Gardening and Landscaping Stack Exchange
Gardening and Landscaping Stack Exchange

Questions tagged [toxicity]

For questions about toxicity of certain plants, materials, pesticides, fertilizers, soil additives and more.

41 questions
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Community treatment of wild parsnip - your recommendations

Each summer in those parts of the world where wild parsnip goes to seed there are various small efforts to control the spread of this plant. The media have a field day, of course, "deadly", "toxic", "danger" and so on, and it keeps at least 3…
Colin Beckingham
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Is wood ash from black locust harmful to plants?

Black walnut has juglone in it, which can be harmful to other plants. I've read claims that you shouldn't use black walnut for wood ash in your garden because of this, although I'm not sure if that's true. It does seem pretty sure that soil black…
Brōtsyorfuzthrāx
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What are the disadvantages of using wood mulch as a cover?

I see more and more wood mulch along the roads, around houses, etc. At first thought it seemed a good thing to me, because it allows lots of life to grow around, while not releasing a lot of CO2 into the air -- apart from burning fumes which can…
J. Chomel
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How do I fix copper toxicity in my soil?

I made a mistake and installed a retaining wall in my garden made out of creosote-treated wood from an old bridge, which contains chromium copper arsenate. Our strawberries planted below the wall shortly began to wilt, and our raspberries followed…
jstaab
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Is tradescantia andersoniana (Blushing bride) toxic to pets (specifically cats)?

According to Wikipedia, some members of Tradescantia (e.g., inch plants) are toxic to cats: the sap seems to cause dermatitis (source). However, I can't tell if this applies to all members of the genus. In particular, I recently came into possession…
Tradescantia confusedus
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Is it safe to burn Wisteria trimmings?

I have a pile of trimmings from a couple of Wisteria vines. I believe one of the vines was a Japanese Wisteria (floribunda) and one was a Chinese Wisteria (sinensis). I've read that these are toxic when ingested, and the sap can cause irritation…
C.F.
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How to seal board gaps in raised bed garden?

I just put together a 10x4 raised bed garden using cedar boards stacked 2 high. I am a little concerned that the small gap between the stacked boards will let water seep out. Could you provide any recommendations for sealing this gap? It would have…
zeal
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Do toxic mushrooms that grow near a plant affect its edible / poisonous traits?

Some facts: I have some Basil growing in a pot, for the past 7-8 months, with some Thyme right next to it. Last week some mushrooms grew on the soil in-between them and under the Basil. What I know: These mushrooms are only the fruiting body…
orangesomethingorange
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Are garden gnomes and similar decorations safe to install indoors?

I think of buying a garden decoration similar to a garden gnome - a ceramic hollow figure of a bird - sold at a gardening store and meant for installing in a garden. I want to install it indoors. My concern is that since it is meant for a garden it…
sharptooth
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eating my weeds

My dad used Round-Up heavily in my yard 10 years ago. I haven't used any since and now I would love to harvest and eat some of the edible weeds growing so well there. Is it safe now that 10 years have passed? Does anyone know how long this chemical…
lydia wilson
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Galvanised fire bins and ash?

I bought a new galvanised fire bin and burnt a shed load of garden waste ...just leaves and branches. I want to use the ash in the compost when preparing my raised beds but I'm worried about the galvanised coating that was on the bin. It's…
daveheee
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Is it safe to use yuca/cassava skins in my compost

A whole bunch of cassava root has made its way into my house and now I have a whole bunch of cassava rinds, about a kilo or so, which I chucked into my compost bin (A trashcan full of holes) to start a new batch of compost. But now, a few hours…
Phineas Nicolson
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Can you eat corn, cantaloupe, and pepper greens?

I've got a little compost pile that has been sitting for a bit, and all of a sudden an absolute ton of sprouts came up. I have a small garden and transplanted a bunch, but theres still wall to wall sprouts remaining. So basically these vegetable…
Citizen
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What tree to plant on contaminated bonfire pit

In a marginal corner of the garden, the previous tenant had questionable bonfires, which left a very deep layer of ashes, glass, metal, plastic and ceramic bits. I have cleaned most of the coarsest waste left, and left the ashes, and now I would…
usumdelphini
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Is it safe to consume fruits from plants grown in metal cans?

We drink a lot of coffee in our house so we have tons of these aluminum (?) cans (about 10cm in diameter): I would like to re-purpose these cans as growing containers for some hot peppers (Capsicum X). I can imagine any acids in the soil can…
Jan M.
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