Poisonous trees are not as well known compared to other poisonous plants. There are 20 poison trees, which are presented to you here. You may even have some of them in your garden.

In a nutshell

  • various parts of plants poisonous
  • Degree of poisoning depends on the plant
  • Children are more susceptible to poison

Poisonous trees from A to D

Apricot (Prunus armeniaca)

  • Poisonous: bitter seeds (amygdalin)
  • Distribution: Mediterranean region and south-west Germany, Middle East via China to Japan
  • Habit: upright, round crown, richly branched, lush green foliage, summer green
  • Growth height: 300 to 1,000 cm
  • Growth width: 200 to 400 cm
  • Flower: white to pink, 2.5 cm in diameter, pleasantly fragrant
  • Flowering time: March to mid-April
  • Fruit: spherical, furrowed, felt-like hairs, yellow to red in color
  • Location: full sun, sheltered from wind and rain, warm, humic, nutritious, well-drained, suitable for rock gardens

Tree ivy (Hedera helix)

  • Poisonous: in all plant parts, highest concentration in fruits
  • Distribution: Europe to eastern Turkey, except for southern Norway and Sweden not in northern Europe
  • Habit: Creeping, climbing, on trees, woody trunk (tree ivy), adhesive roots, evergreen
  • Growth height: 2,000 to 3,000 cm, in tree form mostly 1,000 cm
  • Growth width: depends on age, environment and climbing aids
  • Leaves of young specimens: rich green, three to five lobes, palmate, medium-sized
  • Leaves of mature form: dark green, heart-shaped, slightly wavy at the edge
  • Flowers: only from maturity, yellow-green, inconspicuous umbelliferous flowers
  • Flowering time: September to the end of October
  • Fruit: blue-black berries, densely arranged
  • Location: shady to shady, sufficiently humid, moist soil, humic, nutritious, adaptable

Notice: Ivy does not assume its adult form, which resembles a poisonous tree, until it is eight to ten years old. From this point on, the plant forms one or more trunks that make up the tree ivy.

Bitter Almond (Prunus dulcis var. amara)

Source: Javier martin, Prunus dulcis var. amara LeavesandtheLastFlower 2010March29 DehesaBoyaldePuertollano, edited by Plantopedia, CC0 1.0
  • Poisonous: nuclei (amygdalin)
  • Distribution: Western Asia from the Mediterranean to Southwest Asia
  • Growth: upright, loose crown, summer green
  • Growth height: 200 to 1,100 cm
  • Growth width: 150 to 200 cm
  • Leaf: green, elliptical, quite broad
  • Flowers: white-pink to pink, single bowl-shaped flowers
  • Flowering time: mid-March to mid-April
  • Fruit: drupes 3 to 5 cm long, velvety hairy, leathery
  • Location: sunny, warm, ideal in front of a wall or house wall, permeable, sandy, rich in nutrients

Bottle Tree (Pachypodium lealii)

  • Poisonous: Milky sap, used as arrow poison
  • Distribution: Namibia, southern Angola
  • Habit: thick trunk, resembles a bottle, silver-grey basic colour, varying degrees of branching in the upper area, armed with thorns, evergreen
  • Growth height: up to 600 cm
  • Growth width: up to 200 cm
  • Leaf: up to 10 cm long, green, glossy
  • Flower: sits at the end of the branch, white, plate-shaped, in clusters
  • Flowering time: summer to autumn
  • Location: sunny, warm (min. 15°C), permeable, mineral
  • Special features: not hardy, ideal container plant

Boxwood (Buxus sempervirens)

  • Poisonous: in all parts of the plant, highest concentration in leaves and bark
  • Distribution: Central to southwest Europe and North Africa to western Asia
  • Growth: upright, dense, evergreen, tolerates pruning well
  • Growth height: 800 to 2,000 cm
  • Growth width: 200 to 400 cm
  • Leaf: up to 2.5 cm long, dark green, shiny on top, dull underneath
  • Flowers: inconspicuous, yellow-green, in clusters, pleasantly fragrant
  • Flowering time: March to mid-May
  • Location: sunny to semi-shady, protect from the blazing midday sun, sheltered from the wind, likes lime, well-drained, moist

from E to F

Yew (Taxus baccata)

