The plant, often called spotted hemlock, contains alkaloids that act on the nervous system, which can cause breathing difficulties, paralysis and even death in pets, according to the Daily Mail. It is also harmful to humans as its roots are the most toxic part.
A spokesperson for the Northern Ireland Environmental Protection Agency (NIEA) said that on May 23, an environmental inspection at the site of the deaths of several dogs found “large quantities of the spotted hemlock, toxic but quite common. The agency called hemlock “perhaps the most poisonous native plant.” It is distributed in the northwest, northern Europe and in Russia.
The wet spring is believed to have led to a bumper crop of the plant, which can grow over five feet tall. Hemlock bears clusters of tiny white flowers on long stems with red-spotted green leaves. It finds its way into the gardens of people who may mistake it for similar edible plants like parsley.
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In ancient Greece, hemlock (hemlock) was used to kill condemned prisoners or famous people, the most famous of whom was the philosopher Socrates in 399 BC. Its poison causes tremors before death.
Some birds do not get hemlock poisoning, such as larks and quail. But when they eat it, they become just as poisonous as the plant. Due to its sedative properties, Greek and Persian doctors used it to treat arthritis. But they had to stop, as it was easy to accidentally give a lethal dose.
The name hemlock comes from the Anglo-Saxons, who also used it in their medicine, and it means “plant of the shore”. According to an old English legend, the purple stripes on the stem represented the mark on Cain’s forehead after killing his brother Abel in the Old Testament.
