Poisonous Tropical Plants
Tropical plants are kept for decorative purposes by many people because of their rich and attractive foliage, their unique flowers or both. However, it is important to be aware that many tropical plants are poisonous. There is no need to panic if you just found out that you have or may have poisonous tropical plants. Many people keep poisonous plants in their homes without being aware of it and yet no one gets hurt because most of them are poisonous only if eaten. After all, who eats household plants? On the other hand, it is important to be very careful if having young children or pets who may be attracted by their flowers, leaves or seeds.
It is very unlikely for young children or pets trying to eat tropical plants, especially children. Nevertheless, it is not impossible and for that reason it is highly important to take care for preventive measures, especially if you are not sure whether your child really understands that household plants should not be eaten and why. Preventing pets from getting near your tropical plants is nearly impossible. Pets such as dogs and cats normally do not eat plants but they may chew the leaves while playing or drink the water from the saucer beneath the pot.
Just because you have young children or pets that does not necessarily mean that you cannot get tropical plants which are poisonous or that have to get rid of the ones you already own. Generally, you do not need to worry about your children or pets ingesting poisonous plants as long as they are kept out of reach to them. However, if your child or pet has eaten or could have eaten a poisonous tropical plant you should immediately seek medical help and take the plant you suspect that was ingested along to help the doctor or veterinarian to determine the best treatment. Fatalities are fortunately, very rare because most plants need to be eaten in larger amounts but you should not assume that your child or pet has not ingested enough to experience any problems. Both children and pets are more likely to develop symptoms of plant poisoning than adult humans because they get a higher concentration of toxins in relation to their body mass.
Since the risk of ingestion of poisonous tropical plants by children or pets cannot be excluded, you should place all the plants that are poisonous out of reach to your children and pets. If you do not know if your plants are poisonous or not, you can check online or in a book. But if you do not know the name of the plant, take it to a florist to help you identify it or ask a person who might know that plant’s name to be able to determine whether it is poisonous or not. Do not rely on photographs found on the Internet or a book because it is very difficult to identify the plant on the basis of a photo alone. If you cannot identify your tropical plants, put them out of reach to your children and pets just in case.