Taxus baccata 'Fastigiata Robusta'
  • Poisonous: highly toxic in almost all parts of the plant, only non-toxic in the fruit coat
  • Distribution: Azores across Europe and North Africa across Asia Minor to Iran
  • Growth: upright, crown round to oval, multi-stemmed, appealing, evergreen
  • Growth height: 1,000 to 2,000 cm
  • Growth width: 750 to 1,500 cm
  • Leaf: light green needles, up to 3 cm long, pointed, soft
  • Flowers: green-yellow cones
  • Flowering time: mid-March to late April
  • Fruit: drupes, red fruit coat, one dark seed per fruit
  • Location: Shady to shady, sun is tolerated, good for urban areas, undemanding, well-drained, calcareous, slightly loamy

Notice: Other yew species such as the Japanese yew tree (Taxus cuspidata) are also poisonous and should be handled with care if you keep the trees as ornamental plants.

European spindle tree (Euonymus europaeus)

  • Poisonous: in all parts of the plant, highest concentration in the seeds
  • Distribution: Europe to Asia Minor and the Caucasus
  • Growth: upright, densely branched, cracked bark, wind-resistant, summer green
  • Growth height: 300 to 600 cm
  • Growth width: up to 300 cm
  • Leaf: 2 to 12 cm long, lanceolate or ovate, fresh green, bright red in autumn
  • Flowers: in fours, inconspicuous, white to white-green
  • Flowering time: mid-May to mid-June
  • Fruit: purple to carmine, four-lobed, up to 4 seeds
  • Location: sunny to semi-shady, humus,
  • Special features: poisonous even for insects, food plant for birds

Buckthorn (Rhamnus frangula)

  • Poisonous: freshly formed bark, leaves, berries
  • Distribution: Europe via Caucasus to Asia Minor, Morocco, introduced into North America
  • Habit: Shrubby, small tree, irregular branches, overhanging, twigs slightly hairy, summer green
  • Growth height: 200 to 400 cm
  • Growth width: up to 150 cm
  • Leaves: wide, deep green, elliptical to ovate
  • Flowers: white to light green, in cymes, small, popular with pollinating insects
  • Flowering period: May to mid-June
  • Fruit: Drupes, small, red to black
  • Location: sunny to semi-shady, fresh, consistently moist to wet, dry soil is tolerated, acidic

from G to H

Common laburnum (Laburnum anagyroides)

  • Poisonous: highly toxic in all parts of the plant, highest concentration in the seeds
  • Distribution: Southern central to south-eastern Europe, grows near hop beech forests (Orno-Ostryon) and serviceberry-downy oak forests (Quercetum pubescenti-petraeae), deciduous
  • Growth: as a small tree, upright, loose, overhanging
  • Growth height: up to 700 cm
  • Growth width: 300 to 400 cm
  • Leaf: green, threefold fingered, oval, long stalk
  • Flowers: resuspended panicles, intensive yellow tone, loosely hanging
  • Flowering time: mid-May to June
  • Fruit: green-brown pods
  • Location: sunny to semi-shady, loamy to sandy, fresh, moderately nutritious

Common holly (Ilex aquifolium)

  • Poisonous: leaves, berries
  • Distribution: Central and western Europe, isolated in eastern and northern Europe, rare in North Africa
  • Growth: densely branched, upright, conical crown, evergreen
  • Growth height: 1,000 to 1,500 cm
  • Growth width: 250 to 600 cm
  • Leaf: ovate, toothed leaf margin, green, up to 1.5 cm long
  • Flowers: inconspicuous, radially symmetrical, white to light red, small
  • Flowering period: May to June
  • Fruit: 8 to 10 mm drupes, spherical, red
  • Location: shady to shady, sensitive to lime, loamy to sandy, humic, fresh, slightly acidic

Common crushed nut (Strychnos nux-vomica)

