The UK’s ‘most dangerous plant’ is in bloom
Warnings are being shared across the nation as the UK gets further into giant hogweed season, a non-native invasive species of plant with toxic sap that only blooms in June and July.
Heracleum mantegazzianum, more commonly known as giant hogweed, is an herbaceous plant that can be found throughout the UK, notably colonising on riverbanks where the seeds are spread by water.
The flora’s sap contains photosensitising furanocoumarins, making it highly toxic and can cause severe phytophotodermatitis, skin irritations and burns.
Symptoms will often appear within 48 hours of contact. These include initial boils, rashes and redness.
The symptoms and burns elicited by the toxic sap is aggravated by direct sunlight; even before they appear, this can lead to further blisters and permanent scarring.
The giant hogweed can grow up to five metres in height, which is considerably larger than its relative, hogweed, that only grows up to two metres.
Regular-sized hogweed’s sap is also substantially less toxic than that of giant hogweed.
When giant hogweed blooms it is much larger in stacher, making it easily identifiable, but in early spring (May) when the species is still growing, it bares resemblance to regular sized hogweed.
Notable differences between the two species can be identified on their stems. Giant hogweed’s stems have distinctive purple blotches with no groves, while regular hogweed stems have a purple hue with a groove descending down.
People are advised when controlling giant hogweed to always wear gloves, cover both arms and legs and it is recommended to wear a face covering.
It is advised to wash any skin that comes into contact with the plant immediately with cold water, noting that contaminated clothing and tools can be potentially hazardous too.
For more information on giant hogweed visit the RHS website here.