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Old 13-04-2004, 06:35 PM
Sacha
 
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Default Poisonous plants

Neil Jones13/4/04 3:25

snip

So now you seem to be saying that this list is even less useful?


No, Neil. I'm saying that the subject of poisonous plants came up in urg in
another thread and that there were varying claims as to the toxicity of
ornamental garden plants. So, out of curiosity, I did a very simple Google
search to see what would kick up. You have the result. How you use it is up
to you. If you wish to know more, then do your own Googling. If you wish
to buy a particular plant and want to know its toxicity you now have the
link for a site that might help you.

I think what you are missing here is the degree of variation possible in the
toxicity of plants depending on the size, age, general health etc. of those
afflicted by it - maybe. A 1yo child is going to have a much bigger
reaction to munching a daffodil bulb than a healthy 25 yo, and so on. Most
people are concerned about the effects upon children, IME.

For example, two days ago a customer asked me if Helleborus is toxic. New
question to me, so I looked it up in the RHS Encyclopedia and the answer was
that all parts of it may cause severe discomfort if ingested and the sap
might irritate the skin. Now - the customer got an honest answer but after
we had briefly discussed the likelihood of a 3 yo child chomping on a
Hellebore and that the description did NOT say "deadly to ankle-biters", she
decided to go ahead and buy it. Daffodil sap is toxic to some people,
Ricinus is deadly to most - there are plenty of grades in between. The
*whole point* is that it depends on what the individual means by 'toxic' -
skin rash, bellyache, vomiting, or death? Will rue just give you a nasty
skin rash or a woman an abortion if she chews the leaves?
For that reason, such a list has to be very inclusive.
Some people won't plant Oleander or Laburnum in case it poisons someone -
children are the usual worry - but few would think twice about planting
Hellebores, so clearly our customer's 'worry factor' was highly developed.
All I can say is that I don't think the RHS has reported one death from the
ingestion of poisonous plant parts in simply years. OTOH, a friend of ours
pulling out Giant Hogweed suffered horrible skin trouble for a long time but
he didn't die. IOW, for more info, explore further for your personal
need-to-know.
--

Sacha
(remove the weeds to email me)