In general, the most important plants to learn first are the most common. And with poisonous plants, the most important ones to learn first are the most common and widespread species that have significant ability to cause you some trouble….
Hemlock, Conium maculatum is a notoriously poisonous plant. It has large, lacy leaves and purple spots and streaks on the stems. It is found, naturalised, in many parts of the world and usually found on poorly drained soils, roadsides, field edges and…
The pignut, Conopodium majus, is one of the most palatable wild foods. The tuber can be eaten raw and is very tasty. To the uninitiated, pignuts can be hard to spot, particularly in the spring. But once you’ve been shown and know in which places to look, they are surprisingly common. Leaves appear in the spring, then…