Hogweed Not Seen in County, Warning Stemmed from Michigan
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
By Joe [email protected]
Indiana officials recently warned of giant hogweed, a noxious plant that can cause severe irritation if it comes into contact with skin or even blindness if it comes into contact with eyes. The weed has in the past been found at sites in Kosciusko and St. Joseph counties.
“Giant hogweed has been found at only four sites in Indiana,” according to Phil Bloom, Indiana DNR director of communications. “Three sites in St. Joseph County and one in Kosciusko County.”
Bloom added that the plant in Kosciusko was erradicated three or four years ago and has not been seen since. He said that two sites in St. Joseph County are “pretty much gone” and the third “diminished significantly.”
The plant was first discovered at Indiana locations in 2004 and 2007.
Michigan Department of Transportation found the plant earlier this year in the Saginaw Bay area. MDOT put out the safety alert to highway workers to be on the lookout for hogweed. The alert then circulated through various media outlets in the region, according to Bloom.
Purdue University botanists say they have heard concerns about hogweed, but know of no confirmed sightings and suspect reports may be a case of misidentification.
Purdue Weed Science said Monday reported sightings of giant hogweed, a member of the carrot family that reaches 10 to 15 feet in hight, may be a case of mistaken identity for another member of the same family, poison hemlock.
Poison hemlock is also dangerous, they note, toxic to people and animals if ingested. It grows along roads, railroad tracks, fields and stream banks.
“The sudden increase in awareness of giant hogweed and large amounts of poison hemlock that is currently flowering on roadsides is likely leading to the general public misidentifying poison hemlock as giant hogweed,” wrote Travis Legleiter and Bill Johnson, Purdue University Department of Botany and Plant Pathology, on the site for the Purdue Plant and Pest Diagnostic Laboratory. “Giant hogweed is fairly rare in the state of Indiana and monitored closely by the Indiana Department of Natural Resources. The IDNR has reported few sightings, but has also reassured that those plants had been eradicated.”
Poison hemlock and giant hogweed have similar and noticeable flowering structures and purple spotted stems, the botanists note, but are very different plants upon closer inspection. They differ in size, as poison hemlock does not grow as tall as giant hogweed, and the differences in leaf shapes and sizes can quickly differentiate the two species. The leaves of giant hogweed have deep, broad lobes and can reach widths of five feet, while the leaves of poison hemlock are much smaller compound leaves that are finely divided several times and resemble the leaves of wild carrot or Queen Anne’s lace.
Regardless of the species identified, both warrant control due to invasive habits and toxicity, they note.
"We're on the lookout for hogweed and we're doing our best to prevent it from growing in Indiana," Bloom stated. A release is pending to clear up the confusion.[[In-content Ad]]
Indiana officials recently warned of giant hogweed, a noxious plant that can cause severe irritation if it comes into contact with skin or even blindness if it comes into contact with eyes. The weed has in the past been found at sites in Kosciusko and St. Joseph counties.
“Giant hogweed has been found at only four sites in Indiana,” according to Phil Bloom, Indiana DNR director of communications. “Three sites in St. Joseph County and one in Kosciusko County.”
Bloom added that the plant in Kosciusko was erradicated three or four years ago and has not been seen since. He said that two sites in St. Joseph County are “pretty much gone” and the third “diminished significantly.”
The plant was first discovered at Indiana locations in 2004 and 2007.
Michigan Department of Transportation found the plant earlier this year in the Saginaw Bay area. MDOT put out the safety alert to highway workers to be on the lookout for hogweed. The alert then circulated through various media outlets in the region, according to Bloom.
Purdue University botanists say they have heard concerns about hogweed, but know of no confirmed sightings and suspect reports may be a case of misidentification.
Purdue Weed Science said Monday reported sightings of giant hogweed, a member of the carrot family that reaches 10 to 15 feet in hight, may be a case of mistaken identity for another member of the same family, poison hemlock.
Poison hemlock is also dangerous, they note, toxic to people and animals if ingested. It grows along roads, railroad tracks, fields and stream banks.
“The sudden increase in awareness of giant hogweed and large amounts of poison hemlock that is currently flowering on roadsides is likely leading to the general public misidentifying poison hemlock as giant hogweed,” wrote Travis Legleiter and Bill Johnson, Purdue University Department of Botany and Plant Pathology, on the site for the Purdue Plant and Pest Diagnostic Laboratory. “Giant hogweed is fairly rare in the state of Indiana and monitored closely by the Indiana Department of Natural Resources. The IDNR has reported few sightings, but has also reassured that those plants had been eradicated.”
Poison hemlock and giant hogweed have similar and noticeable flowering structures and purple spotted stems, the botanists note, but are very different plants upon closer inspection. They differ in size, as poison hemlock does not grow as tall as giant hogweed, and the differences in leaf shapes and sizes can quickly differentiate the two species. The leaves of giant hogweed have deep, broad lobes and can reach widths of five feet, while the leaves of poison hemlock are much smaller compound leaves that are finely divided several times and resemble the leaves of wild carrot or Queen Anne’s lace.
Regardless of the species identified, both warrant control due to invasive habits and toxicity, they note.
"We're on the lookout for hogweed and we're doing our best to prevent it from growing in Indiana," Bloom stated. A release is pending to clear up the confusion.[[In-content Ad]]
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