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Foxglove, Digitalis pupurea

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Beautiful but Deadly

An open field, scattered with tall spikes of red-purple, tubular flowers gently waving in the warm breeze. Hummingbirds flit stem to stem gathering nectar.

Foxglove (royalty free, Unsplash)

Downside? It can kill you.

What do you know about this beautiful and common, plant? Test your knowledge in this 10 question true or false quiz. Answers at the end.

True or False?

  1. Foxglove is native to western and southwestern Europe, western and central Asia, and northwestern Africa.  
  2. Foxglove flowers can be yellow.   
  3. A common name for this plant was ‘witch’s glove.’ 
  4. It takes two years to get a bloom.  
  5. Plants thrive on recently disturbed acidic soils.     
  6. All parts of the plant are poisonous to humans.   
  7. Inhaling the pollen can affect some people. 
  8. Wear gloves when collecting, handling fresh and dried materials. 
  9. Chemicals from Foxgloves are used for making heart medicine.   
  10. The chemicals from Foxgloves were thought to control seizures.

The Answers

If you said true to all of these statements, you were right!  Want to know more? Here are the backstories:

  1. Foxgloves are very common but not native to our area. They are native to parts of Europe, Asia, and Africa.
  2. Flowers can be purple, pink, fuchsia, white, and yellow. Breeders are working on new colors such as peach. Flowers can have various marks and spotting. Bloom color will change as flowers age.
  3. There were several common names for this plant (not all complementary) including: ‘witch’s glove’, ‘dead man’s bells’, and ‘fox’s glove’.
  4. Foxglove is a biennial plant, meaning it completes a full lifecycle (including reseeding) in two years.  
  5. Plants will routinely colonize disturbed areas, especially if the soil is a bit acid and well drained. Locations can include woodlands, sea-cliffs, mountain slopes, and open fields.
  6. Beautiful but deadly. All parts of this plant, fresh and dried, are poisonous. Even deer and rabbits will leave them alone. There have been cases where deadly foxglove leaves were confused with harmless comfrey leaves.
  7. Pollen can contain a tiny amount of digoxin which is a type of cardiac glycosides.  
  8. As a general rule, wear gloves when collecting, arranging, or cleaning up garden debris. Foxgloves were probably one of the plants that rule was made for as even a tiny bit of sap transferred from glove to shovel handle can be a problem.  
  9. Digoxin, extracted from several varieties of Foxglove is used to create medicines for congestive heart failure and seizures.
  10. Foxglove is no longer used for seizures. It is thought that Vincent van Gogh may have been influenced during his “Yellow Period” by digitalis therapy used to control seizures.  

REFERENCES:
–Better Homes and Gardens (https://www.bhg.com)
–Wikipedia, Foxglove (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digitalis)
—Foxglove Flower Alert, Whats Cooking America (https://whatscookingamerica.net)
–Gardening Know How, Foxglove (https://www.gardeningknowhow.com)

Poison Oak (Toxicodendron diversilobum)

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USDA photo

Don’t let Poison Oak and other plants ruin a perfectly good outing.

It can only hurt you if you touch it, right? Not necessarily…. Here are a few tips for avoiding problems with Poison Oak.

Recognize the plant

Poison Oak is commonly found in Oregon and California as a shrub or vine that is up to 12-feet tall.

The old warning ‘leaves of three, let them be’ is still accurate. Note: there could be more than three leaves (like 5 or 7) and the leaves of every variety can look different.

Poison Oak is not a tree—it is a member of the cashew family with hairy under-leaves. The leaves are similar to the rounded lobes of Oregon white oak. Oregon white oaks does not have clumps of leaves in threes (or fives).

Understanding the danger

All parts of the oak are capable of exuding oil which can cause a rash on most individuals. 

The Center for Disease Control indicates that most people are sensitive to the poison oak sap and a tiny amount (equivalent to a grain of table salt) will cause 80-90 percent of adults to rash.

An oily plant sap chemical, urushiol triggers an allergic reaction. A reaction can occur within just a few hours.

Knowing how exposure occurs

Exposure can occur when brushing up against or damaging the plants like a pet may do. Urushiol does not affect pets.

