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10 Deadly and Dangerous Florida Plants
By JoAnne YoungEating or chewing on some plants growing in the gardens and roadsides of Florida can cause symptoms ranging from mild discomfort to death in both people and animals. Children under five are the most frequent victims of plant poisoning due to their smaller body weight and natural curiosity.
The effect of plant poisons varies with the stage of plant growth and the part of the plant that is eaten or touched, and, of course, some people are much more sensitive to plant poisons than others.
A good general rule is not to taste, eat or chew on any plant unless you know what it is. Anyone who experiences pain after eating a plant should be taken to the hospital or a poison control center. Take a sample of the plant too.
Most of the following plants grow outdoors in North Florida gardens and in the wild, and many grow indoors in cooler climates.
Some photos from a seed company or bontanical website are available for some plants. Click on the highlighted names. Before growing any of these plants, consider their danger carefully, especially if you have small children.
Carolina Jessamine
15-20 foot vine that trails on the ground or climbs. Evergreen leaves are smooth and shiny. Flowers in early spring are very fragrant and yellow. Grows wild and in gardens throughout the South.All parts of the plant--flowers, stems, roots--are poisonous, affecting nerve endings and causing respiratory paralysis. Farm animals have been fatally poisoned after eating the plant, and children have died after sucking the nectar from the flowers.
Castor Bean
Tree-like shrub which can grow 15-40 feet high. The leaves are green or a dark purplish-red. The fruit grows on 6-20 inch spikes. It is bluish-green or bright red when unripe. When mature, it dries to a light brown color and splits open releasing seeds.
The plant has been outlawed in some areas of California because of its toxicity.
It contains one of the most toxic poisons found in nature. The medicine castor oil is produced from the seeds. Castor oil is processed to remove the poison, but the unprocessed seeds are deadly. They, unfortunately, have a pleasant taste and have killed children who ate only 2 or 3 seeds. Animals have also died from eating the seeds.
The sap of the plant can also cause severe itching and a rash.
Chinaberry Tree
The Chinaberry tree is a pretty, umbrella shaped tree, growing 20-40 feet tall. The flower is white-lavendar and the berries are yellow. The berries have a bitter, repulsive taste and are not often eaten by animals or people.
The berries, bark, leaves and flowers are toxic. The poison attacks the central nervous system and causes severe gastroeniteritis. Ripe fruit is more toxic than unripe. Death is caused by suffocation, liver damage and cerebral hemorrhage.
Four-O'Clock
1-3 foot tall, shrub-like plant with either white, yellow, red or pink sweet-smelling flowers that open in the late afternoon. Each flower lasts only one day.Roots and small, black seeds can cause severe stomach upset and pain. The seeds and roots may also cause skin irritation.
Lantana
Shrub-like, 4-10 feet high or climbing to 25 feet. Flowers are variously colored: white and bright yellow; buff turning to lavendar; pink with yellow center; orange turning to red. The fruit turns from green to dark blue. It is currently a very popular plant in Northeast Florida because it can stand heat and likes lots of sun.
The green fruits eaten in quantity are fatal. They cause liver damage and neuro-circulatory collapse. The leaves can cause dermatitis and itching.
Mistletoe
A tiny shrub that grows as a parsite on the branches of trees. It has leathery green leaves on many short branches. In winter, it has white, glossy berries. It is gathered in the South to sell at Christmas as a decoration that provides an excuse for kissing.
The plant contains a toxin similar to digitalis and eating any part of the plant has caused human and animal fatalities from acute gastroenteritis and heart failure.
Oleander
Large shrub or small tree about 20 feet high with stiff, narrow, smooth leaves. The fragrant flowers are single or double and come in pink, white or deep pink. The plant is seen everywhere in Florida--roadsides, yards and public parks.Most Floridians know that the lovely oleander is poisonous, but they may not know how poisonous. It can cause death within a day. The wood, leaves, and flowers are highly toxic. In California a child died after using an oleander twig to cook a hot dog over a campfire. Breathing the smoke of burning oleander branches causes poisoning. Smelling the flowers may affect those with asthma or heart trouble. If bees have collected enough nectar from the flowers, their honey is poison. The poison affects the heart with a digitalis like action. Respiratory paralysis, unconsciousness and death result.
Philodendron Selloum (split leaf)
Large, spreading plant with a strong central stem. Leaves are triangular, pointing downward 3-4 feet. Almost every street in Northeast Florida has a house with one in the yard. They are also common in parks and public landscaping.
The leaves, stems and conical flower contain a watery juice that stings, blisters and burns the tongue and throat if it is consumed. Sometimes the throat will swell, cutting off breathing. The juice also can cause a rash on the skin. Other plants of the same arum family such as diffenbachia (dumb plant), elephant ears and calla lilies can have the same effect on people and animals.
Pokeweed or Pokeberry
10-12 foot shrub-like plant with red stems, and red veined leaves. The fruit turns from green to white, then reddish, and finally, dark purple, almost black. It grows on roadsides and in open sunny places. It is considered to be a weed and is rarely grown in gardens.The young, green, asparagus-like shoots have long been eaten in the rural South after through cooking, but death has occurred from inadequate preparation or from eating part of a root included with the shoots. Leaves, stems, roots and berries are toxic. The poison attacks the central nervous system, causing severe gastroenteritis. Convulsions may result from eating large amounts. In animals there is paralysis of legs, stupor and respiratory failure.
Wisteria
A woody, high-climbling vine that can go up to 100 feet, develops a strong woody trunk. The fragrant flowers are white or dark purple and hang in long clusters. In the South it grows wild or is controlled in gardens. The seedpod, shaped like a peapod, is green and velvety and contains several flat, circular seeds.
Eating any part of the plant can cause severe stomach pain and upset. Unfortunatley, the seedpods look edible. Children have become very ill after eating only two or three of the seeds. One scientist has reported that the seeds can kill cockroaches.
