Castor bean, castor-oil plant, palma Christi
Castor bean, castor-oil plant, palma Christi Ricinus communis Spurge (Euphorbiaceae) Family Description: The castor bean is a semi-woody, flowering plant with large, alternate, star-like leaves that grows as a tree in tropical regions and as an annual in temperate regions. Its glossy leaves grow to 15-45 centimeters (6-18 inches long…
Chinaberry
Chinaberry Melia azedarach Mahogany (Meliaceae) Family Description: The poisonous Chinaberry tree (also known as bead-tree, Persian lilac, white cedar, Texas umbrella, pride of India, or Cape lilac) has a round, spreading crown and grows up to 14 meters (42 feet) tall. It has alternate, compound (odd-pinnate) leaves with toothed (serrated…
Cowhage, cowage, cowitch
Cowhage, cowage, cowitch Mucuna pruritum (Mucuna pruriens) Leguminosae (Fabaceae) Family Description: Cowhage, also known as velvet bean or cowitch, is a vine-like plant that is known for its ability to cause extreme #160; The plant is a climbing shrub with oval leaflets in groups of three growing off of short…
Lantana
Lantana Lantana camara Vervain (Verbenaceae) Family Description: The poisonous Lantana plant, also known as Spanish Flag, Big Sage, Blacksage, Wild Sage, Prickly Lantana, or West Indian Lantana, is a low erect, shrub-like plant that may grow up to 45 centimeters (18 inches) high. It has opposite, round to oval shaped…
Manchineel
Manchineel Hippomane mancinella Spurge (Euphorbiaceae) Family Description: The deadly Manchineel tree (sometimes written “manchioneel”) is a flowering tree reaching up to 15 meters (45 feet) high with greyish or brown, scaly or fissured bark and alternate, shiny green leaves and spikes of small greenish flowers. The Manchineel tree’s glossy leaves…
Oleander
Oleander Nerium oleander Dogbane (Apocynaceae) Family Description: The poisonous Oleander shrub (or small tree) grows to about 9 meters (27 feet), with alternate, very straight, thick, leathery, dark green, long (2-8 inches), narrow (1 inch), lance-shaped leaves. Leaves typically grow in pairs or whorls of #160; Mature plants have grayish…
Pangi
Pangi or Keluak Pangium edule Pangi Family Description: The Pangi tree, also known as Keluak, Keluwak, or Keypayang, is a tall tree often reaching heights of 18 meters (54 feet). The tree has large, glossy heart-shaped leaves in spirals each typically with three #160; Its large flowers grow in spikes,…
Physic nut or Jatropha – tropical plant typically used as a poison has medicinal uses too
Physic nut Jatropha curcas Spurge (Euphoriaceae) Family Description: The Physic nut, or Jatropha plant, is a shrub or small tree found in the American tropics. Also known as Barbados Nut, Purging Nut, Black Vomit Nut, Physic Nut, or JCL, the plant can reach a height of 6 meters (20 feet)…
Poison hemlock, fool’s parsley
Poison hemlock, fool's parsley Conium maculatum Parsley (Apiaceae) Family Description: The poison hemlock plant (also known as Beaver Poison, Herb Bennet, Musquash Root, Poison Parsley, Spotted Corobane, and Spotted Hemlock) is a biennial herb that may grow to meters (8 feet) high. The smooth, hollow green stem may or may…
Poison Ivy and Poison Oak
Poison ivy and poison oak Toxicodendron radicans and Toxicodendron diversilobum (previously Toxicodendron diversibba) Cashew (Anacardiacese) Family Description: These two plants are quite similar in appearance and will often crossbreed to make a hybrid. Both have alternate, compound leaves with three #160; The oil in the plants is the primary culprit…
Poison Sumac
Poison sumac Toxicodendron vernix Cashew (Anacardiacese) Family Description: Poison sumac is a woody shrub or small tree that grows to meters (28 feet) tall with rough, scaly bark. It has alternate, pinnately compound leafstalks with 7 to 13 smooth edged leaflets per #160; The leaflets are oval to oblong, taper…
Poisonous Death camas (death lily) plant looks like an onion
Death camas, death lily All of the Zigadenus species Lily (Liliaceae) Family Description: The poisonous Death Camas (or Meadow Deathcamas) plant arises from a bulb and may be mistaken for an onion plant. Its leaves are long and grass-like. The bulbs look like onions but do not smell like onions. …
Poisonous Plants – an overview of plant poisoning and how to avoid being poisened
Successful use of plants in a survival situation depends on positive identification. Knowing poisonous plants is as important as knowing edible plants. Plants Poisoning Plants generally poison by: Contact. This contact with a poisonous plant causes any type of skin irritation or dermatitis. Ingestion. This occurs when a person eats…
Rosary pea or crab’s eyes
Rosary pea or crab's eyes Abrus precatorius Leguminosae (Fabaceae) Family Description: The Rosary Pea plant (also known as Jequirity, Crab's Eye, Rosary Pea, John Crow Bead, Precatory bean,Indian Licorice, Akar Saga, Giddee Giddee or Jumbie Bead) is a small, slender, high-climbing vine that twines around trees, shrubs, and #160; It…
Strychnine tree
Strychnine tree Strychnos nux-vomica Logania (Loganiaceae) Family Description: The strychnine tree is a medium-sized evergreen tree with a short, thick crooked trunk, reaching a height of about 12 meters (36 feet). The wood of the Strychnine tree is white and dense and durable with irregular branches covered with a smooth,…
Trumpet vine or trumpet creeper
Trumpet vine or trumpet creeper Campsis radicans Trumpet creeper (Bignoniaceae) Family Description: The large, vigorous, woody Trumpet Vine or Trumpet Creeper may climb to 15 meters (45 feet) #160; It has pea-like fruit capsules. The oval leaves are pinnately compound, growing opposite to each other, 8 to 12 sharply toothed…
Water hemlock or spotted cowbane
Water hemlock or spotted cowbane Cicuta maculata Parsley (Apiaceae) Family Description: The Water Hemlock, also known as spotted water hemlock, spotted parsley, spotted cowbane, and the suicide root, is perennial herb in the carrot #160; It is very difficult to distinguish it from other, similar looking #160; Water Hemlock may…