Urushiol sap can easily transfer to other objects such as a tool, clothing, pet fur, shoes, and gloves.

Finally, smoke from a burning plant can be a problem. Sap in smoke can impact skin and nasal passages, throat, and lungs and potentially cause very serious allergic reactions. 

Recognizing the symptoms

The sap causes Contact dermatitis which is the swelling and irritation of the skin. The dermatitis may not show immediately in individuals who have not had previous contact.

Not everyone will be impacted by Poison Oak. Everyone, however, can spread the sap and contaminate others. 

Clean up carefully

Carefully wash fingernails to avoid further spread. Closely trim fingernails to minimize the damage caused by scratching (such as infection).

Wear gloves and use lukewarm water when cleaning surfaces. Use soap and cool water for pets and livestock. Even though pets and livestock do not get the rash, they can easily carry it.

Controlling the problem

The sap is quickly absorbed into the skin. Fast treatment (within 20-30 minutes of exposure) is critical. There are several products on the market that work well; some even come in wipes and handy pocket-sizes.

One particular product may not work for everyone or in every case. Be sure to include a variety of items in the First Aid kit including some of those products, antihistamines, oral corticosteroids, and more.

Symptoms may persist for three weeks before subsiding. Poison Oak is not contagious.

Call 911 as needed

Don’t let something like Poison oak ruin your outing. This article is not intended to share or provide medical advice or recommendations. It does share commonly experienced problems, tips and techniques. In other words: Been there. Had the itch. No fun.

REFERENCES:
–Poison Ivy, Poison Oak, and Poison Sumac at https://www.poison-ivy.org/pacific-poison-oak  check out the great plant identification poster
–U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “Poisonous Plants.” July 7, 2016 at http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/topics/plants/
–Oregon Dept. of Fish and Wildlife at https://www.dfw.state.or.us/resources/visitors/docs/Denman_WA_TrailGuide.pdf

Pacific Bleeding Heart (Dicentra Formosa)

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Bleeding Hearts are a welcome guest in most forest garden. It creates a thick and beautiful ground cover, and speaks to ancient symbolism.

Bleeding Hearts (Photo courtesy of Unsplash)

This delightful herbaceous plant belongs to a small genus of heart-shaped plants. Plants in this genus grow flowers and leaves from stems and roots. Dicentra Formosa are an exception as the flowers and finely dissected leaves grow only from the roots. This perennial is known as the western, wild, and Pacific Bleeding Heart.

Commercial Development

Bleeding Hearts have soft pinkish-purple and white heart-shaped flowers. Commercially developed forms can include red and white or pink and lighter pink flowers, chartreuse foliage, and larger plants and blooms. Fragrance was of interest to commercial developers and used in the production of perfumes.

Habitat

Bleeding Hearts grow in western Canada, south into parts of Central and South America. They are a common native in Oregon.

Bleeding Hearts grow in ‘edge’ areas where there is access to water and dappled sunlight to shade. In some areas, direct sun will damage the blooms and retard plant growth.

Wild Bleeding Hearts grow to be 18-inches tall. Typical height is around 12-inches. Some new introductions can get to be nearly 3-feet tall.

The plant is not drought or salt tolerant. It prefers moist, well-draining soils. Shallow roots are easily damaged. Yet, the wild plant has a high tolerance to fire.

Symbolism

The emotions and strong symbolism surrounding Bleeding Hearts have been capture in song and story. Many people believe that flowers communicate special meanings through their shape and colors.

For some, Bleeding Hearts symbolize sorrow and lost love. For others, it is a symbol of beauty and positive energy. Bloom colors are often associated with positive energy, love, friendship, and warmth at home.

There is a dark side to this beauty: the flowers are poisonous. All parts of the plant are poisonous if ingested. Even so, Bleeding Hearts received the Royal Horticultural Society’s Award of Garden Merit.

REFERENCES:
–USDA, National Resources and Conservation Service, Bleeding Hearts (https://plants.usda.gov/java/charProfile?symbol=DIFO)
–Bleeding Heart Flower – Meaning, Symbolism and Colors (myflowermeaning.com/bleeding-heart-flower-meaning/)
–Wikipedia, Bleeding Heart (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dicentra_formosa)