First some background:
"
Frankie's
Garden" was designed by the same man who brought The
Wall to the quiet community of Borodino in the millennium
year 2000. There are many seasonal and holiday views of The
Wall lurking in the Archives of The
Bullett, accompanied by music appropriate for the
occasion. The pictures below can be seen on a walking tour
of downtown Borodino.
Don't they look lovely with yews in the
background? If you would like to test fate, and start your
own Poisonous Plant Garden, here's how to find
out more...
Sure
they may look threatening, towering over my head. And some
people say they're poisonous. But is this a witch hunt? Or
is there validity to the claim of some people in town who
say these monstrous plants growing on Frank Marcheterre's
property in Borodino are dangerous.
I brought in a leaf sample to Cooperative
Extension of Onondaga County last week for a second opinion
identifying a plant growing vigorously on Frankie's property
in Borodino.
Is it common cow parsnip (Heracleum maximum) or
the poisonous giant hogweed (Heracleum mantegazzianum)?
Both are in the Parsley family. But the giant hogweed is
really a native of the Ural (Caucasus) mountains of the
former Soviet Union, first introduced in Victorian times to
the UK. It quickly escaped captivity, and is now found in
many temperate regions northern Europe and N. America.
What is my background?
Horticulturist. I've grown plants commercially and
professionally designed gardens for over 15 years. I retired
from active duty when I moved here 7 years ago, but I
plan to go back to it someday.
Have I seen this plant spread invasively?
Not really, and I live right next door.
Have I touched the plant? I've
always had a propensity toward contact dermatitis. It has
caused no reaction to me. I've even chopped up the hollow
stems in a nice salad on occasion. (joke) Frankie does
appear to be losing weight lately? Could this be his diet
secret? (another joke)
Can
you identify the plant by it's height? According to A
Field Guide to Wildflowers, Peterson & McKenny,
1968, Heracleum maximum will grow 4-10 feet.
[see left, click to enlarge] [These
field guide pages available in PDF, 600
kb]
I spoke to Amy at Cooperative Extension in Syracuse, their
resident expert. Amy said she "couldn't say
definitively that it was native Cow Parsnip, or it's
poisonous cousin, Giant Hogweed, because they look too
similar," she said. And there is "no bulge
present." She advised to treat it as though it is
poisonous, and warned that if it is Hogweed it is known to
cause severe dermatitis, which is worsened by exposure to
the sun.
Source: Misc. Bulletin 123 "Giant
Hogweed," Cornell Cooperative Extension, Peter Hypio
and Edward Cope [see left, entire
brochure available in PDF, 2 mb]
*Fact sheet from Perdue University on Giant
Hogweed. [click
here to download text file]
