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50 Times People Had No Clue What Plant They Were Looking At, But The Internet Knew What It Was Right Away (New Pics)
Not everyone is a botanist, and sometimes the only thing you can do is stare at a plant wondering what on earth it is.
Luckily for us, the internet is ready to help. The subreddit r/whatsthisplant is a place where us clueless folk upload photos of mystery greenery to get IDs. The 490K-strong community jumps in, often sharing more than just a name—they add care tips, mention quirky features, and never criticize you for asking questions.
Not every living being can introduce themselves, so it's nice that others can do it for them.
This post may include affiliate links.
#1
What's This Curly Cactus?
Cereus forbesii cv Spiralis
and that is a stunning specimen of it.
RELATED:
#2
I Thought You Would All Enjoy This Chimera Rose, My Friends Parents Have A Red Rose Bush Where On One Particular Branch It Blooms These Beauties
Plant geneticist here!
1 Nice rose!
2 I bet this was caused by a somatic mutation, specifically a transposon (jumping gene) inserting near something that activates color in petals (a transcription factor or anthocyanin gene). The unevenness could be due to variable epigenetic silencing of that region to keep the transposon from jumping again. The same mechanism causes striped flowers in petunias and morning glories.
Anyway, I think it's cool from a professional standpoint and wanted to share. 🙂
Panda-sized Potato 1 month ago
Gorgeous. If only the could grow a lot more at once. Imagine a bouquet of those.
Deborah B 1 month ago
If there's a branch on the plant that does this consistantly, it might be possible to do grafts.
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#3
Seen In Santa Monica, CA. I Couldn’t Get Any Closer But It Looks Gorgeous!!
It's probably a Bougainvillea.
Janelle Collard 1 month ago
"My Bougainilla Ate My House" - a film by Alfred Hitchcock. Or Stanly Kubrick.
Donna Crowe 1 month ago
While Bougainvillea is stunning, you better have elbow length leather gloves on while trimming it. Nasty thorns.
Learner Panda 1 month ago
Could also be jacaranda, although I think bougainvillea is more likely.
Dr. Erin Hill from the Department of Plant, Soil and Microbial Sciences at Michigan State University says people are driven to identify plants for many reasons; sometimes it is out of curiosity to know more about the world around us, while other times it is out of the desire or need to manage areas like gardens, agricultural fields, restored habitats, and/or natural preserves.
"Plants are the foundation of food webs, and they are tied to our understanding of how ecosystems function," Hill explains. "Plant identification has been and continues to be a matter of familiarity—knowledge passed down through mentorship by family or friends, or perhaps something learned in school."
One can also seek expert advice. For example, plant identification is one of the many services offered at Michigan State University (MSU) Plant & Pest Diagnostics and the MSU Herbarium, and help is available through the Michigan State University Extension Lawn. But you should be able to find similar resources at your local university, botanical garden, or natural history museum if you live elsewhere, too.
#4
Beautiful Picture My Friend Sent Me To Identify
Santa Rita prickly pear
LakotaWolf (she/her) 1 month ago
And they're delicious XD I grew up in a Mexican family; prickly pear fruits and their pads - called nopales - are edible!
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LakotaWolf (she/her) 1 month ago
Yes! They grow wild in some areas of Southern California where I live. They're *usually* less vibrant and are a bit more reddish-pinkish-rose in color rather than purple, though I've seen quite a few vivid purple ones as well.
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Ashlisha 1 month ago
Im almost positive that prickly pears are one of the few you can get water from if stranded in the desert. The rest will make you vomit.
#5
Tree In My Neighborhood That I Have Been Wondering About
Caribbean tree cactus!
And one of the largest, oldest and most beautiful ones I've ever seen even online. this thing is absolutely awe inspiring
detective miller's hat 1 month ago
My granny managed to grow one of these ON THE WEST COAST OF IRELAND where it is cold, raining, and windy for 50 out of 52 weeks per year. And it wasn't the only exotic plant she had. Everyone agreed she was a witch.
Anja Hannah 4 weeks ago
This wonderful creature made by Nature really exist?! I LOVE MOTHER NATURE!
#6
Noticed This Thing Popped Up In Front My Window About A Week Ago And It Keeps Getting Bigger. I Don’t Know What It Is, We’ve Had This Plant For 5 Years And It’s Never Done This Before
Agave only flower once--one absolutely giant asparagus-like flower stalk--and then die. It will make many little pups though.
monsieur mabel 1 month ago
....san diego here.....they're all over the neighborhood and are gorgeous......
Hill says that there are several smartphone apps available to assist with plant identification as well. "I began evaluating plant identification apps in 2018 for use in the weed science laboratory class at MSU, and for presentations to various garden and commodity groups. From 2018–2020, I evaluated a minimum of six apps (available for both Android and iOS smartphones) using 10–12 plants, with the best-performing apps carrying over to the next year's evaluation."
"In the fall of 2021, I drastically increased the number of identifications used to rank the apps by involving groups of university students enrolled in the lab," the scientist adds.
Since 2018, she and her students have evaluated a total of 16 apps. In 2023, all the apps tested used photo recognition software and geolocation information to identify plants, but some tested in the past required more descriptive input from the user, similar to traditional plant keys. "Most are free or have a free version. It is important to read all terms prior to downloading or purchasing apps. This assessment is for educational purposes only."
The top six apps were found to be:
- PictureThis;
- PlantStory;
- PlantNet;
- PlantIn;
- iNaturalist;
- Google Lens.
#7
What’s This Purple Guy? Found Hiking Near The Hollywood Sign. Super Cool Shape And Color:
Datura
Multa Nocte 1 month ago
"Datura is a genus of nine species of highly poisonous, vespertine-flowering plants belonging to the nightshade family. They are commonly known as thornapples or jimsonweeds, but are also known as devil's trumpets or mad apple. Other English common names include moonflower, devil's weed, and hell's bells."
Coral 1 month ago (edited)
These grow all over Southern California. This one isnt fully open so this isn't a great example if you're tryingto use it for future identification. They look like giant morning glories. They are toxic but have historically been used ritualistically by Native Americans. As a trail guide I was told to share this information with care. It is very easy to fatally o-verdose. But the plant is a hallucinogenic. There is an interesting book that talks a lot about it but it's accuracy is questionable. It's called The Teachings of Don Juan by Carlos Castaneda. It talks about using Datura in a spiritual context. Interesting read, even if you read it as fiction.
LakotaWolf (she/her) 1 month ago
Morning glories and datura are in the same order of flowering plants (Solanales.) They're related to each other. Which is why datura look like morning glories XD
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#8
Unedited Photo. Deepest Must Vibrant Purple I Have Ever Seen In Nature. What Is This Little Guy (Flowers Are A Penny In Diameter Or Less)
Blue lobelia
Niki 1 month ago
I have some of this! It can also have lovely periwinkle colors and white spots!
arthbach 1 month ago
Niki, when I was a child, it was very common to pair lobelia and alyssum. The deep blue/violet and bright white were planted to edge borders, alternating. When ever I see this particular pairing it makes me think of my Grandpa and his garden.
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Jackie Antonich-Lawhorn 1 month ago
I wish I had this in my yard! I love anything that is vibrant in color.
Anja Hannah 4 weeks ago (edited)
Aren't these beautiful flowers forget-me-nots not blue lobelia?
#9
Found The Most Intricate Flower I’ve Ever Seen Today In A Regular Roadside Bush
Passionflower. They're very distinctive!
monsieur mabel 1 month ago
.....try some passion fruit gummies they are soooooo yummy !!
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Roxy222uk 1 month ago (edited)
Not even hard to grow, even in the UK climate. Can’t expect to get edible fruit, though
BeesEelsAndPups 1 month ago
It's an annual in the UK, but yes you can grow it. You just need something for it to climb, as it's a vine.
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Savannah greenleaf 1 month ago
I believe they can also be called "Maypops," and can grow wild in some parts of the US.
LakotaWolf (she/her) 1 month ago
I live in Southern California and they grow wild (ish) in my town's central park, across the street from my house. When we were kids we'd go into the tangle and pick the flowers to lick the nectar, and once the fruits ripened, we'd go back to gorge ourselves XD Ah, the 80s were a crazy time. My park also had a HUGE blackberry tangle growing wild in the center and if you dared the thorns, you could have a feast of blackberries XD I sound like I was some kind of feral creature scrounging for edible plants in the wild, growing up XD
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DeoManus Argentem 1 month ago
They're beautiful, but considered a weed. They're a very quickly growing vine that will quickly takeover the area where planted. Also, sadly, the blooms only last a day or so.
Lily Seven 1 month ago
Passion Flower, they grew wild when I was growing up in Georgia, We called them May Pops.
person (i think) 1 month ago
Or, as my brother and I used to call them, Alien Spaceship Flowers
However, keep in mind that an automated ID still makes mistakes. "The top-performing app was PictureThis, with 73% of the suggested identifications being correct," Hill says. "If the partial ratings (16%) are added to the correct ratings, we see that the app was helpful 89% of the time, averaged across all plant categories."
