Monday, July 21, 2008

Attack of the Innocuous-Looking Plants

Although I have not, to my knowledge, seen the plant named in this post, the wild parsnip, but I was duly cowed by the description of its secret weapon.

Unlike the friendly parsnips you can buy in the store and roast up into deliciousness (especially good in a nice root veg mix with carrots, turnips and sweet potatoes!), this plant produces a chemical that makes causes phytophotodermatitis, making one particularly susceptible to ultraviolet light so that even mild sun exposure can result in serious burns. 

As a pale and sunburny person, I will have to add this plant to my list of things at which to look askance. If I see it, that is. I don't spend that much time roaming about among the weeds these days, so I'm not aware of having encountered it so far, although its range does include Massachusetts.

Clearly the vegetable kingdom is not all fun and games, my friends, oh no! 


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