Garden plants are a pleasing addition to any outdoor space. They can reduce anxiety, stress, and depression in people who spend time around them. But for a household with kids and pets, it is important knowing which beauties are worth to cultivate for their harmless nature and which ones to avoid to keep everyone safe.
Poisonous plants can present serious problems as even the smallest seed, or any part of some plants can prove fatal or cause unpleasant effects if eaten or carelessly handled. Following is a collection of common garden plants that can pose serious risks to humans and animals.
| Highly Toxic: Apple, Angel’s trumpet, Autumn Crocus, Black Locust, Bleeding Heart, Castor Bean, Chinese Lantern, Christmas Rose, Daffodil, Daphne, English Ivy, Firethorn, Foxglove, Hyacinth, Hydrangea, Iris, Laburnum, Larkspur, Lily Of The Valley, Lupin, Monkshood, Potatoes, Rhubarb, Snowdrop, Star of Bethlehem |
 Apple (Malus)Common Name: Apple, Crabapple, Culinary Apple, Eating Apple. A small deciduous tree or shrub in the Rosaceae family including the orchard apple, crab apple and wild apple. Toxicity: Seeds, twigs, leaves contain cyanogenic glycoside amygdalin. Symptoms of Poisoning: Ingestion in quantity may result in impaired respiration, loss of voice, spasms, coma and death. |
 Angel’s Trumpet (Datura stramonium)Common Name: Angel’s Trumpet, Thornapple, Jimsonweed, Jamestown Weed. A large shrubby annual with foot long white trumpet flowers and egg-shaped spiny seed capsules. All varieties are poisonous. Toxicity: All parts contain alkaloids hyssocayamine, atropine and hyoscine. Symptoms of Poisoning: Dilated pupils, dry mouth, elevated body temperature, intense thirst, headache, hallucinations, delirium, nausea, rapid pulse, coma and death. |
 Autumn Crocus (Colchicum autumnale)Common Name: Autumn Crocus. A fall-blooming leafless flower that is not a true crocus with spring foliage that dies down in early summer. Toxicity: All parts contain alkaloid colchicine. Symptoms of Poisoning: Gastrointestinal irritation, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, bloody stool, cardiovascular collapse, convulsions and death. |
 Black Locust (Robinia pseudacacia)Common Name: Black Locust, false Acasia. A fast-growing, medium-sized deciduous tree known for its fragrant white flowers. Toxicity: Bark, leaves and seeds contain phytotoxin, robin, glycoside and robitin. Symptoms of Poisoning: Nausea,vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pain, drowsiness, disorientation, cyanosis, coldness of arms and legs, circulatory collapse, coma and death. |
 Castor Bean (Ricinus communis)Common Name: Castor Bean, Castor Oil Plant.Autumn Crocus. A fast-growing tropical shrub or tree with large, star-shaped leaves and red seeds. Also causes contact dermatitis when foliage is handled. Toxicity: All parts, especially the seeds. Contains glycoprotein ricin. Symptoms of Poisoning: Mouth and throat burn, nausea, vomiting, gastrointestinal pain, excessive thirst, convulsions, uremia and death. |
 Chinese Lantern (Alkekengi officinarum)Common Name: Bladder Cherry, Chinese Lantern, Japanese Lantern, Jerusalem Cherry, Strawberry Groundcherry, Winter Cherry, Klabuster Cherry. Flowering member of the nightshade family with bright orange-red papery lantern-shaped seed shells. Toxicity: Leaves and unripe fruit. Contains steroidal alkaloid solanoccapsine, glycoalkaloids, solanine. Symptoms of Poisoning: Headache, abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, mental and respiratory depression, sensation loss and death. |
 Christmas Rose (Helleborus niger)Common Name: Christmas Rose, Lenten Rose. Low growing evergreen perennial with palmate leaves on smooth stems, about one foot tall. Toxicity: All parts contain purgative glycosides, alkaloids & helleborin. Symptoms of Poisoning: Severe gastrointestinal irritation, nausea, vomiting and diarrhea. |
 Daffodil (Narcissus pseudonarcissus)Common Name: Daffodil, Lent Lily, Jonquil. Spring-flowering perennial plant characterized by trumpet-shaped flowers and typically yellow or white petals. Toxicity: All parts, particularly the bulbs. Contains alkaloids, lycorine & lycoramine. Symptoms of Poisoning: Nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, convulsion and death. |
 Daphne (Daphne mezereum)Common Name: Daphne, February Daphne, Spurge Laurel. A small deciduous or semi-evergreen shrub, late winter flowering with lilac, rose-purple or white clusters. Toxicity: All parts. Particularly the berries. Contains glycosidic alkaloid, dihydroxycoumarin. Symptoms of Poisoning: Throat and stomach ulceration, vomiting, internal bleeding, bloody diarrhea, weakness, convulsions, kidney damage, coma and death. |
