Lily of the Valley
Lily of the Valley
A child friendly garden
Four years ago, my wife (Cecilia) gave birth to my first son Samuel. Even though I knew it would be a year or so before the garden would become his playground, I decided to examine my plant collections to ensure that there where no specimens that would cause harm to him. I was amazed by the shear number of garden plants that where considered as ‘poisonous’. Admittedly, not many of them if ingested would caused serious harm, but all the same such plants had to go.
Common varieties of poisonous plants
Here is a list of some of the varieties of indoor and outdoor plants to avoid when planning a child friendly garden. I have high-lighted some of the very dangerous plants with a ‘*’ – there maybe others in this list that are equally as poisonous. Please note: this list is not comprehensive, there are many other plants to avoid growing if you have young children.
Poisonous plants in order of common name
- Amanita muscaria
- Azalea *
- American Pokeweed (Phytolacca)
- Angel’s trumpet (Datura suaveolens)
- Autumn Crocus (Colchicum autumnale)
- Baneberry (Actaea spicata)
- Bittersweet (Solanum dulcamara)
- Black Henbane (Hyoscyamus niger)
- Black Snakeroot (Cimicifuga racemosa)
- Bluebells (Hyacinthoides)
- Broom (Cytisus)
- Box (Buxus) *
- Buttercup (Ranunculus acris)
- Camellia sinensis
- Castor Oil Plant (Ricinus communis)
- Catmint (Nepeta faassenii)
- Columbine (Aquilegia)
- Comfrey (Symphytum officinale)
- Common Box (Buxus sempervirens)
- Cuckoo pint (Arum)
- Daffodil (Narcissus)
- Daphne mezereon *
- Darnel (Lolium temulentum)
- Delphinium
- Devil’s trumpet (Datura stramonium)
- Dock (Rumex obtusifolius)
- Dragon Arum (Dracunculus vulgaris)
- Eggplant (Solanum melongena)
- Eranthis hyemalis (Winter aconite)
- Euonymus europaeus (Spindle)
- Euphorbia
- False Helleborine (Veratrum)
- Foxglove (Digitalis) *
- Fremontodendron *
- Fritillaria
- Gloriosa Lily
- Greek Mullein (Verbascum olympicum)
- Helleborus
- Hemlock (Conium maculatum)
- Heracleum mantegazzianum
- Holly (Ilex aquifolium)
- Horse-chestnut (Conker Tree)
- Houndstongue (Cynoglossum officinale)
- Ivy (Hedera helix)
- Juniper (Juniperus communis)
- Laburnum anagyroides *
- Lantana
- Laurel (Prunus laurocerasus) *
- Lily of the Valley (Convallaria majalis) *
- Lobelia *
- Mandrake (Mandragora officinarum)
- Monkshood (Aconitum)
- Mistletoe (Viscum album)
- Oleander (Nerium oleander)
- Opium Poppy (Papaver somniferum)
- Pasque Flower (Pulsatilla vulgaris)
- Periwinkle (Vinca major)
- Poison ivy (Toxicodendron radicans)
- Ragwort (Senecio jacobaea)
- Rhubarb leaves (Rheum hybridum) *
- Rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis)
- Rue (Ruta graveolens)
- Snowdrop (Galanthus nivalis)
- Solomon’s-seal (Polygonatum odoratum)
- Strychnine tree (Strychnos nux-vomica)
- Summer Snowflake (Leucojum aestivum)
- Symphoricarpos albus
- Tobacco plant (Nicotiana sylvestris)
- Traveller’s Joy (Clematis vitalba)
- Viper’s Bugloss (Echium vulgare)
- White Willow (Salix alba)
- Yellow oleander (Thevetia peruviana)
- Yew (Taxus baccata) *
Other considerations
For cat owners – it is strongly advised for you not to grow lillies in your garden! Read this article to find out why.