Your landscaping Can Prove Deadly To Horses
For those of you that own or are considering owning horses there are a host of plants that are routinely used for landscaping that can be or are toxic to the equine species dependant upon the amount consumed, and unfortunately there are a myriad of ways horses can come in contact with them when Open Range returns. The wind knocks down branches from a wild cherry tree that blow into the horse pasture, a landscaper thinks the field is a perfect spot for discarding yew hedge trimmings, a gate is left open and a young gelding nibbles on tomato and potato leaves….. All serious, possibly deadly scenarios for horses. Thus it is important for those of us with horses to know what trees, shrubs, garden and flowering plants are toxic . County extensions and the internet are good starting references and I also want to share some of the most common poisonous landscape plants found in our Northwest region, I’m not touching on weeds there are many, again university extensions are great resources. Let’s start with wild cherry trees, Red maple, black walnut, oak, and golden chain tree. Shrubs to avoid: box wood, privet, elderberry, choke cherry, serviceberry and yews, whose trimmings are a common cause of horse death. In the garden: tomatoes, potato, garlic, chives, onions , poppies, morning glory, bleeding hearts, begonias, daffodils a host of blubs, bracken ferns plus foxglove, rhododendrons and honeysuckle and sweet pea.
