dangerous plants Archives - RCH Landscaping

Everyone knows that roses have thorns and plant them accordingly in locations that will showcase their beauty, while minimizing the potential of injuries to people and pets. However, individuals often create landscapes only to discover as a plant matures that they have a thorny mess on their hands.

While these thorny plants can be great as a living security barrier, care should be used when planting them as a permanent fixture in the garden. Hikers should also be careful as many thorny plants grow in the wild.

There are a number of plants and shrubs that don’t give any indication of the thorns they’ll develop later on. The following are just some of the thorny shrubs and plants of which people should be aware.

Agave

The same agave that’s harvested for its sweetening effect in food and beverages is also a popular landscape plant with cup-shaped blooms. The succulents protect themselves with thorns or spines on leaf tips.

Bamboo Cycad

The bamboo cycad has an exotic appearance and it’s a unique addition to the landscape. The plant has existed since the dinosaur age, develops sharp thorns, and shouldn’t be planted near sidewalks and other locations frequented by people and pets.

Barberry

Best-known as a plant for hedges and barriers, it offers a change of colors with the seasons. It also produces blooms, attractive berries, and spines.

Bougainvillea

Showy and beautiful, bougainvillea is available in a bush, vine and tree form, all of which have thorns capable of piercing clothing and flesh.

Devil’s Walking Stick

This is a plant many people encounter in the wild. It’s an invasive species that usually takes the form of a multi-stemmed tree resembling a bush. The leaves are equipped with small thorns.

Flowering Quince

Heralded as a harbinger of spring with its bright blooms, its dense growth habit hides sharp thorns and is best planted in the back of a border.

Golden Dewdrop

A beautiful flowering shrub from the tropics, it blooms profusely. The shrub develops sharp thorns on the stems of mature plants.

Yucca

A stately plant that has a symbiotic relationship with the yucca moth, the tips of yucca leaves are sharp and the plant is toxic to people and pets.

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Despite their beauty, there are many popular garden plants that no one should cultivate if there’s any way that children or pets may come into contact with them. Some can cause a painful or itchy skin rash if touched, while others can result in death if the leaves, flowers or seeds are ingested. Some of the most deadly include the following.

Larkspur is a member of the genus delphinium and they provide a bright splash of color in gardens. The entire plant is deadly, especially young leaves and mature seeds. Nausea, vomiting and burning of the mouth is almost immediate when ingested. The plants can be lethal in six hours or less.

One of the harbingers of spring, lily-of-the-valley is a sweet-smelling ground cover. The entire plant is toxic, especially the leaves, and affects the heart. A single bite can cause symptoms ranging from hot flashes and hallucinations to clammy skin before coma and death occur.

Hydrangeas were popular funerary arrangements at one time. They have large, showy flowers and while the entire plant is toxic, the flower buds are especially so. Ingesting any part of the plant is like consuming cyanide.

Known as poet’s daffodil, this variety of narcissus is smaller than others and is a cheery sight in the spring. They won’t attract deer, rabbits or rodents and all parts of the plant are toxic, especially the bulbs. Even the scent from a bouquet of narcissus in a room can cause a severe headache.

Rhododendrons produce showy displays of brilliant color in the garden, but the entire plant can be deadly. Swallowing any part of the plant will cause drooling, violent vomiting, low blood pressure, and seizures and coma before death occurs.

Dozens of common garden plants enhance landscapes and few know the dangers of death that they present. Individuals should thoroughly research any plant they’re considering adding to their property to avert a deadly disaster to their own children and pets, along with others in the neighborhood.