"Following this lead were PlantStory (48% accuracy) and PlantNet (40% accuracy). If you add in the partially correct answers, these apps were helpful 65% and 67% of the time, respectively."
So communities like r/whatsthisplant continue to be invaluable—a kind of crowd-sourced, peer-reviewed system where members correct each other’s guesses on the off chance someone gets it wrong.
For more examples of their work, check out our older publication on the subreddit.
#10
Found Sitting Alone On A Bed Of Moss In The Middle Of The Woods
A red trillium! Nice find.
Multa Nocte 1 month ago
"Trillium erectum, the red trillium, also known as wake robin, purple trillium, bethroot, or stinking benjamin, is a species of flowering plant in the family Melanthiaceae. The plant takes its common name "wake robin" by analogy with the European robin, which has a red breast heralding spring."
Sunshine 1 month ago
White trillium is the provincial flower of Ontario. You're not allowed to uproot them wherever they grow wild (which is almost in every forested area of Ontario).
Brandie Litchfield 1 month ago
My mom said that when she was growing up, these were also called "nosebleeds" due to their color. They used to be all over the woods in Vt, but they've become more and more endangered over the years, it's illegal to pick them or pull them up. Usually nearby, jack in the box flowers are growing, they grow in the same areas where tiny salamanders live. These were the type of woods I grew up in, God I miss it!!
Riley Quinn 1 month ago
In some areas of the USA, it's illegal to pick these threatened or endangered plants.
AHeftiBlum 1 month ago
These and white trillium grow in Wisconsin. You can order them from native plant companies.
Carol Hobbs 1 month ago
My siblings and I used to pick our mom bouquets of them, red and white. Mom hated them, they do not smell nice. She always threw them out when we went to bed, and told us they died.....
#11
Growing Corn In My Garden And Thought My Corn Was Growing Rocks. What In The World Is This!?
Corn smut. It’s an infection. Totally edible though. As a matter of fact in Mexico it’s called huitlacoche and it’s considered a delicacy
Glix Drap 1 month ago
Makes me think of that famous line from The Naked Gun - "Nice beaver".
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LakotaWolf (she/her) 1 month ago
Yep. We always just called it "huitlacoche" in my family. Considered a rare treat in some Hispanic families. I love the stuff. We used to get it as a special treat when we were kids. XD Because I'm adopted (and white) my cousins would sometimes try to steal my portion (they did the same whenever we got to eat sesos as well.) Got into quite a few scraps with my cousins because of that XD
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Otto Katz 1 month ago
A. How is it cooked, eaten?? With butter? B. Smut isn't censored??? smut SMUT smUT SMUT SMUTSMUTSMUTSMUTSMUTSMUT!!!!QQQQ!!!!!!!!!
#12
Moved In To This House Last Fall. I Mowed My Grass 5 Days Ago... And This Plant Sprouted Out Of No Where. 3 Of Them, And This Is The Biggest
Asparagus
Laserleader 1 month ago
They frow like somone just shoved them i the ground. Its hillarious. We have a beach variety here and they are quite tasty even though tiny.
Mark Alexander 1 month ago
Look for more. They're perennial. Snap them off when they're young and tender. Or don't and you'll get a 3' asparagus tree that'll flower and seed the area.
Day Andie 1 month ago
If only the seeds would do any good!! I planted a patch from roots. They say it takes 3 years to really get going. The third year was OK, we got a pot full, and then it's been slim pickings getting slimmer each year. The seeds, they do nothing. Asparagus is either wild and grows prolifically, or will mock you if you try to cultivate it.
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Otto Katz 1 month ago
I have started 3 different asparagus gardens, and each time just as they were picking time, I had to move. SO FRUSTRATING!
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#13
What Plant Is This? It Has Pink Flowers… I Was Curious To Whether My Neighbours Are Growing Opium
Opium poppy, but plenty of people grow them as ornamentals
Lousha 1 month ago
In a lot of European countries poppy seeds are almost a staple (or used to be traditionally), so everyone who had a garden/allotment would've grown poppies as well. Nobody cared about their opiate content, they just collected the seeds for food. (E.g. in Hungary there is no Christmas without "mákos bejgli", which is a sweetbread chock full of a poppy seed filling.)
Robert T 1 month ago
My gf makes it regularly. We call it opium cake. LOL
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Kelly H. Wilder 1 month ago (edited)
My first run in with the law was because of the poppy. The Golden Poppy, to be exact. I didn't know it was illegal and so I picked all my hands could hold. A Highway Patrolman watched me then approached me and told me that I wasn't supposed to do that. He said I could get into big trouble because of them. Then he walked across the area to another patch of flowers and picked a few different types that were other colors, arranged my flowers a bit neater, and told me they sure were beautiful. He took me home and told my parents about our conversation. We gave my mom the flowers and for months my nickname was Princess Poppy. I was about 5 years old. This was in CA around 1990.
Deborah B 1 month ago
Look at the heads on the right, see those dark lines? Growing opium poppies is mostly legal, but it looks like they might have cut them, which usually is not.
Gareth 1 month ago
Those poppies haven't been cut, when they have been cut it's extremly obvious.
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Beak Hookage 1 month ago
We get tiny purple ones here! They randomly sprout in my garden all the time. You might even say they... pop up. (Thankyou, thankyou, I'll be here all week!).
#14
This Plant Is Not Dead! I’ve Had It For Years And It Has Neither Died Nor Grown. The “Branches” Are Not Particularly Woody Or Stiff, At Least Not As Much As They Look. What Is It?!
It's dead. It's been dead for years.
What exactly makes you think it's alive? It's not green, it doesn't grow.
Jackie Lulu 1 month ago
I had a small barrel cactus in a pot. I watered it faithfully (appropriately, I hope), but it never grew, just stayed the same. One day I came home to find my cat playing hockey with it. It was hollow inside. Probably had been dead for years.
#15
My So’s Mother Has This Magnificent Plant, But She Couldn’t Identify It. Can Anyone Help?houseplant Is Located In North Carolina
This woman grew the most epic fiddle leaf fig anyone has ever seen and has the audacity to not even know what it's called?
Roni Stone 1 month ago
Gonna need a bigger room. Or at least some props under those limbs! LOL
LakotaWolf (she/her) 1 month ago
I'm also sad at how small that container/pot is. That poor plant must be entirely rootbound :( I grow potted dwarf varietals of citrus trees in my backyard, and I have them in HUGE containers. Seeing a plant that must be so obviously rootbound/potbound makes me sad.
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#16
Help
Spiral Aloe, Aloe polyphylla
Multa Nocte 1 month ago
"The species is highly sought after as an ornamental but is difficult to cultivate and usually soon dies if removed from its natural habitat. In South Africa, it is a criminal offence to remove plants or seed of Aloe polyphylla from their natural habitat or to buy plants from roadside vendors.The species is listed on Appendix I of CITES meaning commercial international trade is prohibited. In cultivation in the UK this plant has gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit."
monsieur mabel 1 month ago
....grazie grazie multa nocte for today's installment of "today i learned".......and yes, i want one 😀
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#17
Please Help Identify I’m In Love
its a bougainvillea
Multa Nocte 1 month ago
"The sap of bougainvillea can cause serious skin rashes, similar to Toxicodendron species."
J Steven Tefertiller 4 weeks ago
bougainvillea comes in many colors., it also has long sharp thorns.
#18
What's This Bush?
Smoke bush
Multa Nocte 1 month ago
"The smoke trees, particularly C. coggygria, are popular garden shrubs. Several bronze or purple-leaved cultivars of C. coggygria have been selected, with warm pink inflorescences set against purple-black foliage; the most common in commerce are 'Notcutt's Variety' and 'Royal Purple'. When brought into cultivation together, the two species will form hybrids; some garden cultivars are of this parentage. Cultivation is best in dry, infertile soils, which keeps the growth habit more compact and also improves the autumn colour; when planted in fertile soil, they become large, coarse and also tend to be short-lived, succumbing to verticillium wilt disease. They can be coppiced in early spring, to produce first-year shoots up to 2 m tall with large handsome leaves, but no "smoke"."
#19
This Strange Thing In My Onion Field
Egyptian walking onions do this.
They get heavy and fall over, planting themselves
and_a_touch_of_the_’tism 1 month ago
At a summer farming job I once had there was an onion that’d done this three times. Base onion, sprouts from that, sprouts from that, and another teeny tiny cluster of sprouts from one of those. I called it the onionception.
Day Andie 1 month ago
Walking onions will take over if you're not careful!. Use the stalks when they first come up like green onions, but they get tough when they get bigger and get ready to put out the bulb-lets.The grannies used to pick and clean the bulb-lets to pickle them, but it's too fiddly a chore for me!
#20
What Is This Spectacular Yellow And Pink Tree?
Looks like a Redbud to me, too. I've never seen one with so many blossoms coming directly from the bark like that. A few, but not such dense clusters. Very pretty.
By the way, those pretty golden newborn leaves will be regular ol' green leaves in a few days.
Mel in Georgia 1 month ago
We have one growing under our oaks in the back yard. It's 20 years old now, and blooms beautifully!
