Euphorbia milky latex splendens Culver's root Veronicastrum root virginianum Daffodil Narcissus spp. bulb Delphinium Delphinium spp. young plants, seed Desert marigold Baileya radiata all parts Dutchman's breeches Dicentra all parts cucullaria Fly poison Amianthemum lvs, rt muscaetoxicum Four o'clock Mirabilis seed, rt jalapa Gloriosa lily Gloriosa spp. all parts Goldenseal Hydrastis rhizomes, lvs canadensis Holly Ilex spp. frt Hyacinth Hyacinthus spp. bulb Hydrangea Hydrrangea spp. buds, lvs Jack in the Pulpit Arisaema rt, lvs triphyllum Jessamine Cestrum spp. lvs, young stems Jonquil Narcissus spp. bulb Karaka nut Corynocarpus seed laevigata Kentucky coffee tree Gymnocladus frt dioica Larkspur Delphinium spp. young plants, seed Lignum vitae Guaiacum frt officinale Locoweed Astragalus and various parts; more Oxytropis spp. of a livestock poisoning problem Lupine Lupinus spp. various parts; primarilly frt, seed Mayapple Podophyllum all parts but ripe peltatum frt Mescal bean Sophora seed secundiflora Narcissus Narcissus spp. bulb Ngaio Myoporum laetum lvs Opium poppy Papaver unripe frt somniferum Philodendron Philodendron lvs, stems spp. Pittosporum Pittosporum frt, lvs, stems spp. Poinsettia Euphorbia milky latex pulcherrima Poison ivy Toxicodendron sap, lvs radicans Poison oak Toxicodendron sap, lvs diversilobum Poison sumac Toxicodendron sap, lvs vernix Prickly poppy Argemone spp. seed, lvs Privet Ligustrum seed, lvs vulgare Sneezeweed Helenium spp. all parts Snow on the mountain Euphorbia milky latex marginata Squirrel corn Dicentra all parts canadensis Star of Bethlehem Ornithagalum all parts umbellatum Sweet pea Lathyrus spp. seed Kay Klier Biology Dept UNI in%"klier@iscsvax.uni" Newsgroups: rec.gardens,misc.kids From: kdblake@b24a..b24a.ingr.com (Katherine Blake) Subject: Thanks for info on poison plants Date: Thu, 18 Feb 1993 21:04:50 GMT I would like to thank everyone who posted responses to my query about references for toxic plants. I have gotten the information I needed. Several people asked me to share the information I received, so I am going to give a quick synopsis here. 1) contact local county extension agency 2) contact local poison control center 3) AMA Handbook of Poisonous and Injurous Plants 4) Sunset book "Making Your Home Child-Safe" 5) Kay Klier recommended a book she believes the title to be "Daffodils are Poisonous" (I'm going to look for this) She also recommended another book but believes it to be out of print. This information was posted to rec.gardening. 6) A coworker sent a list from rec.cats when she saw my posting It's long but I will e-mail it to anyone who sends me an email request for it. From kolwicz@badlands.NoDak.edu Sun Aug 28 22:21:24 EDT 1994 Article: 79571 of sci.med Newsgroups: sci.med Path: bigblue.oit.unc.edu!concert!news-feed-1.peachnet.edu!news.duke.edu!MathWorks.Com!yeshua.marcam.com!zip.eecs.umich.edu!newsxfer.itd.umich.edu!nntp.cs.ubc.ca!uw-beaver!netnews.nwnet.net!ns1.nodak.edu!badlands!kolwicz From: kolwicz@badlands.NoDak.edu (Frank Kolwicz) Subject: Re: Poisonous mushrooms and berries Sender: usenet@ns1.nodak.edu (Usenet login) Message-ID: Date: Sun, 28 Aug 1994 14:53:32 GMT References: <33oubf$6bd@crl4.crl.com> Nntp-Posting-Host: badlands.nodak.edu Organization: North Dakota Higher Education Computing Network X-Newsreader: TIN [version 1.2 PL2] Lines: 58 Eric Smith (es@crl.com) wrote: : Can you safely taste an unknown berry to find out whether it is : edible? That is, if it turns out to be poisonous, will your taste buds : warn you away from it before you get a large enough dose to do any : harm? : What about poisonous mushrooms? I've heard that some of them are very : poisonous, such that one taste can be lethal. Is that true? I've also : heard that some poisonous mushrooms taste the same as edible : mushrooms. If this is true, how do animals that eat mushrooms know : which ones to avoid? *** I used to be an active mycophile and a mycophagist. That's a mushroom lover and eater, so I'll just respond to the question about fungi. Many of my colleagues were/are extrememly concerned about gathering different varieties of mushrooms in the same basket with their known edibles, some even claiming that a deposit of the spores of toxic species would be dangerous. However, from what I've read and heard from professionals studying some of those poisonous species, it would take a substantial portion to affect and/or kill an adult, like if you made meal of them. Children are a different story; since the toxins' effects are +/- proportional to body weight, smaller amounts can do more damage to kids. Some years ago a group of Laotians collected a batch of poisonous mushrooms which resembled a good species of their homeland with very serious results. This is "as I recall": they claimed the mushrooms were very tasty and made a pleasant meal. I believe the mushrooms they ate were in the genus Amanita which contains some of the deadliest mushrooms and at least one top-of-the-line choice edible. The toxins from these mushrooms take 6 to 12 or more hours to have an effect, on the liver especially which is trying to eliminate them. The prime rule we mycophiles lived by was: "If you can't identify it POSITIVELY, don't eat it." There were other rules of thumb for different genera, but they required that you knew each particular genus pretty well. A number of the rules required a small sample to be tasted, but just the tiniest bit that you could taste. I am one of the few people I know who ate a bunch of mildly toxic (non-hallucenogenic) mushrooms. This was way before I took an active interest in identifying mushrooms and joined the Nutmeg Mycological Society of eastern Connecticut. That was more than 20 years ago. I distinctly remember being weak and having powerful heart palpitations and sweats for a few hours that night after having the mushrooms for supper. I think that the species was Boletus bicolor or something similar which can be very common in eastern Ct. in the late summer/early fall. This is a mushroom/complex that every book I know of warns you away from. I also once tasted a single berry that I took for a wild grape. All I did was put it in my mouth and bite it. The acrid taste made me spit it out immediately, but it still made me feel funny for a while afterward, as I walked down the road. Know what you are eating in the wild, there are plenty of identification books around and good luck. Frank