How to keep toxic plants away from your garden
It must be nice having a complex garden where you grow beautiful roses, magnificent hydrangeas, and even healthy vegetables, but if you are just starting out, there are some things you need to find out before. Poisonous plants can also lurk in your garden, and it might be challenging for a newbie to spot them. This article will serve as research during your journey and will give you enough information to identify what poisonous plants you might have around your home and how to get rid of them.

Common poisonous plants
Poisonous plants are outlined as harmful plants that have the potential to inflict a noteworthy amount of damage on human beings, which can even lead to death. The most common poisonous plants that can be found in your garden are: Lily of the Valley, Rhubarb, Daffodil, Wisteria, Hemlock and Rhododendron. Toxic plants have a couple of features that should be your warning signs, such unpleasant smells, milky sap, and they tend to grow in unusual places, but some of them look very appealing, so due to their beautiful aspect you may not think of them as poisonous. That’s why we recommend dedicating some time to gather useful information about their specific characteristics. For example, Poison Ivy is a common poisonous plant that can be difficult to identify because it has a lot of look-alikes in nature. You have to be really careful, as this plant produces toxic oils that can severely irritate your skin and if you digest it, the consequences can be fatal.
World’s most dangerous plants
No one can blame some people for being scared of poisonous plants, but considering The Poison Garden which is situated on the north-east coast of England and the hundreds of thousands of visitors it receives every year, we can also admit there are so many other people passionate about this subject. Let’s delve into mother nature’s most dangerous plants and the history behind them.
Water Hemlock is a wildflower from the carrot family that grows in North America. Speculations have been made about Socrates’ death, saying his centripetal paralysis is a characteristic attributed to this poison.
Atropa Belladonna, known as Deadly Nightshade, has green leaves and purple bell-shaped flowers, but in spite of their beautiful aspect, it can be deadly if eaten. It contains scopolamine, and by inducing hallucinations, it was used to relieve pain in ancient Rome. Also, when the Danes invaded Scotland, Macbeth’s soldiers made wine from Belladonna fruits and poisoned them with it.
You probably never thought about castor oil as the result of a plant that is very dangerous, but yes, it only takes eight seeds of castor beans to kill a human being. It was used in 1970 to kill a Bulgarian journalist who spoke against the government.
Is your garden safe?
You may wonder how you can have poisonous plants in your garden without intentionally planting them. Well, birds sometimes might carry poisonous fruits or flower seeds and unfortunately, your garden might be one of the places where they choose to spread them. Please remember, taking a picture of a plant and letting an Online Plant Scanner decide whether it is poisonous or not, should not be something to rely on. You should instead search it on a specialized website that is backed by a reputable institution.
When you observe a new plant in your garden, you can, for example, rub it on your wrist and wait the next hours to see if it causes a reaction or not. However, it’s best to first search it to find out more about it before touching it. Also, if you smell it and notice it has an unpleasant scent, it could be a sign the plant should not be consumed.
If you want to ensure your plants are growing healthily, from time to time, you must make a visual inspection and check for signs of mould, parasites, insects, grain heads with pink and black spurs, or groups of three leaves. To promote plant growth, elho recommends using qualitative flower pots for both your indoor and outdoor plants. It would be beneficial to fill the pots with organic soil and, after planting, water them according to the plants’ needs and ensure they get a proper amount of sunlight. Also, if using fertilizers is part of your growing routine, you should opt for organic ones, as they aid the evolution of soil texture, which will subsequently extend the duration of water storage. Moreover, choosing that kind of fertilizer is a decision that also benefits the planet, as they are nontoxic for the soil and environmentally friendly.
Tips to create a healthy garden
Cleaning: You should constantly throw away everything that is no longer useful or desirable. If some of your plants are no longer alive and you can not bring them back to life, get rid of them.
Separating: Some plants are not compatible, and you should always avoid growing them together because they can spread diseases to each other. Plan before planting because, for example, it would be a terrible idea to plant lavender with shasta daisies, russian sage with hostas, heuchera with butterfly milkweed.
Flower Pots: Carefully choose your flower pots to give your plants a long-lasting life. You should thoughtfully pick your flower pots because your plants need to have enough space to grow. Before buying, consider the following aspects: size, drainage, and material.
Winter changes: If you have dahlias, begonias, fuchsias, and succulents, move them indoors for protection. Unfortunately, they do not survive freezing nights.
Child safety
As you probably know, children are always curious, and they might not listen to your explanations regarding the dangers of some plants, so having kids and growing potentially harmful plants could be a mistake. Pesticides and fertilizers are dangerous as well, so deposit them properly. Sharp tools are not something your kids should play with, so if you want to provide a safe environment for them, remember to always store your toolbox carefully. If having wasp nests, remove them and also, never leave your electrical equipment plugged in!
Conclusions
There is an absolute joy in seeing your plants grow, but you can not get there without carefully observing their needs. The pots and soil should be chosen with a sense of responsibility, and the watering and sunlight matter as well. Poisonous plants are beautiful too, but as they can be very dangerous, try admiring them on the internet, rather than in your own garden.