Carla Phillips 1 month ago
My neighbor has one of these in the yard between our houses. She just had a lot of it cut down.
#21
Not Looking For The Tree, Wondering What The Lump Is
Congratulations, it’s a burl!
Roni Stone 1 month ago
What that right there is is a whole kitchen table and a couple of chairs! Burl.
LakotaWolf (she/her) 1 month ago
They're a spot of deformed wood-grain growth in the tree - usually caused by something like a fungal or viral infection in that area on the tree itself. They can also form after a physical injury to the tree or a bacterial infection, as well. Think of it as tree scar tissue forming over some kind of infection or wound.
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Kim Lorton 4 weeks ago
Worth money to wood carvers, and this one is huge!!! They make beautiful bowls or whatever! They are amazing
#22
What Is This Flower Seen In Paris
The cultivar is called Bumble Rumble!
Multa Nocte 1 month ago
"3" blooms have a very striking and unusual coloring. The base petals are a soft pink with a raspberry overlay not quite reaching the ends of each petal. This raspberry color is also very vivid on the backside of the bloom, an unusual occurrence. The collar, which is larger than most collarettes, is a pure white and extends almost to the end of the base petals making a vivid contrast to the raspberry petals. Plenty of blooms produced on the 4' plant."
Nicole Weymann 1 month ago
A dahlia. One of dozens or even hundreds of varieties. They come in just about any colour and many combinations. This one has a collerate head (flat middle, one outside round of coloured petals, and some smallish, ruffle-like petals filling them). There are also single headed ones (no "ruffles", just the one row of petals on the rim), and varieties where the head is all filled with "rim" petals, sometimes tubular, sometimes tipped, or rounded.
#23
What Is This Fruit My Friend’s Mom Handed To Me?
No offense intended but, where are you from that you don't know this is a pear?
Nadine Debard 1 month ago
Where I live quinces have white hair and a slightly different shape. This is a pear for me.
J Steven Tefertiller 4 weeks ago
might be a quince. They're good bakes with spices and brown sugar.
#24
What Flower Is This? Is It Real?
RuiYunDian Chrysanthemum. Google showed me similar images when I typed in "flower that looks like icing."
#25
A Strange Big Plant
That is 💯 giant hogweed. Observe from a distance only. DO NOT TOUCH!
Multa Nocte 1 month ago
"The sap of giant hogweed is phototoxic and causes phytophotodermatitis in humans, resulting in blisters and scars. These serious reactions are due to the furanocoumarin derivatives in the leaves, roots, stems, flowers, and seeds of the plant. Consequently, the jurisdictions of many regions consider it a noxious weed."
Roxy222uk 1 month ago
This looks like it’s near a railway and therefore could be accessed by the public. I would be straight onto the council to get it removed. Children often play with giant hogweed because it’s size makes it appealing to use for all sorts of things, and once their skin has been in contact with it the pain lasts for up to four years, on and off.
Learner Panda 1 month ago
If this is in the UK, I think you have to report it to the Environment Agency. Yes, do not touch it; it also smells pretty bad.
Danielle 1 month ago
Invasive plant control is a bit of a funny one in a bit regulatory context. If it's by a railway line you can tell network rail but the best bet is to use INNS Mapper (it will come up if you Google it!) where local action/ eNGO groups pick it up.
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Maggie Fulton 1 month ago
Report it to the authorities, who will come wearing protective gear to cut it down. It is bad news.
and_a_touch_of_the_’tism 1 month ago (edited)
K**l that mfer. But with disposable gloves and heavy clothing, that sap will f**k you up. In fact, just call your local park authority. As soon as it goes to seed it’s gonna be an absolute b***h to eradicate- a nature trail near my park had to shut down almost half of the trails for more than a year to get rid of their hogweed.
shg stewart 1 month ago
This is an invasive species, so if you can find a way to k**l it without touching it with your bare skin, you should do so before it goes to seed.
JB 1 month ago
No, don't! Burning it can cause the oils to become airborne in the smoke and freaking k**l you! This plant hates you so much, fire does not slow it down from f*****g up your life.
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EJN 4 weeks ago
This is a very irritating weed that people mistake for wild carrot or Queen Anne's lace. It is very difficult to eliminate and it causes a serious rash that is almost like a burn on the skin. Also, NEVER BURN IT! The smoke retains the irritating compounds and can cause burns in the throat and lungs if smoke is inhaled!
Rebecca McManus 4 weeks ago
There's a Giant Hogweed plant growing on the central reservation of the A3 after you get off the M25, always makes me laugh as I drive past
#26
Need Some Help Iding These Blue Flowers That Look Like Tiny Wizards
It's called Corydalis, from mountains of China originally! It's perennial so enjoy for years!
Multa Nocte 1 month ago
"Corydalis species are used as food plants by the larvae of some Lepidoptera species (butterflies), especially the clouded Apollo. Corydalis cava and some other tuberous species contain the alkaloid bulbocapnine, which is occasionally used in medicine but scientific evidence is lacking in the correct dosages and side effects. Many of the species in Corydalis contain other toxins and alkaloids like canadine, which blocks calcium. The species C. caseana is poisonous to livestock."
Auntriarch 1 month ago
Mine didn't read the book, it lasted two years and then gave up. The yellow variety however is impossible to get rid of (even if you wanted to)
#27
What Is This Grape-Like Vine Thing Growing Over My Fence In New Zealand?
Grapes
Day Andie 1 month ago
Did you mean vine? Although I"m kind of getting a sarcastic vibe from you, with that answer, ya know. LOL
Load More Replies... Day Andie 1 month ago
How do you know? This is New Zealand. Close to Australia. You know how things grow in Australia!
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Don't listen to me 1 month ago
Grapes grow very well in the NZ climate. There's a large wine industry there now.
Huddo's sister 3 weeks ago
I love 'cool-climate' wines! We have a lot in Australia too. I don't buy wines from overseas, unless it's from NZ.
Load More Replies... Jill 1 month ago (edited)
Could be some sort of white grape. Either way, it's on my side of the fence therefore it's free for the taking! :D
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#28
What Is My Sunflower Doing?
A sunflower is actually made up of a bunch of individual flowers of 2 different types. The petals around the outside are called ray flowers. The middle is made up of many disk flowers. This one just has a few ray flowers where there would normally be disk flowers.
#29
It Looks Like An Orchid. What Is It?
I call them Johnny Jump Ups because my father always did. But yes, violas.
Nadine Debard 1 month ago
We call them "pensées", which means "thoughts" (we think about people we love)
Roman Arendt 1 month ago
In Germany we call them "Stiefmütterchen", "stepmother" in its diminutive form.
Bianca 1 month ago
or "Hornveilchen" (horned violet) for the one with the small flowers
Load More Replies... Lady Eowyn 1 month ago
I call them johnny jump ups too. They were scattered in the lawn of the house where I grew up. So small the mower didn't get them, to my dad's displeasure and my delight.
Lady Eowyn 1 month ago
Closely related, same family, but not pansies. Violas.
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Riley Quinn 1 month ago
Love Johnny Jump Ups/Violas. They grew everywhere in my lawn, along with Violets.
#30
What’s This Trippy Fella Called? Found This In A Group Post On Facebook. No Details Including Location
Rising Sun Redbud
There was a post on r/mildlyinteresting featuring one of these about a year ago. Cool trees, I’ve never seen one IRL.
Donna P Sisk 4 weeks ago
I wonder if it will grow at 6000’ snows 4-5 months of the year. With temperatures below freezing for months.
#31
Just Caught 5 Y/O Son Eating One Of These Berries, Made Him Spit It Out Soon As I Saw, ID Please? Located In East Sussex, UK!
This plant has been identified as Deadly Nightshade (Atropa belladonna.) OP's son ate some of the fruit, experienced mild poisoning symptoms and was treated by a local emergency room. The child is now ok. The doctor commented that the child was lucky he did not consume more of the fruit. This occurred in the UK.
This demonstrates the importance of not eating random plants you find in the wild and keeping an eye on children around wild plants. This isn't always an easy task so you should be prepared.
If in doubt, call poison control for advice (link below to all poison control phone numbers worldwide.) If you're unable to talk to anyone on the phone, take the person or animal who has ingested the plant material straight to the doctor/emergency room or vet/emergency vet.
Post here to get an ID from the community, but do not wait for an ID as time is critical in cases of poisoning. It's always better to err on the side of caution.
Note: It is important to note that you should NOT induce vomiting if you think a poison has been consumed. There is a risk of choking on vomit, and plants can sometimes be toxic in a caustic way, meaning you will cause more damage by vomiting. Always let medical professionals make the decision whether to induce vomiting.
Nadine Debard 1 month ago
My son is 4. Every time I have the occasion of teaching him not to try any plants, fruits or mushrooms outside, I do. "Are those berries edible?", he answers "no, only the birds can eat them, they're poison for us". Lesson learnt and repeated.
