Gardening and Lawn Maintenance

[pipistrelle]

Wear gloves, long sleeves, eye protection, and maybe even a mask when you do cut it down. Your skin will react to the sap from milkweed ranging from mild irritation to serious lesions and doctor time. Unlike nettles, hogweed, hemlock, poison ivy, et al things in nature that can hurt you, you can touch milkweed. Just avoid that sap. Soap and water clean it off. Some benedryl gel afterwards will calm the irritation down.

Otherwise, a beautiful plant, and a prime feeding plant for Monarchs.

Makes them toxic.

Leaves may be narrow or broad. Leaves or other above-ground parts of the plant are poisonous. They contain several glucosidic substances called cardenolides that are toxic.

[bill_g]

Makes them toxic.

Leaves may be narrow or broad. Leaves or other above-ground parts of the plant are poisonous. They contain several glucosidic substances called cardenolides that are toxic.

Nature's chemistry cabinet can be fascinating. Oddly enough hemlock, hogweed, Queen Anne's Lace, and carrots are in the same family just as potatoes, tomatoes, tobacco, and bella donna are all related. Hence the reason you aren't supposed to eat the green skin on taters. We love looking at butterflies, and they absolutely need the milkweed to survive, but we can't touch the stuff without consequences.