Poisonous House Plants:
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 Photo by Kenshinou | Poisonous house plants are a subject that admittedly I knew very little about when my first child was born. I knew that I loved plants—they soften a room and bring a little of the outside indoors. |
| What I didn’t know, but have since learned a great deal about, is that many of the common plants in our homes fall under the category of poisonous house plants. (See list and pictures below.) Children love to explore and one of the ways babies explore is to put anything and everything in their mouths. You need to be sure to keep your plants out of reach from your little one. | |
| One thing to remember is that the leaves of some plants cascade over the side of the container. This is an easy way for a child to pull the plant down on herself. |  Photo by Dontfeedthetiki |
| Also even if you have put your plant out of reach, beware of leaves that may have fallen from the plant. This may be a problem if your baby finds them and puts them in his mouth. | |
| It is, of course, important to teach young children not to put plant leaves or other parts of the plant into their mouths. Some children, like our son, are very persistent in their pursuit of what interests them. Our son would not leave our plants alone. He was determined to get at them, no matter what we did or said. Whichever type of child you have, it is never safe to have poisonous house plants around. The National Poison Control Center recommends that homes with young children do not have any poisonous plants. We chose to give away all of our toxic house plants and I was able to find some senior citizens who were delighted to take them and give them a good home! | |
In Case of Emergency | |
| If your child has ingested any part of a plant, and poisoning is suspected, call your doctor or nearest emergency room. The National Poison Control Center (1-800-222-1222) can tell you if a plant is poisonous and what symptoms to expect. They will, however, need to know how much your child ingested and the house plant identification. Below is a list of poisonous indoor plants and a picture of each house plant for easy identification. There are many other poisonous house plants than those listed below; however these are the most common and the most toxic to children. | |
 | COMMON NAME: Aloe Vera SCIENTIFIC NAME: Aloe barbadensis TOXIC PARTS: Latex (gel inside plant) The latex of this plant, if ingested, can cause a cathartic (purgative similar to a laxative) action because of the irritation of the large intestine. An excessive dose can cause nephritis (inflammation of the kidney). This plant can also cause contact dermatitis. Photo by Zruda
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 | COMMON NAME: Amaryllis SCIENTIFIC NAME: Amaryllis belladonna, vittata TOXIC PARTS: Bulb The amaryllis is a beautiful flower, but the bulbs are poisonous if ingested. Large quantities of the bulb (although less for a small child) would have to be eaten before symptoms of diarrhea, nausea and/or vomiting would occur. Photo by Dmitry Baranovskiy |  | COMMON NAME: Angel’s Trumpet SCIENTIFIC NAME: Datura innoxia TOXIC PARTS: All parts, leaves, seeds All types of animals can be poisoned by angel's trumpet because it contains alkaloids. General symptoms of poisoning include agitation, spasmodic movement, coma, drowsiness, hallucination and/or elevated temperature. Photo by Caleb Lost
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 | COMMON NAME: Angels’ wings SCIENTIFIC NAME: Caladium bicolor TOXIC PARTS: All parts: leaves, roots, stems This plant can cause pain and burning of the mouth parts, which may be accompanied by swelling of tissues and constriction of the throat. Photo by J. Towbin
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 | COMMON NAME: Azalea SCIENTIFIC: Rhododendron sp. TOXIC PARTS: Leaves, stems Although azaleas are a low toxicity plant, children and family pets should be prevented from ingesting these plants, as a small amount may cause vomiting. Ingesting significant quantities of leaves can cause more severe symptoms such as burning of the mouth, salivation, vomiting, diarrhea, headache, and dimness of vision. Such occurrences are unlikely because of the bitterness of the leaves. Photo by yum9me |
 | COMMON NAME: Chrysanthemums, Mums SCIENTIFIC NAME: Chrysanthemum indicum TOXIC PARTS: Leaves These poisonous house plants can cause contact dermititis in some people. This is usually after extended exposure to garden chrysanthemums. Photo by VLKR
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 | COMMON NAME: Croton SCIENTIFIC NAME: Codiaeum variegatum TOXIC PARTS: Bark, latex, leaves, roots Ingesting the bark or roots has caused burning and irritation of the mouth. Occasional eczema has been reported after repeated exposure to the latex. Photo by Carl E Lewis
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 | COMMON NAME: Crown-of-thorns SCIENTIFIC NAME: Euphorbia milii TOXIC PARTS: Latex These poisonous house plants contain an irritant in the latex that causes skin irritation and problems on mucous membranes and eye tissue. Ingestion can cause irritation of the mouth and stomach, and abdominal pains. Photo by kthypryn
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 | COMMON NAME: Cyclamen SCIENTIFIC NAME: Cyclamen persicum TOXIC PARTS: : Rhizome, tubers Cyclamen is a houseplant that has a toxic saponin, cyclamin, in the tuberous rhizomes. The rhizome is bitter and found underground, so that children or family pets are unlikely to be exposed to the toxins. Photo by fui