Multa Nocte 1 month ago
"The foliage and berries are extremely toxic when ingested, containing tropane alkaloids. It can also be harmful to handle and/or touch these plants. These toxins include atropine, scopolamine, and hyoscyamine, which cause delirium and hallucinations, and are also used as pharmaceutical anticholinergics. Tropane alkaloids are of common occurrence not only in the Old World tribes Hyoscyameae (to which the genus Atropa belongs) and Mandragoreae, but also in the New World tribe Datureae—all of which belong to the subfamily Solanoideae of the plant family Solanaceae. Consumption of Atropa bella-donna has unpredictable effects. The antidote for belladonna poisoning is physostigmine or pilocarpine, the same as for atropine."
Ashlisha 1 month ago
Ironically we use some of these in medications. Not in combination and obviously not on unknown consontrations.
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T'Mar of Vulcan 1 month ago
My brother can't eat anything in the Nightshade family, not even tomatoes, because they trigger a migraine.
Hugo 1 month ago
I would find it very restricting not being able to eat potatoes. Nor bell peppers.
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caroline seguin 4 weeks ago
I hope the mother took the plant out. I'm sure she did. Thank goodness she was there and had her child spit it out!
Linz Endell 3 weeks ago
Nightshade grows wild all over the place in UK, but rarely in gardens. It’s why children are, ideally, taught not to eat wild berries (or fungi).
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JayWantsACat 1 month ago
There was a hedge on my walk to elementary that had little red berries and I don't know what possessed me to eat some every time I passed by. I never got sick or anything, so seemingly safe. But, yeah, my d*****s could have been this kid.
#32
Cut Open A Peach And There Was An Almond Inside?
Peaches and almonds are related. Do Not Eat Peach Seeds!!!
Multa Nocte 1 month ago
"Peach pits can be poisonous if too many are eaten or if they are prepared improperly. Some types of cuisine or traditional medicine recommend consuming peach pits or the pits of similar fruits like apricots. The pits must be prepared in a way that breaks down amygdalin to prevent people eating them from being poisoned. According to the Singapore Food Agency, the typical preparation for apricot pits is to soak the pits in water and then boil them for at least 30 minutes. Amygdalin, also known as laetrile or vitamin B17, has been recommended by some as an alternative treatment for cancer. There is no evidence that this is a safe or effective treatment for cancer, and the chemical can be harmful by producing toxic levels of cyanide when it is broken down in the gut."
Debby Keir 1 month ago
Please note that the Amygdalin releases hydrogen cyanide - and that's why you don't eat it.
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Floeckchen 1 month ago
There's actually a variant of marzipan called persipan that is made out of peach and apricot seeds
Day Andie 1 month ago
That's actually the seed part of a peach. The peach is a stone fruit, and the outer wrinkly part is a protective layer called the endocarp. It was originally thought that the only function was to keep the seed from drying out or rotting from too much moisture, but it was found to have antiviral, antibacterial and antioxidant properties. Peaches are called freestone or clingstone, depending on whether or not the pit comes out easily or you have to dig it out. The more you know....And yes, the pits are poisonous.
Ellen Chase 4 weeks ago
oh my god - I used to crack peach seeds open and eat these - they tasted like almonds! Maybe that's how I got to be 86...
#33
Found In A Small Body Of Mossy Water Just Underneath A Statue, Slimy Texture And Burst When Slightly Pressed
Wow! So many people have never seen frog eggs yet keep saying that’s what these are. The biggest giveaway that these are not frog eggs is that there are no baby frogs in them!
This is a type of freshwater cynanobacteria, much like the common bubble algae that people get in their reef tanks.
Multa Nocte 1 month ago
"Cyanobacteria are a large and diverse phylum of photosynthetic prokaryotes. They are defined by their unique combination of pigments and their ability to perform oxygenic photosynthesis. They often live in colonial aggregates that can take on a multitude of forms. Of particular interest are the filamentous species, which often dominate the upper layers of microbial mats found in extreme environments such as hot springs, hypersaline water, deserts and the polar regions, but are also widely distributed in more mundane environments as well. They are evolutionarily optimized for environmental conditions of low oxygen. Some species are nitrogen-fixing and live in a wide variety of moist soils and water, either freely or in a symbiotic relationship with plants or lichen-forming fungi (as in the lichen genus Peltigera)."
LakotaWolf (she/her) 1 month ago
And certain species (like spirulina) are edible! :D Disclaimer: DO NOT EAT RANDOM ALGAE BLOOMS XD
Load More Replies... WindySwede 1 month ago (edited)
How to make your own [b]ubble tea! (/jk) edit: bubble, not hubble... 😺
#34
Should I Keep This In The Garden?
Monk’s Hood - Aconitum genus
In the buttercup family Ranunculaceae. Aka Wolf’s Bane
Multa Nocte 1 month ago
"Aconitum, also known as aconite, monkshood, wolfsbane, leopard's bane, devil's helmet, or blue rocket, is a genus of over 250 species of flowering plants belonging to the family Ranunculaceae. These herbaceous, frequently toxic perennial plants are chiefly native to the mountainous parts of the Northern Hemisphere in North America, Europe, and Asia, growing in the moisture-retentive but well-draining soils of mountain meadows. Most Aconitum species are extremely poisonous and must be handled very carefully. Several Aconitum hybrids, such as the Arendsii form of Aconitum carmichaelii, have won gardening awards—such as the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit. Some are used by florists." I believe this plant was discussed in the Harry Potter series.
WindySwede 1 month ago
Did have, but found out what it was, dug it up with double protective gloves and disposed of. 😬
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LakotaWolf (she/her) 1 month ago
So THAT'S why my cousins keep grumbling about OP's garden!
Load More Replies... Roxy222uk 1 month ago
Dear Lord, don’t touch it!! I know someone whose husband ended up in A&E from touching some wolfs’ bane. Up until then I wasn’t aware we had plants that toxic in the UK.
Nicole Weymann 1 month ago
Gardens are full of golden chain, lily of the valley, yew, nightshade, foxglove, castor beans, wisteria and whatnot. Lily of the valley in particular is toxic enough that water from the vase is a risk, too.
Load More Replies... Cat servant 1 month ago
Depending on where you are this can be classified as a noxious weed. Check your location's list of banned plants in the USA. Some states allow it and others do not. Personally I would leave it because it is pretty and my kids are grown. However I also allow silver leaf nightshade for the same reason. I kept it pulled up until the children were old enough to understand not to pick stand eat the plants.
#35
What Is This Alien Looking Flower?
Looks like a bromeliad, Puya.
Multa Nocte 1 month ago
"Puya alpestris is a species of bromeliad endemic to the Chilean Andes. It is native to dry hills, rock outcrops in central and southern Chile at elevations of 0 to 2200 meters. It is one of the most southerly occurring species within the family. It is one of the few Puya species that are grown in some parks and gardens as an ornamental plant. It is more commonly known as the Sapphire Tower."
#36
Watching A Friend’s Plants And Noticed A Nasty Smell In My Kitchen. It’s Coming From This Thing That Just Flowered, What Is It?
Stapelia lol
They smell bad because they attract flies as pollinators
Multa Nocte 1 month ago
"Stapelia is a genus of low-growing, spineless, stem succulent plants, predominantly from South Africa with a few from other parts of Africa. Several Asian and Latin American species were formerly included but they have all now been transferred to other genera. The flowers of certain species, most notably Stapelia gigantea, can reach 41 cm (16 inches) in diameter when fully open. Most Stapelia flowers are visibly hairy and generate the odor of rotten flesh when they bloom."
Mel in Georgia 1 month ago
I think we saw one in the cool post about "scary" plants!
Load More Replies... #37
The Pups Keep Digging These Up In The Yard. It Smells Like Garlic And Onions But Not In A Good Way. My First Guess Was Truffles But My Plant ID App Says It’s A Fungus
Truffles are fungi.
Sarah Belt 1 month ago
You should try eating them instead of looking at them :)
Load More Replies... Bill Swallow 1 month ago
It probably doesn't help people unfamiliar with them that there are also confectionaries called 'truffles'.
Load More Replies... Nicole Weymann 1 month ago
Yupp, they are. But AFAIK there are several species of them, and I doubt a stinky one is a "a steady supply will make you rich" kind.
Load More Replies... caroline seguin 4 weeks ago (edited)
You need to have specific trees for truffles to grow I think. Trees like : Oak, Pine, Hazelnut, Poplar and Beech trees. Do you have any of these trees?
#38
Are These Blueberries? Found Near A Mica Deposit In New Brunswick, Canada
Oh, it’s actually blueberries.. crazy
Colleen Glim 1 month ago
Wild blueberries taste so much better than the cultivated ones you buy in stores
Bill Swallow 1 month ago
Blueberries, or possibly huckleberries. We picked hundreds of quarts of wild berries back on the farm.
#39
Lived Here 3 Years And Never Saw This Before
Morel Mushroom, Morchella sp.
WindySwede 1 month ago
But if it would be a false morel you could end up ded or get ALS!
Load More Replies... Roni Stone 1 month ago
We used to shut down school on the first several days of morel season when I lived in Michigan, late March, I believe. *Everybody* was 'shrooming in our town when the morels were plentiful!
Panda'sMom 1 month ago
Normally found in wooded areas. Not surprised to find it in Bark Mulch.
