As temperatures climb and the opportunity to forage for food grows, so do the opportunities to accidentally ingest toxic plants and mushrooms that resemble edible ones.
That’s where University of Virginia toxicologist and professor Dr. Christopher Holstege, director of UVA Health’s Blue Ridge Poison Center, comes in. He collaborated with the Virginia Master Naturalists, a statewide volunteer corps that provides nature-related education and outreach, to create a collection of free online reference .
“We’re hoping it can aid everyone in Virginia, such as families, college students, and inquisitive adults, to really engage with and enjoy nature,” Holstege said.
When ingested, emetic mushrooms can cause persistent vomiting.
He added that reading the guides should not be the only way foragers have to distinguish poisonous from non-poisonous plants and mushrooms. But he hopes it serves as a helpful tool for those who have already learned how to navigate foraging and want to learn further about nature.
“To be safe, you really need to understand what the plant or mushroom looks like at various stages of its age, not just the stage when it might be edible, because specific poisonous and non-poisonous species can easily be confused,” Holstege said. “It’s exceedingly important to know some of the ones that are commonly misidentified and how to distinguish them.”
For example, this time of year, a plant called false hellebore begins to appear, which looks a lot like leeks in the early stages of growth. That mistake, according to Holstege, leads the poison center helping to care for individuals who experience subsequent poisoning complications, such as tingling in the mouth while eating a meal with misidentified false hellebore and then progressing to nausea, vomiting and/or cardiovascular complications.
