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White Snakeroot

 
White Snakeroot

 
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White Snakeroot
 
 
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White Snakeroot (Ageratina altissima), also known as White Sanicle or Tall Boneset, is a poisonous perennial
Perennial plant

A perennial plant or perennial is a plant that lives for more than two years. When used by gardeners or horticulturalists, this term applies specifically to perennial herbaceous plants....
 herb
Herb

A herb is a plant that is valued for qualities such as medicinal properties, flavor, scent, or the like....
 in the family Asteraceae
Asteraceae

The family Asteraceae or Compositae is the largest family of flowering plants, in terms of number of species.The name 'Asteraceae' is derived from the type genus Aster , while 'Compositae', an older but still valid name, means composite and refers to the characteristic inflorescence, a special type of pseudanthium found in o...
, native to eastern North America
North America

North America is the northern continent of the Americas, situated in the Earth's northern hemisphere and almost totally in the western hemisphere....
. An older binomial
Binomial

In elementary algebra, a binomial is a polynomial with two terms—the sum of two monomials—often bound by parenthesis or brackets when operated upon....
 name for this species was Eupatorium rugosum, but the genus Eupatorium
Eupatorium

Eupatorium is a genus of flowering plants, containing from 36 to 60 species depending on the classification system. Most are herbaceous perennial plants growing to 0.5?3 m tall....
 has undergone taxonomic revision by botanists and a number of the species once included there have been moved to other genera.

Plants are upright or sometimes ascending, growing to 1.5 meters tall, producing single or multi-stemmed clumps.






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White Snakeroot (Ageratina altissima), also known as White Sanicle or Tall Boneset, is a poisonous perennial
Perennial plant

A perennial plant or perennial is a plant that lives for more than two years. When used by gardeners or horticulturalists, this term applies specifically to perennial herbaceous plants....
 herb
Herb

A herb is a plant that is valued for qualities such as medicinal properties, flavor, scent, or the like....
 in the family Asteraceae
Asteraceae

The family Asteraceae or Compositae is the largest family of flowering plants, in terms of number of species.The name 'Asteraceae' is derived from the type genus Aster , while 'Compositae', an older but still valid name, means composite and refers to the characteristic inflorescence, a special type of pseudanthium found in o...
, native to eastern North America
North America

North America is the northern continent of the Americas, situated in the Earth's northern hemisphere and almost totally in the western hemisphere....
. An older binomial
Binomial

In elementary algebra, a binomial is a polynomial with two terms—the sum of two monomials—often bound by parenthesis or brackets when operated upon....
 name for this species was Eupatorium rugosum, but the genus Eupatorium
Eupatorium

Eupatorium is a genus of flowering plants, containing from 36 to 60 species depending on the classification system. Most are herbaceous perennial plants growing to 0.5?3 m tall....
 has undergone taxonomic revision by botanists and a number of the species once included there have been moved to other genera.

Plants are upright or sometimes ascending, growing to 1.5 meters tall, producing single or multi-stemmed clumps. They are found in woods and brush thickets were they bloom mid to late summer or fall. The flowers are a clean white color and after blooming small seeds with fluffy white tails are released to blow in the wind. This species is adaptive to different growing conditions and can be found in open shady areas with open bare ground; it can be weedy in shady landscapes and in hedgerows. There are two different varieties Ageratina altissima var. angustata and Ageratina altissima var. roanensis (Appalachian white snakeroot); they differ in the length of the flower phyllaries and shape of the apices.

Toxicity

White Snakeroot contains the toxin tremetol; when the plants are consumed by cattle, the meat and milk become contaminated with the toxin. When milk or meat containing the toxin is consumed, the poison is passed onto humans, and if consumed in large enough quantities can cause tremetol poisoning in humans. The poisoning is also called milk sickness
Milk sickness

Milk sickness, also known as tremetol vomiting, or in animals as trembles, is characterized by trembling, vomiting, and severe intestinal pain that affects individuals who eat dairy products or meat from a cow that has fed on White Snakeroot....
; notably, it was the cause of death of Nancy Hanks
Nancy Hanks

File:Nancy hanks, lincoln boyhood memorial, cropped.jpgNancy Hanks Lincoln was the mother of Abraham Lincoln and Sarah Lincoln and wife of Thomas Lincoln....
, mother of Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln

Abraham Lincoln was the List of Presidents of the United States President of the United States. He successfully led the country through its greatest internal crisis, the American Civil War, preserving the Union and ending slavery....
. The plants are also poisonous to horses, goats, and sheep. Signs of poisoning in these animals include depression and lethargy, hind feet placed close together (horses, goats, cattle) or held far apart (sheep), nasal discharge, excessive salivation, arched body posture, and rapid or difficult breathing.

Cultivation

An asexual propagated cultivar, sold under the name Eupatorium rugosum 'Chocolate', is grown in gardens for its dark tinted foliage. The darkest color, which is a chocolaty black, occurs in a sunny position, and the plants grow best in moisture retentive soils and are shade tolerant. More recently, the plant can be found under the correct species name and is listed as Ageratina altissima 'Chocolate'.

See also

  • List of plants poisonous to equines
    List of plants poisonous to equines

    This is a list of plants which are poisonous to equines. Some may cause mild reactions, such as diarrhea, others can lead to serious problems including horse colic, laminitis, and neurological problems, which, in some circumstances, can be fatal....


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