Janissary35680 1 month ago (edited)
"Eat it raw!" "Raw! Raw! Raw!" (Principal Pọop, in Firesign Theater, "Don't Crush That Dwarf Hand Me The Pliers", 1970)
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#40
Whats Is The Name Of This Plant?
Aglaonema pictum Tricolor cultivar
Araceae family
#41
Found This On A Stroll In Vancouver
monkey puzzle tree
HangryHangryHippo 1 month ago
Came to say the same! Love them. Are you 🇦🇷 by any chance?
Load More Replies... Barbara Wilcock 1 month ago
Monkey puzzle. I have 2 large in my garden. Very popular in NE England
Auntriarch 1 month ago
I love to see them, especially new ones, they went out of favour for a while but they're back to their rightful popularity now.
Load More Replies... Multa Nocte 1 month ago
"The origin of the popular English language name "monkey puzzle" lies in its early cultivation in Britain c. 1850, when the species was still very rare in gardens and not widely known. Sir William Molesworth, the owner of a young specimen at Pencarrow garden near Bodmin, Cornwall, was showing it to a group of friends, when one of them, the noted barrister and Benthamist Charles Austin, remarked "It would puzzle a monkey to climb that". As the species had no existing popular name, first "monkey puzzler", then "monkey puzzle" stuck. Presently, c. 150 years later, Pencarrow has an avenue of mature monkey puzzles."
QuincyForrest 1 month ago
Do not walk anywhere near one of these if you are barefoot. Branches die, turn brown, fall off, and are very spiky. Gloves recommended if you pick up a dead branch with your hand.
Littlemiss 1 month ago
They look cool, but God help you if one of the monkey nuts falls on you. Really hard wood to cut through.
Sara Frazer 1 month ago
Yup, my great grandma, grandma and mom called these "monkey trees", there's some huge ones in my area
#42
My Friend Took A Bite, I Said Not To
Rose hips. The fruits of a rose plant
Multa Nocte 1 month ago (edited)
"Rose hips are used in bread and pies, jam, jelly, marmalade, syrup, soup, tea, wine, and other beverages. Rose hips can be eaten raw, like berries, if care is taken to avoid the hairs inside the fruit. These urticating hairs are used as itching powder. A few rose species are sometimes grown for the ornamental value of their hips, such as Rosa moyesii, which has prominent, large, red bottle-shaped fruits. Rosa macrophylla 'Master Hugh' has the largest hips of any readily available rose. Rose hips are commonly used in herbal tea, often blended with hibiscus. An oil is also extracted from the seeds. Rose hip soup, known as nyponsoppa in Swedish, is especially popular in Sweden. Rhodomel, a type of mead, is made with rose hips. Rose hips can be used to make pálinka, the traditional Hungarian fruit brandy popular in Hungary, Romania, and other countries sharing Austro-Hungarian history. Rose hips are also the central ingredient of cockta, the fruity-tasting national soft drink of Slovenia."
LakotaWolf (she/her) 1 month ago
I remember when I was a kid, my mom had TONS of rose bushes in the front and back yards of our house. I had read somewhere in some children's book that rosehips were edible, so of course one year after the rose petals had fallen, I took her shears and cut off every single rosehip and had a feast of them in the garage. I probably ate maybe two dozen before I got caught. I got into A LOT of trouble XD But the rosehips themselves actually tasted pretty good!
Load More Replies... Roxy222uk 1 month ago
In the UK rose hips were once used as a reliable source of vitamin C. They can be made into a syrup. During the war children helped with the ‘war effort’ by picking rose hips, and even in the early 70s I was given rose hip syrup that my mum had bought at the chemist. We really should get back to this locally produced, seasonal, folk supplement.
OneHappyPuppy 1 month ago
I loove rose hip jam! I totally forgot to buy myself some recently when I was home (they don't have them where I live - at least not for a reasonable price)
#43
Little Plant Growing Where My Cat Was Buried
If it is indeed fleabane
#44
From The Japanese Garden In Singapore
Judging by the super pink flower in the blurry back this is probably just lotus. Nelumbo nucifera.
Ashlisha 1 month ago
Lotus seeds are so tasty. They were probably dried or roasted but tasted amazing .
LakotaWolf (she/her) 1 month ago
Lotus root is amazing as well. My ex (Chinese) used to cook it in a soup for hours and hours until it was soft and had soaked up so much flavor (usually soy sauce-based.) It's also excellent when lightly stir-fried, as it's delightfully crunchy! And yes, lotus seeds are so good. I've had them fresh/raw. They're usually a traditional ingredient in moon cakes around Lunar New Year, and now I'm missing those little cakes and pastries with lotus seed paste filling XD
Load More Replies... #45
Very General White Flowers.. All Help Is Appreciated!
I put it through google lens, looks like Saxifraga Findling.
Variety or Cultivar 'Findling' _ 'Findling' is a low, cushion- to mound-forming, evergreen perennial with rosettes of small, oval to spoon-shaped, mid-green leaves and short stems bearing cup-shaped, white flowers from mid- to late spring.
Multa Nocte 1 month ago
"Saxifraga is the largest genus in the family Saxifragaceae, containing about 473 species of holarctic perennial plants, known as saxifrages or rockfoils. The Latin word saxifraga means literally "stone-breaker", from Latin saxum ("rock" or "stone") + frangere ("to break"). It is usually thought to indicate a medicinal use for treatment of urinary calculi (known as kidney or bladder stones), rather than breaking rocks apart."
#46
What Are These? The Devils Testicles? I Stepped On One With My Bare Heel And My Life Flashed Before My Eyes
Sweetgum, Liquidambar styraciflua seed pods.
brenna roisum 1 month ago
Spiders usually stay away from them. i have them in the corners by my Front/back door and windows
Load More Replies... Daniel Atkins 1 month ago
Agree they turn vibrant reds and oranges in the fall which is why they are planted.
Load More Replies... Norm Gilmore 1 month ago
TIL. That this is the horrible seed being dropped and clogging the street gutter from the house on the corner...
Sara Frazer 1 month ago
Boyfriend and I call them death nuts 🤣 it's very scary when you're going on a walk, pass under one of these trees and those start falling around you
Kelly Scott 1 month ago
They planted these trees in San Jose all along the sidewalks and the gutters would be full of these.
#47
Look What They Did To My Boy. .
Sometimes I see this type of damage when a caterpillar ate a hole through leaves before they unfurled. The inner leaves have smaller holes bc it didn’t eat all the way through-
#48
My Sweet Kind Neighbors Who Dont Speak English Very Well Gave Me This... Squash? Because It Was Growing On My Side Of The Fence. Any Help?
It's a long bottle gourd.
Multa Nocte 1 month ago
"Calabash, also known as bottle gourd, white-flowered gourd, long melon, birdhouse gourd, New Guinea bean, New Guinea butter bean, Tasmania bean, and opo squash, is a vine which is grown for its fruit. It belongs to the family Cucurbitaceae, is native to tropical Africa, and cultivated across the tropics. It can be either harvested young to be consumed as a vegetable, or harvested mature to be dried and used as a kitchen utensil (typically as a ladle or bowl), beverage container or a musical instrument. When it is fresh, the fruit has a light green smooth skin and white flesh. Calabash fruits have a variety of shapes: they can be huge and rounded, small and bottle-shaped, or slim and serpentine, and they can grow to be over a metre long. Rounder varieties are typically called calabash gourds. Calabash gourds can grow to great size. One grown in Taylorsvlle, Ky (US) in 2001 weighed 111.5 kg (246 lb). The gourd was one of the world's first cultivated plants grown not primarily for food."
LakotaWolf (she/her) 1 month ago
My ex is Chinese - his parents call this (in English) "opa melon". You can slice it into rounds/medallions (maybe 1/4 inch thick) and pan-fry them in light oil, or you can "steam" fry them in water (put the medallions into a pan with an inch or so of water, let steam-boil until the flesh of the gourd is soft.) It is QUITE delicious, no seasoning really needed - though of course you can season as one wishes. The skin itself can sometimes be a little tough, but the flesh and even the seeds are soft and chewy. Obviously most of them available in the grocery store/Asian market are MUCH smaller than this one - most are less than a foot long XD
Load More Replies... Panda'sMom 1 month ago
The fruit is sometimes cover with a mold it order for it to grow in specific shapes
Ellie Sakurai 1 month ago
I don't know the name in English but it is edible and you can cook it as a vegetable, fried or however you want
#49
Pulled These Out Of My Dogs Armpit, What Is This?
Nassella leucotricha. It's a species of speargrass. It is engineered to spin itself with changes in humidity, which will self plant in soil. It will do something similar in fur.
J Steven Tefertiller 4 weeks ago
looks similar to Devils darning needles. pretty purple flowers but when they dry out in summer they can stick to fur, and socks.
#50
Found In Ventura, CA. Anyone Know What This Is?
Geraldton Carnationweed, Carnation Spurge (Euphorbia terracina) I believe.