Source: Dinesh Valke from Thane, India, Strychnos nux-vomica (16021632387), edited by Plantopedia, CC BY-SA 2.0
  • Poisonous: in all parts of the plant (strychnine neurotoxin), with the exception of flowers
  • Distribution: India through Southeast Asia to northern Australia
  • Growth: upright, sprawling, heavily branched, evergreen
  • Growth height: up to 2,500 cm
  • Leaves: Dark green with a pale green underside, 5 to 12 cm long, ovate
  • Flower: inconspicuous, white to green-white
  • Flowering time: over the winter
  • Fruit: red, 3 to 5 cm large berries with 1.5 to 3 cm large seeds, weighing up to 2.5 g, grey-green to brown, bursting when wet
  • Location: dry, hot,
  • Special features: seeds used to be used as an emetic, not hardy

Horse chestnut (Aesculus hippocastanum)

Aesculus hippocastanum 'Monstrosa'
  • Poisonous: in all parts of the plant
  • Distribution: Native to the Balkan Peninsula, spread across Europe
  • Growth: wide crown, tall, summer green
  • Growth height: up to 3,000 cm
  • Growth width: 1,500 to 2,000 cm
  • Leaf: large, pinnate, green
  • Flowers: large panicles, white, numerous
  • Flowering time: April to late May
  • Fruit: after 10 years at the earliest, green skin with thorns, up to 4 cm in diameter, brown with a light spot
  • Location: sunny to shady, fresh, moist, sandy to loamy, permeable, deep
  • Caution: do not confuse with the non-toxic and edible sweet chestnut (Castanea sativa).

from I to R

Indian cedarach tree (Melia azedarach)

  • Poisonous: all plant parts
  • Distribution: South to Southeast Asia
  • Habit: fast-growing, richly branched, broad, rounded crown
  • Growth height: 600 to 2,000 cm
  • Leaf: 2 to 7 cm long, dark green, ovate to elliptical
  • Flowers: in panicles, white to red, pleasant fragrance
  • Flowering time: March to mid-May
  • Fruit: Drupe, up to 1.5 cm in size, leathery, yellow
  • Location: sunny to semi-shady, humic, well-drained

Tree of Life (Thuja occidentalis)

  • Poisonous: Shoot tips (lead to contact dermatitis), bark, wood, cones
  • Distribution: northeastern North America
  • Habit: upright, conical crown, narrow, evergreen
  • Growth height: 200 to 1,000 cm
  • Growth width: up to 300 cm
  • Leaves: intense green, scaly leaves
  • Flowers: small cones, female cones green, male red
  • Flowering time: March to mid-May
  • fruit: seeds, 4 to 8 mm, red
  • Location: sunny, tolerates partial shade, undemanding, moist, urban climate resistant

Manchinel tree (Hippomane mancinella)

Source: Pancrat, Hippomane mancenilla port, edited by Plantopedia, CC BY-SA 3.0
  • Poisonous: extremely poisonous milky sap in all parts of the plant
  • Distribution: Florida, Caribbean, Bahamas, central to northern South America
  • Growth: upright, richly branched, sprawling, semi-evergreen
  • Growth height: up to 1,500 cm
  • Leaf: 5 to 10 cm long, ovate to elliptical, leathery or shiny, dark green
  • Flowers: spikes, 5 to 12 cm, green-yellow, inconspicuous
  • Fruit: drupe, 2 to 5 cm in diameter, smooth, pleasantly fragrant
  • Special features: is considered the most poisonous tree in the world, emits highly irritating milky sap when it rains, corrosive vapors when burned

Purging buckthorn (Rhamnus cathartica)

  • Poisonous: bark (for humans), fruits
  • Distribution: Europe, Northwest Africa, Western Asia
  • Growth: upright, sparse, with thorns, deciduous
  • Growth height: 400 to 1,000 cm
  • Growth width: 300 to 600 cm
  • Leaves: green, serrate leaf margin, ovate to elliptical
  • Flowers: green, inconspicuous, in clusters, radial symmetry
  • Flowering period: May to mid-June
  • Fruit: drupe, small, spherical, black-purple
  • Location: sunny to semi-shady, warm, undemanding, well-drained, likes lime, ideal for rock gardens

from S to Z

Sandbox tree (Hura crepitans)

