Keep your family safe by learning how to identify and avoid these wicked garden plants.
"Some years ago, the Brooklyn Botanic Garden hosted an exhibit of “evil plants” that had the potential to harm not only the gardeners who grew them, but anyone else who might make contact with them. The exhibit, of course, was designed to protect visitors from harm; it was an instructive showcase of the dangers that can lurk in our landscapes.
Some plants that grow in the wild or in cultivated gardens are toxic enough to cause death. Still, many have been used throughout history for medicinal purposes, in rites of passage or for witchcraft and other purposes. They can be alluring and beautiful, hiding their deadly characteristics behind their charms.
Take wolfsbane, for instance—just don’t take it internally. Ancient herbalists wrote about this wicked plant, also known as wolf bane, and described its effectiveness as a poison. A member of the Aconite family, wolfsbane is a perennial wildflower, native to Europe and parts of Asia, and all parts of the plant are deadly.
Handling wolfsbane can cause severe symptoms, including numbness and dermatitis. Hunters once dipped their arrows into the juice from the plants, or baited traps with them, to poison wolves, rats and other animals around their barns and pastures. Aconite was also said to have been an ingredient in “flying ointments” made by witches to create the sensation of soaring.
Dioscorides, an early Roman physician and pharmacologist, knew wolfsbane as lycoctonum, which comes from the Greek words for “wolf” and “man.” The plants were believed to have the power to ward off werewolves and shape shifters, and were strung around doorways and grown near homes.
Today, these plants are commonly known as monkshood. They bear yellow, cream or blue flowers from spring into summer.
Books by early herbalists also reference other “bane” plants, meaning nightmarish plants that cause distress and pain leading up to death. Fleabane (Mentha pulegium), for instance, is an aromatic member of the mint family often referred to as pennyroyal. While its dried leaves have been used to repel fleas and other insect pests, the plant contains essential oils that are toxic to animals and humans. Even handling the plants may irritate the skin or cause serious allergic reactions."
Read the Full Article by Lynn Coulter...
"Some years ago, the Brooklyn Botanic Garden hosted an exhibit of “evil plants” that had the potential to harm not only the gardeners who grew them, but anyone else who might make contact with them. The exhibit, of course, was designed to protect visitors from harm; it was an instructive showcase of the dangers that can lurk in our landscapes.
Some plants that grow in the wild or in cultivated gardens are toxic enough to cause death. Still, many have been used throughout history for medicinal purposes, in rites of passage or for witchcraft and other purposes. They can be alluring and beautiful, hiding their deadly characteristics behind their charms.
Take wolfsbane, for instance—just don’t take it internally. Ancient herbalists wrote about this wicked plant, also known as wolf bane, and described its effectiveness as a poison. A member of the Aconite family, wolfsbane is a perennial wildflower, native to Europe and parts of Asia, and all parts of the plant are deadly.
Handling wolfsbane can cause severe symptoms, including numbness and dermatitis. Hunters once dipped their arrows into the juice from the plants, or baited traps with them, to poison wolves, rats and other animals around their barns and pastures. Aconite was also said to have been an ingredient in “flying ointments” made by witches to create the sensation of soaring.
Dioscorides, an early Roman physician and pharmacologist, knew wolfsbane as lycoctonum, which comes from the Greek words for “wolf” and “man.” The plants were believed to have the power to ward off werewolves and shape shifters, and were strung around doorways and grown near homes.
Today, these plants are commonly known as monkshood. They bear yellow, cream or blue flowers from spring into summer.
Books by early herbalists also reference other “bane” plants, meaning nightmarish plants that cause distress and pain leading up to death. Fleabane (Mentha pulegium), for instance, is an aromatic member of the mint family often referred to as pennyroyal. While its dried leaves have been used to repel fleas and other insect pests, the plant contains essential oils that are toxic to animals and humans. Even handling the plants may irritate the skin or cause serious allergic reactions."
Read the Full Article by Lynn Coulter...