Multa Nocte 1 month ago
"Euphorbia terracina is toxic to both humans and livestock. As with many other Euphorbia species, exposure to its milky sap may cause irritation to skin, eyes, and digestive tracts. Uses: In some regions of Algeria, the sap of Euphorbia terracina is used to treat warts. The sap has been found to demonstrate antioxidative properties."
Abby Louise Rexroth 1 month ago
Looks like a little tea party, would look great in a terrarium.
#51
What Plant Is This, Street In Jerez, Spain
Those are common grape vines, Vitis vinifera. I think there's a winery at that place.
Huddo's sister 3 weeks ago
At my childhood home, my grandad (who came from a grape growing farming family) planted vines to be a canopy over our sandpit. It was beautiful when maintained but a pain when overgrown.
#52
What Are These Beach Flowers? Ignore The Elephant Seal
Looks like ice plant.
Multa Nocte 1 month ago
"Mesembryanthemum crystallinum (the common, 'crystalline' or 'crystallinum' iceplant, or simply 'iceplant') is a species of annual/perennial, succulent flowering plant in the Mesembryanthemum genus of the Aizoaceae family. A true Mediterranean-climate grower, this prostrate groundcover is native to coastal North Africa and Sinai, the Levant and maritime Southern Europe, and several Mediterranean and North Atlantic islands, as well. The plant is covered with large, glistening bladder cells, or water vesicles, hence its many common names such as crystallinum iceplant, crystalline iceplant or iceplant."
Coral 1 month ago
Common name of ice plant refers to many different things. This is not crystalline ice plant, which is a different succulent ground cover. Sour fig plant (Carpobrotus edulis) Description: A creeping, succulent plant with fleshy leaves and bright flowers. Fruit: The fruit is edible and has a salty, tart, and slightly sour taste. It can be used to make jam. Habitat: It is common on rocky shores and cliffs, and was introduced to other regions like California to prevent erosion. Invasive potential: In some areas, it is considered an invasive species that can outcompete native plants.
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Joanne Mendonza-Earle 1 month ago
I loooooove ice plant. It's a total pest in the SF Bay Area but I love the flowers.
Jennifer Gray 1 month ago
At our house in MOSS Landing too! We've been fighting a loosing battle for a decade!
Load More Replies... Huddo's sister 3 weeks ago (edited)
Not Pig face? Hard to tell with the blurry photo what shape the flowers actually are, but the leaves look the same. Pig face is an Australian native often found on foreshores.
#53
Found This Growing Voluntarily Over My Dogs Grave
Claytonia virginica
#54
What's This Blue Thing?
Blue Roundhead mushroom, Stropharia caerulea
#55
What Is This Heavenly Smelling Thing?
Pocket melon.
In 19th century upper class ladies would keep one in their handbags at festivies.
Rich Sweetness is a common variety. This one is probably a Queen Anne's.
Multa Nocte 1 month ago
"This variety, which is easy to grow on trellises, produces almost round fruits 7 cm in diameter. Their velvety skin is yellow and orange. Primarily grown for their intense fragrance, their white flesh is practically tasteless."
Roni Stone 1 month ago (edited)
Where I come from, these are called plum grannies, and we make sachets out of them by covering them in cloves. The sweet smell of the fruit and the spicy cloves are wonderful together!
#56
My Buddy From Portugal Sent Me This Photo. What Is This Plant?!
Metrosideros excelsa, commonly known as Pohutukawa in New Zealand.
Littlemiss 1 month ago
Beautiful trees, attract loads of native birds. Just don't park near one.
Multa Nocte 1 month ago
"Pōhutukawa (Metrosideros excelsa), also known as the New Zealand Christmas tree, or iron tree, is a coastal evergreen tree in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae, that produces a brilliant display of red (or occasionally orange, yellow or white) flowers, each consisting of a mass of stamens. The pōhutukawa is one of twelve Metrosideros species endemic to New Zealand. Renowned for its vibrant colour and its ability to survive even perched on rocky, precarious cliffs, it has found an important place in New Zealand culture for its strength and beauty, and is regarded as a chiefly tree (rākau rangatira) by Māori."
Norm Gilmore 1 month ago (edited)
This photo doesn't do it justice. When it flowers around November/December (hence it's name as NZ Christmas tree) it is a brilliant red.
#57
Strange Round 'Fruit' With Stringy Latexy Insides - Pic Of Tree In Comment
Sodom Apple?
Do not eat.
Gadaffi Duck 1 month ago
Calotropis process. Kiss your heart goodbye if you ingest this. The sticky Innards are highly toxic and also soap proof.
Multa Nocte 1 month ago
"The fruit is described by the Roman Jewish historian Josephus, who saw it growing near what he calls Sodom, near the Dead Sea: "[A]s well as the ashes growing in their fruits; which fruits have a color as if they were fit to be eaten, but if you pluck them with your hands, they dissolve into smoke and ashes." The ashkhar is listed in the Mishnah and Talmud. The fibers attached to the seeds may have been used as wicks. However, according to the Mishnah, it is one of the rabbinically prohibited activities of Shabbat."
UnclePanda 1 month ago
The milky sap contains a complex mix of chemicals, some of which are steroidal heart poisons known as "cardiac aglycones". These belong to the same chemical family as similar ones found in foxgloves (Digitalis purpurea). ~ Wikipedia
#58
Saw This On My Walk To The Library. They're So Bright. What The Heck?
Beauty berry, popular with birds in winter
Multa Nocte 1 month ago
"The berries last well into the winter or dry season and are an important survival food for birds and other animals, though they will not eat them until other sources are depleted. The berries are highly astringent but are made into wine and jelly. Callicarpa species are used as food plants by the larvae of some Lepidoptera species in Asia including Endoclita malabaricus and Endoclita undulifer." "American beautyberry has been used as a folk remedy to prevent mosquito bites. Four chemicals isolated from Callicarpa have been shown to act as insect repellents: borneol, callicarpenal, intermedeol, and spathulenol. The use of callicarpenal has been patented by the United States Department of Agriculture's Agricultural Research Service as a mosquito repellent."
#59
My Buddy Just Ate Some Of This Weird Fruit In Northern California. He Said His Stomach Feels Fine And It Just Tasted “Un Ripe”
looks like osage orange, aka nature's softball lol
your friend should be fine but obviously isn't too bright
Roxy222uk 1 month ago
Who on earth are these nit wits eating things that they don’t know what they are?? If you’re seven or under that’s forgiveable, but otherwise you really should know better.
Janissary35680 1 month ago (edited)
It's not forgiveable at any age, Below two or three, it's understandable and needs to be prevented.
Load More Replies... Multa Nocte 1 month ago
"The distinctive fruit, a multiple fruit that resembles an immature orange, is roughly spherical, bumpy, 8 to 15 cm (3–6 in) in diameter, and turns bright yellow-green in the fall. The fruit excretes a sticky white latex when cut or damaged. Despite the name "Osage orange", it is not related to the orange. It is a member of the mulberry family, Moraceae."
Christine Wild 4 weeks ago
I’ve seen something like this in grocery stores. It is either this or something that looks like it that some people put around their house to Keep insects from coming in.
Toothless Feline 1 month ago
I used to deliver early morning newspapers (late ‘80s) to quadplexes that sat at the top of a three-meter hill that overlooked a major road. There were several osage orange trees in the front yards, and during fruiting season I used to kick the fallen fruit down the hill to watch cars run over them. Great fun at 5 a.m.!
#60
What Are These Rainbow Berries
Porcelain berry, related to grapes and highly invasive in some places. The berries are technically edible, but aren’t considered desirable to eat due to lack of flavor and slimy texture (according to the internet, never tried them myself).
Multa Nocte 1 month ago
"Ampelopsis glandulosa, with common names creeper, porcelain berry, Amur peppervine, and wild grape, is a plant in the Vitaceae (grape) family, native to temperate areas of Asia, including China, Japan, India, Nepal, Myanmar, Vietnam, and the Philippines. It is commonly used as an ornamental plant, but is considered invasive outside of its native range. Ampelopsis glandulosa is generally similar to, and potentially confused with, grape species (genus Vitis) and other Ampelopsis species."
#61
Inherited This Plant From My Dad. He’s Since Passed Away And I Can’t Remember What He Said It Was
Haemanthus albiflos (Paintbrush Lily).
Multa Nocte 1 month ago
"The upper half of the bulb is usually exposed and bright green. Since it produces a pair of leaves once a year and is evergreen, the plant may have up to three pairs of leaves. The leaves are up to 40 cm (16 in) long, and may have a covering of short, soft hairs, and occasionally yellow spots on the upper surface. In late autumn and winter, brush-like umbels comprising multiple tiny white florets are borne on stout stems, followed by fleshy red oval fruits which have white seeds. The whole plant grows to 20–30 cm (8–12 in) tall by 15 cm (6 in) wide."
WindySwede 3 weeks ago
That is just the Paintbrush Lily aftermath from sneezing?
Load More Replies... #62
BF Bought "Venus Fly Trap" Seeds From Temu, Wtf Is This ?
Celosia, this one has a crested flower, so could end up as a cockscomb
Laserleader 1 month ago
Well since the other plants in the box are common weeds im guessing this was a random seed too. The fly trap seed was probably a dud.
