62. Plants Poisonous To Eat. Part 3

Fig. 189.-Mountain Laurel (Kalmia latifolia, Heath Family, Ericaceae), a, flowering branch, 1/3. b, flower, 1/1. c, cluster of fruits, 1/1. (Chesnut.)- Shrub 1-12 m. tall; leaves evergreen; flowers pink; fruit dry, brownish. Native home, Eastern United States.

Fig. 190.-Sheep Laurel (Kalmia angustifolia, Heath Family, Ericacece). Flowering branch. Flower. Fruiting branch. Fruit. (Britton and Brown.)-Shrub 15 cm.-l m. tall; leaves evergreen; flowers purplish or crimson; fruit dry, brownish. Native home, Eastern North America.

Fig. 191.-Snow-on-the-mountain (Euphorbia marginata, Spurge Family, Euphorbiaceoe). a, whole plant, 1/3. b, seed pod. (Chesnut.)-Annual growing about 1 m. tall; upper leaves broadly margined with white; flowers greenish yellow; fruit dry. Native home, Western North America.

A peculiar danger attaches to the leaves of cherry-trees, especially of the wild black cherry. These trees frequently grow on the borders of pastures where cattle are kept, and it often happens that persons having broken off branches, perhaps to get the fruit, throw the leafy twigs into the pastures within reach of the cattle. As the leaves begin to wilt a very powerful poison (prussic acid) is developed by fermentation, and many deaths to stock have occurred from their eating cherry leaves in this condition. A similar formation of prussic acid takes place in the kernels of cherry stones in the presence of moisture. It is therefore dangerous to swallow the fruit whole or to eat many of the kernels. Children have died from so doing.

Fig. 192.-Foxglove (Digitalis purpurea, Figwort Family, Scrophulariaceoe). A, plant, in flower, reduced. B, flower, 2/3. C, same, cut vertically. D, E, stamens. F, pistil. G, fruit, (v. Wettstein.)-Biennial or perennial 1 m. or less in height; leaves downy; flowers purplish rosy, or white, more or less spotted within; fruit dry. Native home, Europe.

Fig. 193.-Lily-of-the-valley (Convallaria majalis, Lily Family, Liliacece). Root. Leaves. Flower-clusters. Corolla and stamens. Fruit-cluster. (Britton and Brown.)-Perennial herb; leaves smooth; flowers white, fragrant; fruit pulpy, red. Native home, Temperate Eurasia and Eastern United States.

The flowers of poisonous plants are dangerous in two ways: (1) by affording a poisonous honey, and (2) by their attractiveness leading children to chew them or to suck the sweet nectar they contain. Poisonous honey is yielded by the plant known as snow-on-the-mountain (Fig. 191) which is becoming unfortunately common in gardens, and in some regions is a troublesome weed. Where the plant is abundant much of the honey crop is rendered unfit for use. The laurels just referred to are also believed to yield poisonous honey.

Among the poisonous plants already mentioned, those having flowers which must be regarded as dangerously attractive to children are: poppies, tobacco, belladonna, monkshood, pokeweed, jimson-weed, locust, and elder. To these examples may be added the following which have shown themselves similarly dangerous: foxglove (Fig 192), lily-of-the-valley (Fig. 193), marsh-marigold (Fig. 184), wood-anemony (Fig. 194), daphne (Fig. 195), and oleander (Figs. 196, 197).

Fig. 194.-Wood-anemony (Anemone nemerosa, Crowfoot Family, Ranunculaceoe). Plant in flower. Flower, cut vertically. (Baillon.)-Perennial herb 7-20 cm. tall; leaves nearly smooth; flowers white or pinkish; fruit dry. Native home, Eurasia. The American wood-anemony (Anemone quinquefolia) is so like the species above shown as to be formerly regarded only as a variety of it differing chiefly in having smaller flowers and paler leaves.