7 common plants you should never touch with your bare hands
These plants are common in the UK, but can be very dangerous.
Few things are more pleasant than getting out in nature when the sun is shining. Whether you want to go on a woodland walk, or simply work in the garden it can be a very peaceful way to spend an afternoon.
However, there are some plants that grow commonly in the UK that can be dangerous to your health. Everyone already knows about stinging nettles - but there are six other plants that can cause rashes, pain or sickness if you touch them accidentally. It’s important to be able to identify them, and stay away if you want to keep your time outside pleasant.
Giant hogweed
These plants look similar to cow parsley, with serrated green leaves and umbrella-like clusters of upward facing white flowers. These can be as large as 60cm across, and once fully matured, the plant can reach up to five metres tall.
This plant is particularly dangerous in summer as it contains high levels of furanocoumarins – chemicals which make the skin very sensitive to sunlight. If you brush against it, you can experience skin burning, blistering and long-lasting scars.
Common hogweed
This plant looks very similar to giant hogweed and is typically found in grassy areas, hedgerows, and roadsides. It can grow to heights of one to two and a half metres tall. It has the same umbrella-like flowers and is a great plant for pollinators. However, similar to its cousin the giant hogweed, this plant is toxic to skin when it comes into contact with sunlight. It’s also toxic to animals. If you are handling this plant it’s very important to wear gloves.
Stinging nettle
These plants can cause pain and itching if you brush against them due to the tiny hairs on their leaves. They are common across the UK and can be identified by their dark green foliage. They grow in patches of upright stems, up to one and a half metres tall, with cream or brownish green flowers in the late spring to early autumn.
Poison hemlock
Poison hemlock is a high toxic plant that grows in damp conditions and along roadsides in the UK. It is rarer in Scotland and Ireland and can be identified by its reddish-purple splotched stems and distinctive mousy smell.
If ingested, hemlock causes slow muscle paralysis and ultimately, death by suffocation.
Bittersweet nightshade
This plant is beautiful, but can be dangerous. It is identifiable by its flowers which bloom purple and have yellow centres that develop into green, then red berries. The plant has tri-folate leaves and grows up to two and a half metres tall. If consumed it can cause severe gastrointestinal issues due to it being highly toxic.
Deadly nightshade
Every part of this plant is poisonous, but its black berries are especially dangerous as they look similar to the edible bilberry. It can be identified by its oval shaped leaves and bell shaped flowers that are purple and green in colour. It grows most commonly in scrubby areas and woodland, but also along paths and banks, mostly in the southern half of the UK
Thorn apple
This plant is fast-growing and can reach heights of up to one and a half metres during a long, hot summer. It is identifiable by its exotic-looking leaves with wavy, pointed edges and wide, funnel-shaped flowers, which bloom from July to October in white or occasionally purple/lilac tints. It also produces large, spiky seed capsules. The entire plant is toxic and must not be consumed.