#63
Just Spent An Hour Mowing This, It’s Not Poison Ivy Right Guys? :)
Looks like it to me. You should take a good shower with dish washing detergent and scrub every exposed inch of skin to get any oil off. Wash clothing with hot water and grease cutting detergent. The shoes may be a goner. Hopefully you're immune, but others in your household might not be and they can definitely get a rash from contaminated items. Good luck.
Upstaged75 1 month ago
I used to get poison ivy rashes every year from the horses. It doesn't bother them, but the oil stays on their coat and can be passed to people that way.
Savannah greenleaf 1 month ago
First time I ever got poison ivy was from my dog. Took a minute to figure it out as I had not been outdoors minimally to walk to the car that week. Dogs love to roll and are generally immune like mine.
Load More Replies... Roni Stone 1 month ago (edited)
Never trust a skin allergy. My dad was immune until he wasn't. He always volunteered to clear poison ivy if people needed. One day it backfired and he ended up at the doc's office, more miserable than miserable. EDITED because I was sloppy and put "allergic" instead of "immune". Fixed it.
Chich the witch 1 month ago
I am immune but have known a guy who only had to be down wind of it to get a reaction.
Roni Stone 1 month ago
I've had it several times from childhood tromping in the woods, but it was never bad. I thank the poison plant gods for those mild reactions.
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marianne eliza 1 month ago
Jeez! Don't scrub! Exposes fresh skin which is terribly susceptible to the oils and rash. I made that mistake in 1976 with poison oak. Terrible weeping rash covering one whole side of my face, where I had leaned my cheek against my horse's neck, then went inside to wash up. Commercial washes to remove the oils are available, like Technu, which can also be used in the washing machine. One other tip: the oils form a bond on the skin like a superglue does. Wiping down with nail polish remover can break that bond. Wash well after but don't scrub!
MotherofGuineaPigs 1 month ago
We were on a hike for a botany class and I asked what poison ivy looked like (I didn't recall ever seeing it). Teacher said "look down". I was standing in a patch of it. Turns out I had seen it before, just never got a rash so didn't recognize it.
Huddo's sister 3 weeks ago
I am so glad it's not common where I live. I'm allergic to so many plants, I'm bound to be to this too.
#64
Who Is This Pretty Weirdo?
Looks like Papaver somniferum
#65
This Thing Made A Popping Sound And Launched Out If The Tree
Looks like a Morinda citrifolia fruit, also known as noni. They are edible, but smell and taste horrible. It's famine food and a common ingredient in scam super juices.
Multa Nocte 1 month ago
"Morinda citrifolia is a fruit-bearing tree in the coffee family, Rubiaceae. There are over 100 names for this fruit across different regions, including great morinda, Indian mulberry, noni, beach mulberry, vomit fruit, awl tree, and cheesefruit. Native to Southeast Asia and Australasia, the species was spread across the Pacific by Polynesian sailors. It is now cultivated throughout the tropics and is widely naturalised. The plant contains anthraquinones, which can be harmful to human health. Although the fresh fruit is edible, its pungent odour makes it worthwhile only as a famine food. It is also used in traditional medicine and processed into products such as juices."
#66
I Guess I Don't Really Care What It Is Just Saw This On My Hike And Thought It Looked Cool!
Wild yam (Dioscorea villosa)
Multa Nocte 1 month ago
"Dioscorea villosa (synonym D. quaternata) is a species of twining tuberous vine which is native to eastern North America. It is commonly known as wild yam, colic root, rheumatism root, devil's bones, and fourleaf yam. It is common and widespread in a range stretching from Texas and Florida north to Minnesota, Ontario and Massachusetts."
#67
What Is This? Smells Like A Dumpster
Dracunculus vulgaris
Multa Nocte 1 month ago
"The species is characterized by a large purple spathe and spadix, which has a very unpleasant smell reminiscent of rotting meat to attract flies (Lucilia and others) as pollinators. The large palmate leaves have occasional cream flecks along the veins. The dragon lily has the ability to heat itself to a temperature of 18 degrees Celsius. This addition to its traits does not have any correlation to its potent scent, however it does promote the comfort of the insects who choose to pollinate on the lily. The plant itself is large in size with an equally large internal floral chamber as well as an ample landing area for insects. The spathe and floral chamber guide the insects into the plant during the stage of stigma receptivity and then it releases the insects after the pollen is shed. While the flower doesn't close completely, the sticky walls are what make it difficult for the insect to climb out. After a day, the spathe begins to wither and the flies and or beetles are free."
#68
Got A Package Delivered To Me In My Name Today But I Didn't Order Anything
Resurrection plant maybe?
Vexed Panda 1 month ago
Jericho Flowers. We sell them in our shop. But we didn't send them to you.
Sonder Toffee 1 month ago
As in rose of Jericho? All I know is that’s the title of a FANTASTIC book I just read that I can’t stop thinking about and already want to read again.
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#69
Vine With Weird Spiky Fruit [north Brisbane, Queensland, Australia]
Bitter melon or bitter gourd. Raw fruit is A staple in Indian cuisine, turns yellow/orange when ripe and the thin flesh around the seeds is sweet.
Multa Nocte 1 month ago
"Bitter melon — also known as bitter gourd or Momordica charantia — is a tropical vine that belongs to the gourd family and is closely related to zucchini, squash, pumpkin, and cucumber. It's cultivated around the world for its edible fruit, which is considered a staple in many types of Asian cuisine."
LakotaWolf (she/her) 1 month ago
Yet another food I'm very familiar with from dating my Chinese now-ex for 24 years XD It's quite good when stir-fried with chilis and spices, but is also EXCELLENT pickled in rice vinegar. Once the fruit is ripe like this, it's actually toxic and should NOT be consumed. Both the Chinese and Indian cultivars of bitter melon are consumed when the fruits are still green and unripe.
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Huddo's sister 3 weeks ago
My brother cooked something with bitter melon when he was really into cooking different traditional foods. We both hated it! Bitter doesn't even begin to describe it. Anyway, even after that, I decided to try bitter melon tea because I like lots of herbal teas, so I bought a box, which was a complete waste of money because of course I didn't like it!
#70
Found Near The Arkansas/Oklahoma Border! Emits A Pinkish/Purple Gas/Mist When Touched
It’s a fungus. Puffball
Multa Nocte 1 month ago
"The distinguishing feature of all puffballs is that they do not have an open cap with spore-bearing gills. Instead, spores are produced internally, in a spheroidal fruit body called a gasterothecium (gasteroid 'stomach-like' basidiocarp). As the spores mature, they form a mass called a gleba in the centre of the fruitbody that is often of a distinctive color and texture. The basidiocarp remains closed until after the spores have been released from the basidia. Eventually, it develops an aperture, or dries, becomes brittle, and splits, and the spores escape. The spores of puffballs are statismospores rather than ballistospores, meaning they are not forcibly extruded from the basidium. Puffballs and similar forms are thought to have evolved convergently (that is, in numerous independent events) from Hymenomycetes by gasteromycetation, through secotioid stages. Thus, 'Gasteromycetes' and 'Gasteromycetidae' are now considered to be descriptive, morphological terms (more properly gasteroi"
Laserleader 1 month ago
Look around for more of them. This may be old, but they grow in clusters, and if you cut one in half and its solid color all the way through, then its good. If there is a color change in the middle its too old to eat...I mean you can eat darker ones, but the darker the middle the sicker you will get from the spores.
#71
Is This Poison Ivy?? It’s Everywhere
As others have stated, it is almost certainly poison ivy. I wanted to add that you should absolutely NOT burn it as it will atomize the irritant and can then get into your lungs and eyes. Also, if you kill it with chemicals, it can still irritate your skin after it is dead.
Laura Gillette 1 month ago
One eco-friendly solution I've heard of is to have goats come eat it (there are companies that do this!). Goats are immune to poison ivy and are one of the few animals that can eat it.
Lee451 Henderson 1 month ago
Chemical defoiliants include triclopyr or any other brush killer. They take about 30 days to work.
Laserleader 1 month ago
So, shears on sticks and gloves to put branches into bags to be taken to the dump.
#72
What's Wrong With This Pineapple?
I have never seen a fasciated pineapple. So cool!!
Multa Nocte 1 month ago
"When fasciation occurs in pineapple crowns, the normally cylindrical crown becomes flattened and fan-like, resembling a rooster’s crest. The fruit itself may also become flattened or develop an irregular, elongated shape. This abnormality occurs when the growing tip of the plant produces abnormally wide growth, essentially creating a “wide” version of normal plant parts. The exact causes of fasciation aren’t fully understood, but research suggests it can result from genetic mutations, viral infections, bacterial infections, or severe environmental stress during critical development periods. Some studies indicate that fasciation might be more common in plants grown from certain types of planting material or in specific environmental conditions. Fasciated pineapples present significant marketing challenges because their unusual shapes don’t fit standard packaging and processing equipment. Additionally, the irregular fruit surface can be more susceptible to post-harvest diseases."
#73
What Is This Fruit? Tastes Like Nintendo Cartridge
Devils Apple. A species of Nightshade. Toxic.
