Frequently (and not so frequently) Asked Questions
BRIEF: Are liriope, bottlebrush and ficus benjamina considered toxic to animals?
QUESTION:
Are liriope, bottlebrush and ficus benjamina considered toxic to animals?
Also what on the list of impations thats toxic is the one that most
people plant in their baskets and flower gardens? I'd like the scientific name.
ANSWER:
liriope
The bulb from Crinum species contain some toxic alkaloids at low levels, but the
worst symptoms I know of involve nausea and severe vomiting and diarrhea.
bottlebrush
I don't know of any toxic effects of bottlebrush. As a kid, I noticed that the
blossoms always, always seemed to have a lot of bees buzzing around them, and I
guess being stung by a bee is a pretty toxic experience!
ficus benjamina
Like many other members of the fig family, the sap of weeping fig can cause some
nasty itchy reactions to the skin. And many people are allergic to the dust that
rises from the leaves during cleaning.
Impatiens species
I imagine that a steady diet of Impatiens would cause problems due to the high
oxylate content, and you would think one would get the swollen mouth symptoms
since it contains raphide needles, but I can find no cases in the literature of
poisoning.