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My daughter is old enough now to be able to access this plant in the garden and since its berries look just like blueberries, I just chopped the whole thing up because I don't know what it is. I'm in the Pacific Northwest. I could add that it has a thick stalk around 2" (4 stalks worth shown in the 2nd photo) and it comes up every year.

unidentified plant unidentified plant

Fo.
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    Hi and welcome to the site! Can you check out [this](http://gardening.stackexchange.com/questions/2609/what-is-this-fast-growing-plant-with-blue-black-berries/2610#2610) question and see if it looks like your plant? Thanks! – Sue Saddest Farewell TGO GL Aug 13 '15 at 02:24
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    Yes sue, that looks like it's probably it. It was much clearer from the pokeweed page on Wikipedia. Thanks. – Fo. Aug 13 '15 at 02:40
  • My pleasure! I see you've been around the network, and hope you come back here with more gardening questions, and answers! – Sue Saddest Farewell TGO GL Aug 13 '15 at 02:44
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    Pokeberry seems to be becoming more common at the northen end of it's range. http://plants.usda.gov/core/profile?symbol=pham4 never used to see them round here. Now they're everywhere. – Wayfaring Stranger Aug 13 '15 at 13:47

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Pokeberry is poisonous. The new leaves are gathered sometimes for salads, but I wouldn't trust it growing near children. As the leaves mature they become toxic. The berries can make you sick,too.

  • It was in the yard waste bin before I even posted the question (as mentioned). For anyone who's interested, the Wikipedia page has a lot of useful info https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phytolacca_americana – Fo. Aug 13 '15 at 15:59