Savannah greenleaf 1 month ago
They also seem to know what the inside of a Nintendo cartridge tastes like. I think we know why.
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Multa Nocte 1 month ago
"Solanum linnaeanum is a nightshade species known as devil's apple and, in some places where it is introduced, apple of Sodom. The latter name is also used for other nightshades and entirely different plants elsewhere, in particular the poisonous milkweed Calotropis procera. This poisonous plant bearing tomato-like fruit is native to many African countries Kenya, Tanzania, South Africa, Zimbabwe and Mozambique, and is considered to be an invasive species in Australia, New Zealand, Hawaii, Fiji, New Caledonia, other Pacific Islands, the Aseer region of Saudi Arabia, and northern areas of Pakistan. When raw its fruits are green and look exactly like the Thai eggplant and when ripe they are yellow. In Ukambani eastern Kenya children in the villages in summer season use the poisonous yellow fruit as football, cautiously."
#74
Wife Found This Online, No Context, And Wants Me To Get One
Let your wife know that AI plants are a huge scam online right now.
Blue Japanese Maple's do not exist.
Nor do flowers that look like cats.
You can get her a cyclamen but its going to look more like the ones in this article.
Nadine Debard 1 month ago
A nice Peperomia argyreia could do the trick, too, but the plant in the picture doesn't exist.
#75
What Are These Pointy Cone Things Growing In My Garden?
Those look like newly emerged bamboo canes. Did you recently move into this house?
#76
Did I Just Pull Out Poison Ivy With My Bare Hands?
Boston ivy.
Multa Nocte 1 month ago
"P. tricuspidata uses adhesive pads to attach to surfaces, allowing it to climb vertically up trees, walls, and other structures. Contact with a surface signals the adhesive pads to secrete mucilage through microscopic pores which dries and creates a robust adhesive bond. The ability of a single adhesive pad to support thousands of times their weight may be explored as a model for new biomimetic materials. In its native range, the vine has traditional medicinal uses (China, Korea) and as a culinary sweetener (Japan). Both within and outside of East Asia, the plant is primarily used as an ornamental plant."
#77
Came Across The Most Detailed Flower I've Ever Seen Today Growing On A Simple Roadside Bush
passion flower
Multa Nocte 1 month ago
"Passion flowers produce regular and usually showy flowers with a distinctive corona. There can be as many as eight concentric coronal series, as in the case of P. xiikzodz. and Passiflora alata. The hallmark of the genus is the androgynophore, a central column to which the stamens and pistil are attached, which can be very long in some species such as Passiflora coactilis. The flower is pentamerous (except for a few Southeast Asian species) and ripens into an indehiscent fruit with numerous seeds.The fruit ranges from 5–20 centimetres (2–8 in) long and 2.5–5 cm (1–2 in) across, depending upon the species or cultivar."
LakotaWolf (she/her) 1 month ago
The flowers produce a tasty, sweet nectar that is safe to lick/eat, and the ripe fruits are edible as well!
Load More Replies... Lee451 Henderson 1 month ago
I grow two varieties (incarnate and edulis). They both bear fruit.
#78
What Is This Leaf That I Took From A Botanical Garden?
Looks like a Coccoloba. Lots of species in that genus, but the closest I'm familiar with is Coccoloba pubescens.
Chonky Panda 1 month ago
Y'all should read OP's comment before you post rude comments. "They were trimming the trees and [I] asked [for] one leaf. They said I could take the whole branch but that was too big and had multiple leaves. I forgot to ask the people there what it was."
Laserleader 1 month ago
That is not apparent by the Bored Panda post. Thanks for the addition.
Load More Replies... Multa Nocte 1 month ago (edited)
"Coccoloba pubescens, known as grandleaf seagrape, largeleaf, mountain-grape, and Eve's umbrella, is a species of Coccoloba native to coastal regions of the Caribbean: on Antigua, Barbados, Barbuda, Dominica, Hispaniola, Martinique, Montserrat, and Puerto Rico. Grandleaf seagrape is a medium-sized tree growing to 24 m tall, with an open, sparsely branched crown. The leaves are orbicular, very variable in size, from 2.5–45 cm diameter, rarely up to 90 cm diameter, bright green above, paler below with yellow to reddish veins, and a smooth, wavy margin. The flowers are greenish-white, produced on erect spikes up to 60 cm long. The fruit is 2 cm in diameter."
JackrabbitJax 1 month ago
…can one just TAKE things from botanical gardens?? Ah yeah, my houseplant collection is about to grow exponentially!
Day Andie 1 month ago
Oops, this little stem just fell off. Look at these seeds just scattering all over the place. Maybe a just a leaf or two.....
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What do you think ?
Angela B 1 month ago
I am very grateful @MultaNocte for your sharing of so much interesting information in this post.
Multa Nocte 1 month ago
You're welcome. It was a learning journey for me as well. We have so many people here on BP with so much knowledge, like Kira and others, that it felt like it was my turn to do some research.
Load More Replies... Smeghead Tribble Down Under 1 month ago
How many idiots are there tasting random fruit or berries without identifying them first? O_O
Kenny Kulbiski 1 month ago
Thanks to Multa I now know several new ways to poison my enemies. "Here, try this." Seriously, I'm impressed. Thanks.
arthbach 1 month ago
Kenny Kulbiski, thank you. I now have the beginnings of a story based around a person who was eating almonds, and would you believe it, there were some peach nuts in the mix.
Load More Replies... Nadine Debard 1 month ago
Thank you Multa Nocte for all the explanations, it made the article much more interesting.
sturmwesen 1 month ago
I use the flora incognita app on walks if I stumble over interesting flowers (and the Merlin app for birds). it works great, but I wouldn't eat random fruits even if the app tells me I can, if I am not sure.
moggiemoo 1 month ago
I'm sometimes suspicious of stuff I see in supermarkets.
Load More Replies... LakotaWolf (she/her) 1 month ago
I grow a lot of citrus trees, fruit trees, and berry bushes in my backyard - Bearss lime, Meyer lemon, Washington Sweet orange, yuzu, calamondin - also a LSU Gold fig tree, a loquat tree, and two varietals of pink blueberry and a half-dozen different varietals of raspberry, blackberry, and boysenberry - so my backyard is a controlled garden, so to speak. One time I was in the middle of transferring some smaller saplings to much larger barrel containers, and had left one container full of soil (but no plant yet) for a few days. Next thing I knew, when I went to use the container, a tiny plant had sprouted in it! I figured hey, it claimed an empty pot, might as well leave it be, so I let it grow. It turns out it's a California ash tree! :D I like to pretend like it chose to come grow in my yard XD
Huddo's sister 3 weeks ago
All I get is blackberries and mirror bushes self sowing in my garden, both of which are invasive! I haven't had the time or energy to do much in the garden in the last 12 months or more and I know it's going to be a tough job getting even the few beds I have back into shape.
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Angela B 1 month ago
I am very grateful @MultaNocte for your sharing of so much interesting information in this post.
Multa Nocte 1 month ago
You're welcome. It was a learning journey for me as well. We have so many people here on BP with so much knowledge, like Kira and others, that it felt like it was my turn to do some research.
Load More Replies... Smeghead Tribble Down Under 1 month ago
How many idiots are there tasting random fruit or berries without identifying them first? O_O
Kenny Kulbiski 1 month ago
Thanks to Multa I now know several new ways to poison my enemies. "Here, try this." Seriously, I'm impressed. Thanks.
arthbach 1 month ago
Kenny Kulbiski, thank you. I now have the beginnings of a story based around a person who was eating almonds, and would you believe it, there were some peach nuts in the mix.
Load More Replies... Nadine Debard 1 month ago
Thank you Multa Nocte for all the explanations, it made the article much more interesting.
sturmwesen 1 month ago
I use the flora incognita app on walks if I stumble over interesting flowers (and the Merlin app for birds). it works great, but I wouldn't eat random fruits even if the app tells me I can, if I am not sure.
moggiemoo 1 month ago
I'm sometimes suspicious of stuff I see in supermarkets.
Load More Replies... LakotaWolf (she/her) 1 month ago
I grow a lot of citrus trees, fruit trees, and berry bushes in my backyard - Bearss lime, Meyer lemon, Washington Sweet orange, yuzu, calamondin - also a LSU Gold fig tree, a loquat tree, and two varietals of pink blueberry and a half-dozen different varietals of raspberry, blackberry, and boysenberry - so my backyard is a controlled garden, so to speak. One time I was in the middle of transferring some smaller saplings to much larger barrel containers, and had left one container full of soil (but no plant yet) for a few days. Next thing I knew, when I went to use the container, a tiny plant had sprouted in it! I figured hey, it claimed an empty pot, might as well leave it be, so I let it grow. It turns out it's a California ash tree! :D I like to pretend like it chose to come grow in my yard XD
Huddo's sister 3 weeks ago
All I get is blackberries and mirror bushes self sowing in my garden, both of which are invasive! I haven't had the time or energy to do much in the garden in the last 12 months or more and I know it's going to be a tough job getting even the few beds I have back into shape.
Load More Replies... 
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