 Foxglove (Digitalis purpurea)Common Name: Foxglove, Dead Men’s or Witch’s Bells. Foxglove is a biennial or short-lived perennial herb with showy purple, white, or pink flowers closely grouped along each spike. Toxicity: All parts contain steroid glycosides, digoxin and digitoxin. Symptoms of Poisoning: Headache, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, blurred vision, delirium, slow and irregular pulse, coma and death. |
 Hyacinth (Hyacinthus orientalis)Common Name: Common Hyacinth, Garden Hyacinth or Dutch Hyacinth. A popular fall planted bulb for cheerful, fragrant spring blooms in various colours. Toxicity: All parts, particularly the bulbs. Contains alkaloids. Symptoms of Poisoning: Nausea, vomiting and diarrhea. |
 Hydrangea (Hydrangea macrophylla & related species)Common Name: Hortensia. Bushy, deciduous shrub with large, colourful, showy flowers and large bright to dark green leaves. Blooms in shades of blue, lavender, white, pink, red, green, and purple. Toxicity: Buds and leaves contain cyanogenic glycoside & hydraengin. Symptoms of Poisoning: Gastroenteritis, nausea, vomiting and diarrhea. |
 iris (Iris pseudacorus)Common Name: Yellow Flag, Yellow Flag Iris. An invasive ornamental perennial with few pale to dark-yellow flowers near stem ends that grows along shores in shallow water. Toxicity: Irritant compound glycosides in leaves and root stalks. Symptoms of Poisoning: Violent diarrhea, nausea and gastrointestinal irritation. |
 Laburnum (Laburnum anagyroides)Common Name: Golden Chain or Golden Rain. Medium-sized shrub or tree, well known for its pendulous racemes of pea-like, sweet-scented yellow flowers borne in May. Toxicity: Seeds and flowers contain quinolizidine alkaloid, cystisine. Symptoms of Poisoning: Burning mouth and abdomen, nausea, severe vomiting, diarrhea, irregular pulse and respiration, delirium, coma, kidney damage and death. |
 Larkspur (Delphinium)Common Name: Larkspur, Bee Larkspur, Candle Larkspur, Rocket Larkspur, Staggerweed. A short-lived perennial plant with tall colourful flower spikes that can grow up to 10 feet in size. Toxicity: All parts contain diterpenoid alkaloids delphinine. Symptoms of Poisoning: Gastroenteritis, constipation, respiratory paralysis and death. |
 Lily Of The Valley (Convallaria majalis)Common Name: Lily of The Valley, Our Lady’s Tears. A perennial flowering plant forming extensive colonies, is known for its sweetly scented, bell-shaped white flowers blooming in spring. Toxicity: All parts. Contains cardiac glycosides, convallarin and convallamarin. Symptoms of Poisoning: Headache, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, blurred visision, slow or irregular pulse, hypotension, cardiac irregularities and death. |
 Lupin (Lupinus)Common Name: Lupin, Lupine. Domestic garden varieties with pea-like flowers derived from wild species which are available with blue, red, pink and white colour. many species are poisonous. Toxicity: All parts, particularly the seeds contain contain lupin alkaloids such as lupinine. Symptoms of Poisoning: Laboured breathing, spasms, coma and death from respiratory paralysis. |
 Monkshood (Aconitum)Common Name: Monkshood, Wolfsbane, Leopard’s Bane, Devil’s Helmet or Blue Rocket. A tall, perennial plant that grows to 5 feet tall with deep-lobed palmate leaves. Blue, purple, yellow, pink or white flowered species feature a distinctive hood-like shape. Used historically to poison weapons.Toxicity: All parts contain aconitine. Symptoms of Poisoning: Intense vomiting and diarrhea. |
 Potato (Solanum tuberosum)Common Name: Potato, Irish Potato. All members of the nightshade family (Solanaceae) grown for their starchy edible tubers must be used with caution. Toxicity: All green parts, especially the fruit. Contains glycoalkaloid solanine. Symptoms of Poisoning: Abdominal pain, vomiting, diarrhea, mental and respiratory depression, shock, coma and death. |
 Rhubarb (Rheum rhaponticum)Common Name: Rhubarb. Well known for edible red and green leaf stalks used in pie fillings. Poisonous leaves are often dried and turned into powder for use as insecticide. Toxicity: Leaves contain anthraquinone glycosides, soluble oxalates and calcium oxylate crystals. Symptoms of Poisoning: Nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pain, oliguria, haemorrhage and death. |
 Snowdrop (Galanthus nivalis)Common Name: Snowdrop. A small, early flowering bulb with blunt-green leaves that push through the ground in early spring, hiding buds inside. Toxicity: All parts, particularly the bulb contain alkaloids.Symptoms of Poisoning: Nausea, vomiting and diarrhea. Skin Contact: Itchy, allergic response. |
 Star of Bethlehem (Ornithogalum umbellatum)Common Name: Start of Bethlehem. A perennial bulb that produces clusters of star-shaped white flowers in late spring. Toxicity: All parts including the bulb contain alkaloids.Symptoms of Poisoning: Nausea, intestinal disorders. |