  • Poisonous: Milky juice, is used as a fish and arrow poison
  • Distribution: Caribbean, Central America, South America
  • Growth: upright, trunk diameter up to 200 cm, entire bark covered with thorns 2 cm long, evergreen
  • Growth height: up to 4,000 cm
  • Leaf: Shiny, green, up to 20 cm long, hairy underneath, heart-shaped, oval
  • Flowers: brown-purple tubular female flowers, purple male spikes
  • Fruit: roundish capsule fruit, 5 to 20 cm in diameter, reddish brown
  • Location: full sun to semi-shade, moist, rich in nutrients
  • Special features: not hardy, fruits open explosively, eject seeds up to 15 m

Mock Acacia (Robinia pseudoacacia)

  • Poisonous: Extremely poisonous in all parts of the plant except for flowers
  • Distribution: Western USA
  • Growth: loose, umbrella or rounded crown, summer green
  • Growth height: 1,200 to 3,000 cm
  • Growth width: 1,000 to 2,000 cm
  • Leaves: green, pinnate, serrate leaf margin, ovate
  • Flowers: white butterfly flowers, in clusters, intensely fragrant, attracts pollinating insects
  • Flowering period: May to mid-June
  • Fruit: pods, brown, up to 12 seeds
  • Location: full sun to shade, tolerates partial shade, undemanding, well-drained

Miracle tree (Ricinus communis)

  • Poisonous: Seeds highly toxic (ricin)
  • Distribution: north-eastern Africa, Western Asia
  • Habit: perennial as a tree or annual herbaceous, woody stem, upright, evergreen
  • Growth height: up to 1,000 cm
  • Growth width: up to 250 cm
  • Leaf: large, palmate, colored red
  • Flowers: inconspicuous panicle flowers, yellow
  • Flowering period: July to mid-October
  • Fruit: prickly split fruit, 1.5 to 3 cm in size, contains shiny silvery to reddish-brown seeds
  • Location: full sun, warm, nutritious, permeable
  • Special features: not hardy

Notice: Despite the magic tree's toxicity, the castor oil extracted from the plant is non-toxic. Due to its properties, it is used in a variety of areas, above all in cosmetics and body care.

Cerberus tree (Cerbera odollam)

  • Poisonous: Milky sap in all parts of the plant, fruits with seeds highly toxic
  • Distribution: Southeast Asia, India, Pacific Islands, Australia
  • Growth: upright, bushy crown, richly branched, evergreen
  • Growth height: 200 to 1,500 cm
  • Leaf: green, pointed, ovate
  • Flowers: white funnel-shaped flowers, solitary, large, sweetly scented
  • Flowering time: over the summer
  • Fruit: drupe, reminiscent of mangoes, up to 10 cm long, red
  • Location: sunny to semi-shady, nutritious, well-drained
  • Special features: not hardy, also known as the suicide tree

frequently asked Questions

What are typical symptoms of tree poisoning?

The symptoms of poisoning by poisonous trees can be varied. Dizziness, headaches, nausea, diarrhea, and dry mouth are common. Cramps, paralysis, breathing problems, organ damage, heart and circulatory disorders are also possible. Depending on the amount and intensity of the poison, comas or death can result.

What to do in case of possible poisoning?

Contact the poison control center and remain calm. Give water, tea or activated charcoal and avoid milk. Do not make the victim vomit. Save vomit and parts of the plant to facilitate plant identification. In the event of severe poisoning, contact an ambulance or go to the emergency room. The Poison Control Center can provide you with further assistance.

What should be considered when caring for poison trees?

Be sure to wear gloves when cutting trees with poisonous bark or milky sap. It is extremely easy to come into contact with these substances during pruning and you may injure yourself. You can easily dispose of prunings and other waste produced by the poison trees on the compost. The toxins decompose with.

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Garden plants