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Giant Hogweed
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06-12-2002, 06:14 PM
Sue Rogers
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Giant Hogweed
In article ,
(Nick Maclaren) wrote:
In article ,
sacha wrote:
However, it (ragwort) won't do
the harm to humans (
AFAIK
) that Giant Hogweed will.
Ragwort contains poisons which damage the liver of grazing animals who
eat it. Eating a lot in one go causes acute liver failure, eating a
little over a long time causes chronic liver failure.
Commonest way of animals ingesting ragwort is through hay made from
fields containing ragwort. Ragwort has a bitter taste when alive so
animals avoid it unless starving. When dead it loses that bitter taste.
You often see hay advertised as "ragwort-free".
The advice to horse owners is to "wear gloves" when removing ragwort to
stop the toxins being absorbed through our skin - liver failure maybe?
The Cinnabar Moth striped black and yellow caterpillars love ragwort -
perhaps they don't have livers!
Giant hogweed isn't the only plant with a sun-blistering skin effect.
The smaller cow parsley has a similar effect.
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Giant Hogweed