1

I was shopping for seeds online and saw a flower seed mix which looked appealing: Butterfly and Hummingbird Mix. It has a poison warning which gave me pause. I'm not much of a gardener so I don't know how serious this is. I bought them anyway as I have no children or pets in the household but then I wondered if I would be murdering the squirrels or something . . .

Is this warning just a "don't do stupid stuff" legal disclaimer or do I need to be concerned about what I may plant nearby which may be edible (e.g. cucumbers, etc.) or about putting out bird feeders (aka "squirrel feeders")?

enter image description here

spring
  • 219
  • 1
  • 5

1 Answers1

0

Unless you have a dog that likes to eat plants (some do, I've been told) or raise sheep, goats, or cows, then I wouldn't worry about the plants - just don't eat any parts of them. C. ambigua is sometimes considered a medicinal herb, as it has been used externally as a lice killer, and L. perennis has been known to kill sheep. Lupinus polyphylla is another poisonous lupine often crossed to create garden hybrids, yet I've never heard of it causing any problems.

For more information lupines, you can go to the FDA's fact sheet on lupines; there is a fact sheet on C. ambigua, too, but I couldn't access it. Here's the link; perhaps you'll have better luck.

Jurp
  • 18,009
  • 1
  • 15
  • 36
  • thanks! (but what about the squirrels!!!?? ) – spring Mar 24 '21 at 21:23
  • I don't think squirrels eat either of these seeds. I grow larkspurs and delphiniums, plus baptisia (a lupine cousin), and I've never seen squirrels at all interested in either of them. – Jurp Mar 24 '21 at 22:35