Sunday, July 14, 2019

Water Hemlock

Water Hemlock is one of the most poisonous plants in Minnesota.

My baby brother has a whole bunch at his lake place.  When I saw them blooming last week I figured I had to make sure and properly identify the plant.

It was not blooming last year because of the construction.

The big identifier on this plant is that the veins in the leaves end at the notches in between the teeth.
It is the root that is poisonous...it is long like a carrot and if eaten will kill you.
Far Side

After some more research all parts of the plant are poisonous, some people have died after game birds ingested the seeds from Water Hemlock...and they ate the game birds and died.

19 comments:

DJan said...

That and giant cow parsley are very poisonous. The parsley looks similar to this, but it's bigger and has purple streaks on its stalks. And they look so innocuous! :-)

L. D. said...

It is nice to know that one should not eat it. There are so many similar plants, weeds, that one would have to look it up. Does the brother stay year round or is he just a summer visitor?

Val Ewing said...

Great ID! I know we have all sorts of wild flowers here. I like the parsnip roots in the spring and fall, good eating, but the plant is not human friendly.

Jan said...

Sounds like the makings of a great murder mystery.

Red said...

I must check and see if we have that plant here.

Maebeme said...

We have something similar looking but I'm not sure if it is the same plant as it has yellow flowers.

Terry and Linda said...

What have that nasty stuff here. It floats down on the canals and lodges all along the way. Terrible stuff.

Far Side of Fifty said...

He comes and goes all year round:)

Bonnie said...

Wow! You really know a lot about all these plants! There are a lot of bad ones out there that look so innocent.

Rita said...

I'm glad it's the root that's poisonous. They sure look pretty, though. :)

Cynthia said...

Water hemlock grows all over down here in the roadsides and ditches. I didn’t know it was only the root that was poisonous.

Granny Marigold said...

We have lots of plants by the lake that look very similar. Tomorrow when I walk I'll bring back a stalk with leaves and check if I can identify it. The blooms look identical.

Betsy said...

It looks so pretty. It's hard to believe it's poisonous. Thanks for the education. :)
Blessings,
Betsy

Linda Reeder said...

Well, then don't eat the root, but can we pick it to put in a bouquet? it is very pretty.

Far Side of Fifty said...

I have found out that all parts of the plant are poisonous.

Far Side of Fifty said...

I wouldn't bring it into my house:)

Diana said...

I've seen it around construction sites and unmown areas (wetlands and such). It's supposed to be toxic here, too, but it sure seems to be ignored. I don't touch any plant I don't recognise. Thanks for your info, Far Side! ♥

Sam I Am...... said...

Holy Cow! There are all kinds of plants around here that look like that....not that I planned on eating any but still. The story about the game birds sounds like something out of an Agatha Christie novel. Are they going to make a movie out of it?

Sara said...

The water hemlock looks familiar but I don't think I've ever heard about it being poisonous. So interesting!