Toxic flowers

There are species of flowers that are used for food or at least for seasoning, but many other flowers are poisonous and may even kill a person. Therefore before deciding to try to eat flowers (or plants in general) it is necessary to know with certainty which plant it is and whether this plant, in whole or in part, is edible.

 Mistakes in flower identification lead thousands of people around the world to hospitals every year to treat poisoning, some of whom also find their deaths as a result of this mistake.

In this article we will describe several types of poisonous flowers. Of course, this list is very limited and there are hundreds of other types of flowers and plants that are dangerous to humans and other animals. A flower should never be assumed to be edible just because it does not appear on this or that list of poisonous flower types. One must know the flower and know for sure that it is edible to be sure that it is non-toxic.

The azalea flower, also known as the rhododendron, is a flower sold in many nurseries in the country and grows in many pots and gardens. This flower is quite toxic and will cause those who eat it to stomach aches, vomiting that may also lead to dehydration and loss of consciousness. The taste of this flower is bitter and repulsive so the chance of someone eating a large amount of it is small assuming it is good to eat.

Types of flowers

The lily flower (mild) is a noble and handsome white flower commonly used for weddings and other prestigious events. Although this flower is one of the types of poisonous flowers, the cases in which poisoning was caused due to it are very few due to its being large and impressive, until almost no one is mistaken and thought of as an edible flower.

The daffodil is also among the poisonous flowers. Not only the flower itself is poisonous but the whole plant and especially the onion. Daffodils are grown in Israel in the wild, as well as in greenhouses for use in flower shops, for home growing (in gardens and pots) and for export. Both natural daffodils and their cultivated brethren are toxic however the natural daffodil is the more toxic of the two.

The datura flower grows wild in Israel in many areas including the Galilee, the Jordan Valley, the Judean Mountains, the Dead Sea Valley, the Sharon, the northern Negev lowlands and more. The datura flower is white and medium to large in size.

It is an plant that invades the landscape of Eretz Israel and originates in South America. Datura is considered highly toxic, its seeds contain narcotic substances and the various parts of the plant have medicinal uses.

Finally it is important to emphasize again, do not try to taste, even quite a bit, a flower that is not familiar to us and we know for sure that it is not among the types of poisonous flowers that grow in our places.