13 Common Flowers that are Poisonous

13 Common Flowers that are Poisonous | Toxic Flowers

Mild to Intense, every gardener should know about these toxic flowers.

Flowers spread the color and joy and compliment the garden. However, there are some flowers that are common and loved by gardeners are toxic.

No one is saying you should remove them or avoid them altogether, but if you have small children and animals, you should know what flowers are poisonous so that you can keep an extra eye and become aware of what the consequences might be, if they ingest something from the following flowers and plants.

1. Hydrangea

Be extra careful when growing hydrangeas, don’t keep them indoors if you have cats and dogs, if in case they might nibble it. Hydrangeas contain small amount of cyanide and can be lethal if ingested heavily. Although they are not dangerous for human, but ingestion of specific amount of leaves or flowers can cause vomiting, diarrhea and lethargy in pets.

2. Clematis

Rather mild but toxic, clematis is poisonous. When touched or consumed, the toxin called anemonin (irritant glycoside) affects the pets and humans both. It can cause dermatitis in some people after contact and mild burning sensation and ulcer in mouth, if eaten. It affects the pets like dogs, cats and horses more and causes nausea and drooling. Fortunately the symptoms subside soon, pets themselves don’t touch clematis because of its bitter taste. *While pruning clematis, care to wear gloves.

3. Calotropis

Calotropis is one of the most common weed grows all across the South Asia, its latex ooze out from the flowers and leaves that contains calotropin, which if contacted to eyes can cause blindness.

4. Oleander

Oleanders are charming, fragrant and loved by home owners, they bloom in white, pink, yellow or red. But be careful if you have children, eating only a meager amount of this toxic flower can be dangerous. All parts of oleander are extremely poisonous if ingested, even the smoke burn from its wood is toxic. Symptoms of poisoning include dehydration, fever, slow heartbeat, tremors and death is also possible.

5. Azalea

Both azaleas and rhododendrons are poisonous for pets. These colorful flower are beautiful to look at and adds color in a garden. Flowers, leaf or stem can lead to nausea, abdominal pain and difficulty in breathing, if eaten.

6. Daffodil (Narcissus)

The bulbs are the toxic part of this popular and familiar flower, so you should probably take extra care when you plant it, if you have a dog that likes to dig in the flower beds. Too much ingestion can cause vomiting, diarrhea, squeeze cases, tremors and heart rhythm disorders.

7. Lantana

Lantana is extremely common flower in tropics and be treated as weed in many countries. Its flowers come in shades of white, yellow, pink, red, violet or orange. This flower is known for its intense fragrance and it also attracts butterflies. All parts of the plant contain liver toxin. Symptoms like depression, vomiting, fatigue and liver failure are possible after ingestion.

8. Foxglove

Foxgloves are used to prepare medicines, still all parts of the plant are mildly poisonous, contains digitalis glycoside, digitoxin and deslanocide and used in heart medicine. However, if you ingest a particular amount of foxgloves it can cause headache, stomach pain and fainting.

9. Lily of the Valley

The lily of the valley is very toxic, flowers, leaves and stem should not be eaten. The plant contains cardiac glycosides, which acts directly on the heart and causes vomiting, illusion, blurriness, slow heart rates and can be fatal in some cases. Fortunately, the poison is slowly absorbed into the body, so that the medical intervention on time after consuming can save from much harm to occur.

10. Morning Glory

Not all species of morning glory are poisonous but there are few, whose seeds are poisonous, if swallowed. Morning glory contain the toxic called lysergic alkaloids, which causes medical signs like diarrhea, in-coordination and liver failure, if large amount of seeds ingested.

 11. Wisteria

The tempting beauty of wisteria is alluring but do you know that it is a mildly poisonous plant, mainly for cats and dogs. Every part of it is poisonous, especially seeds. If only few seeds are ingested they can cause mild abdominal pain, vomiting, diarrhea and depression of the central nervous system.

 12. Periwinkle (Catharanthus rosea, *formely Vinca rosea)

Madagascar Periwinkle is one of the most easy to grow flowers and can be an excellent ground covers in warm climates, but it is mildly poisonous and contains a group of alkaloids. It is used in Ayurveda and Chinese herbal medicines to cure high blood pressure. Its excess consumption causes drop in blood pressure and hypotension. Do not confuse Madagascar periwinkle with Vinca major (greater periwinkle), which is not poisonous.

 13. Calla Lily

Calla lily can be an excellent cut flower and looks beautiful, its leaves are edible after cooking. According to North Carolina state university all parts of calla lily are poisonous and contains calcium oxalate crystals and because of this, eating any part of the plant raw can causes swelling of lips, tongue and throat. Similar symptoms occur to the animals, if they eat it.