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 | COMMON NAME: Devil's backbone SCIENTIFIC NAME: Kalanchoe daigremontiana TOXIC PARTS: Leaves, stems These poisonous house plants should be kept away from children, as well as pets. These plants contain a cardiac glycoside that has caused experimental toxicity and death in chicks and mice. Devil's-backbone produces plantlets along the leaf margins, which fall off and become new plants. These plantlets can be found in profusion around the pot in which an adult devil's-backbone is growing. Caution should be taken as children and family pets have easy access to these plantlets. Photo by epiforums
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 | COMMON NAME: Dumb Cane SCIENTIFIC NAME: Dieffenbachia sp. TOXIC PARTS: Leaves, stems Chewing dumb cane leaves or stems causes immediate pain and swelling in the mouth and throat. In severe cases, speech may become unintelligible, hence the name dumb cane. The effects are almost instantaneous, before the plant material is actually ingested. The plant juices can also cause inflammation and contact dermatitis in some individuals. Photo by bingregory
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 | COMMON NAME: English Ivy SCIENTIFIC NAME: Hedera helix TOXIC PARTS: Leaves, mature fruit, plant juices The toxins in the english ivy can cause poisoning in humans and other animals if ingested in sufficient quantities. English ivy berries are often listed as being poisonous to children. Symptoms of ingestion included labored breathing, coma, convulsions, and excitation. The ripe berries are dry and taste bitter, so large quantities are unlikely to be consumed by children. The sap contained in the leaves and stems of the english ivy can cause dermatitis and irritation in sensitive humans. Photo by Hedgerowmobile
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 | COMMON NAME: Flamingo Lily SCIENTIFIC NAME: Anthurium andraeanum TOXIC PARTS: Leaves, stems The leaves and stems of this poisonous house plant contain a chemical that causes painful irritation of the mouth and throat. Symptoms include blistering, difficulty in swallowing and hoarseness. Photo by yoel_tw
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 | COMMON NAME: Hydrangea SCIENTIFIC NAME: Hydrangea macrophylla TOXIC PARTS: Flower buds, leaves This plant has poisoned humans after they ingested the flower buds. Symptoms include abdominal pains, vomiting, diarrhea, lethargy and/or coma. Sensitive individuals can develop dermatitis after exposure to hydrangea. Photo by The County Clerk
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 | COMMON NAME: Jerusalem Cherry SCIENTIFIC NAME: Solanum pseudocapsicum TOXIC PARTS: Immature fruit, leaves, mature fruit Experiments on animals ingesting these poisonous house plants suggest that children who ingest leaf or berry material might suffer only mild gastroenteritis or vomiting. Nevertheless, children should be taught to avoid eating these plants. Photo by equipaje
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 | COMMON NAME: Kaffir Lily SCIENTIFIC NAME: Clivia miniata TOXIC PARTS: Bulbs This plant contains small amounts of the alkaloid lycorine. Large quantities must be ingested to cause symptoms of toxicity which include collapse, diarrhea, paralysis, salivation and vomiting. Photo by Thunderouschampion
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 | COMMON NAME: Philodendron SCIENTIFIC NAME: Philodendron sp. TOXIC PARTS: Leaves, plant juices These poisonous house plants can cause poisoning in humans and pets because of the oxalates. Contact dermatitis can occur including symptoms of redness of the skin and itchiness. Some species can cause painful burning and swelling of lips, mouth, tongue, and throat after chewing of leaves. Contact dermatitis can also occur. Photos by Sarcozona and Henryr10
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 | COMMON NAME: Poinsettia SCIENTIFIC NAME: Euphorbia pulcherrima TOXIC PARTS: Latex, leaves, stems Some people develop a sensitivity to the latex of this plant, resulting in dermatitis. Short exposures to poinsettia in a few cases have led to bouts of vomiting, but no substantiated cases of death can be found in the literature. Report of the death of a child in Hawaii is reported to be based on hearsay. The most severe symptoms of poinsettia ingestion substantiated in the literature are a few cases of nausea and vomiting, with an occasional rash. Poinsettia should no longer be regarded as a severely toxic plant. Photo by Krista76
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 | COMMON NAME: : Swiss-cheese, Ceriman SCIENTIFIC NAME: Monstera deliciosa TOXIC PARTS: Leaves Chewing the leaf of this plant causes severe pain and irritation, along with blistering and edema of mouth tissue. Hoarseness and loss of voice can also occur. Ingesting the ripened fruit can cause rapidly developing hives in sensitive individuals Photo by Carl E Lewis
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Toxicity information for these poisonous house plants was compiled from the information provided by:
Derek B. Munro
Biological Informatics Specialist
Canadian Poisonous Plants Information System
Canadian Biodiversity Information Facility
All images on this page are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike License courtesy of Flicker.com.
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