Aconitum

everyone is posting pics of monkshood. I had some in my city garden and brought some here...but come to think of it I haven't seen it. should go look.

My Monkshood never looked as good as this & is long since finished. I'm tempted to dig it out.

Lori / Gf I was going to dig this out after a news flash about a man almost dying after touching this,it is poisonous apparently he was very allergic to it, he was taken to hospital as an emergency patient , be careful !

Thanks for the warning, Amy, I am aware that all parts are poisonous - Spritz said that's why nothing ever attacks it, lol. (Bryony is another). I cut mine down every year when it looks tatty & am still here so not been affected.
Some people are very unlucky with allergies.

This is from a reply to a question on my pics of Aconitum/Monk's Hood... "not sure what, if any, modern medical uses there are for this plant...but you are right about it's antiquity, Gt. also called Wolf's Bane...it's been used to poison for millenia , but there are many plants in the pharmacopia which are as dangerous if handled or used. The connection of witches with this herb came from the middle ages when it was mixed with bella donna into an ointment that was used on the witches' bodies for flying! LOL... it has been used as a medicinal herb but is no longer included in the British or American Pharmacopoeia...but is used in some Chinese medicines because it slows the heart and decreases blood pressure, it reduces inflammation and induces sweating when ingested in infinitessimally small quantities and it can numb the skin but the therapeutic dose is too close to toxicity it's just not worth the risk. It's not a common favourite in ornamental gardens because it is susceptible to crown rot, powdery mildew, mosaic, cyclamen mite, and verticillium wilt..(according to my herbal) and... keep the kids away from it!"