Beware of This Plant Seen in Stearns County – Toxic to Humans and Pets

There are so many weeds around.  Right now it seems like that is the only thing growing with the ongoing drought.  Most of them are completely harmless, other than some people being allergic and some "summer cold-like" conditions happening.

But there is one plant that has been found in Stearns County, and mostly Southern Minnesota that looks harmless, but is toxic to both humans and pets, and could even be fatal.

It's Poison Hemlock.  And it looks harmless.  It's not.

 It resembles other, relatively harmless wildflowers or weeds, like Queen Anne’s lace or yarrow, but it’s toxic to humans, pets, and livestock – and can be deadly.

According to "Only in Your State" and the Minnesota DNR, this plant can mostly be found in areas near wetlands.  Like creeks, streams, ponds, rivers and of course... lakes.  Something that Minnesota has a lot of...as we all know.

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Apparently you should avoid even touching this plant, and if you have dogs with you, keep them away from it as they could ingest the toxic plant.

This is bad as it resembles a regular plant that is totally harmless.  I'm sure I've seen the non-toxic species around my yard, and now I'm questioning if it might be the toxic version.

This invasive plant has been seen more and more in Minnesota.  There is an interactive map put out by the DNR that shows the areas that it has been found, and mostly it is the Southern part of the state, but there have been various other counties including Stearns County and some Northern areas and in other parts of the United States.

This is a video showing how to identify the plant.  There is caution about trying to remove it yourself.  The recommendation is to contact the DNR and have professionals remove the plant if you find it near you.