2019 ASHS Annual Conference

With its warm and humid climate, Florida landscapes support lush assemblages of native and imported plants, as well as an ever-growing list of invasive exotic species. However, a number of these thousands of plants are toxic, or outright poisonous, to humans, pets, or grazing livestock. Many species commonly planted in Florida landscapes, such as Sago palm (Cycas revoluta), dumbcane (Dieffenbachia spp.), angel trumpet (Brugmansia spp.) and oleander (Nerium oleander), are extremely toxic. Further, common weedy invasives in Florida, such as castor bean (Ricinius communis) and rosary pea (Abrus precatorius), are listed on Florida Exotic Pest Plant Council (FLEPPC) Category I list of invasive plants and are routinely included on myriad online lists of the “world’s top 10 deadly plants”. Although many poisonous plant treatises, publications, and other resources are available, none are both extensive and specific to Florida. Further, no user-friendly laypersons guides are available for the most poisonous weeds and invasive plants common in Florida. To address this need, a mobile web application was developed that facilitates identification of 166 toxic plants common in Florida residential landscapes and indoor environments, including common landscape plants, weeds, native species, bedding plants, houseplants, and invasives. The app helps users identify the species (plant, weed, etc. – illustrated with 445 photographs), and provides details for each plant including what parts of the plant are poisonous, symptoms of exposure, who is susceptible (people, pets, livestock), toxicity level, and plant-specific notes. As it is a mobile web application, the app may be used on any device, such as a smartphone or tablet, that has internet access. The app facilitates search by plant name, lists of names with thumbnails, or through browsing a plant photo gallery. Further, the app allows filtering by plants toxic to people, pets, or livestock and poisoning symptoms. Plants of interest may be bookmarked. The app is available online through UF/IFAS and has a yearly subscription fee.