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Under the Canopy
On Outdoor Journal Radio's Under the Canopy podcast, former Minister of Natural Resources, Jerry Ouellette takes you along on the journey to see the places and meet the people that will help you find your outdoor passion and help you live a life close to nature and Under The Canopy.
Under the Canopy
Episode 105: Wild Parsnip Danger: Nature's Hidden Burn
The hidden dangers lurking along our favorite trails aren't always what you'd expect. In this eye-opening episode, Jerry welcomes Monica from the Invasive Species Centre to shed light on two particularly hazardous plants gaining ground across North America: wild parsnip and giant hogweed.
These invasive species might look innocuous—one with yellow flowers resembling Queen Anne's lace, the other a massive plant reaching up to 18 feet tall—but both harbor a sinister secret. Their sap contains chemicals that, when exposed to sunlight on your skin, cause painful burns, blisters, and potential scarring. As Monica explains, you don't even need to break the plant to be affected; simply brushing against it while hiking can transfer enough sap to cause serious reactions.
The conversation traces the fascinating history of these plants, from wild parsnip's journey from valuable food crop to aggressive invader, to giant hogweed's introduction as an ornamental curiosity from the Caucasus Mountains. Monica breaks down exactly what these plants look like, how to identify them, and the crucial steps to take if you suspect exposure—including the immediate soap-and-water wash that might save your skin from painful blistering.
For landowners and outdoor enthusiasts alike, this episode provides valuable insights on safely managing these plants, from proper protective equipment to the optimal timing for control efforts. As these invasive species continue spreading along roadsides, trails, and waterways, understanding their dangers becomes increasingly important for anyone who spends time outdoors.
Whether you're a hiker, gardener, or concerned homeowner, this conversation equips you with knowledge that could prevent painful encounters with these toxic invaders. Download iNaturalist or EDMaps to help identify suspicious plants, and visit invasivespeciescentre.ca for more comprehensive management guides and resources. Your awareness might just protect you and others from these deceptively dangerous plants.
Hi everybody. I'm Angelo Viola and I'm Pete Bowman. Now you might know us as the hosts of Canada's Favorite Fishing Show, but now we're hosting a podcast. That's right. Every Thursday, ang and I will be right here in your ears bringing you a brand new episode of Outdoor Journal Radio. Now, what are we going to talk about for two hours every week? Well, you know there's going to be a lot of fishing.
Speaker 3:I knew exactly where those fish were going to be and how to catch them, and they were easy to catch.
Speaker 1:Yeah, but it's not just a fishing show. We're going to be talking to people from all facets of the outdoors From athletes.
Speaker 4:All the other guys would go golfing.
Speaker 2:Me and Garth and Turk and all the Russians would go fishing To scientists. But now that we're reforesting and everything.
Speaker 3:It's the perfect transmission environment for life.
Speaker 5:To chefs If any game isn't cooked properly, marinated, you will taste it.
Speaker 1:And whoever else will pick up the phone Wherever you are. Outdoor Journal Radio seeks to answer the questions and tell the stories of all those who enjoy being outside. Find us on Spotify, apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts.
Speaker 6:As the world gets louder and louder, the lessons of our natural world become harder and harder to hear, but they are still available to those who know where to listen. I'm Jerry Ouellette and I was honoured to serve as Ontario's Minister of Natural Resources. However, my journey into the woods didn't come from politics. Rather, it came from my time in the bush and a mushroom. In 2015, I was introduced to the birch-hungry fungus known as chaga, a tree conch with centuries of medicinal applications used by Indigenous peoples all over the globe. After nearly a decade of harvest use, testimonials and research, my skepticism has faded to obsession and I now spend my life dedicated to improving the lives of others through natural means. But that's not what the show is about. My pursuit of this strange mushroom and my passion for the outdoors has brought me to the places and around the people that are shaped by our natural world world. On Outdoor Journal Radio's Under the Canopy podcast, I'm going to take you along with me to see the places, meet the people that will help you find your outdoor passion and help you live a life close to nature and under the canopy. So join me today for another great episode, and hopefully we can inspire a few more people to live their lives under the canopy. We can inspire a few more people to live their lives under the canopy. Well, as always, thanks to the listeners all across Canada, the States, the world, whether it's Switzerland, trinidad, tobago, ghana, our friends down in the Bahamas, where Josh is down with Casey right now. She's from the Bahamas. There is down with Casey right now. She's from the Bahamas. There are those I didn't know and you know, last week we had Garrett, my son, garrett, and Brittany on and talking about getting women into the outdoors and outside and things like that and talked about glamping. Now, if you have any questions or anything about that, just let us know we can try and answer them. Get that stuff on. I've got to tell you.
Speaker 6:Yesterday I was in Halliburton and thanks to Cheryl very much for listening to the program. We really appreciate her comments and it's always good to hear from our listeners. And this morning I was out as usual with my Chocolate Lab gunner and, of course, josh, my son, josh, and Casey are down in the Bahamas where she's visiting her parents and guess who gets to sit with their dog? So we're dog sitting with Benny and Benny is a ball nut. Well, I got to tell you he's just crazy. And we walked down the park where they, seeing a lot of right now, is all-heal, self-heal. It's in full bloom, the mint, the stinging nettles, all doing well. My mint patches are doing well.
Speaker 6:I recently harvested my second flush of reishi, which I've started to use in a batch of tea that I'm making up. And the rabbits, with this heat We've got this heat wave going on and I got to tell you yesterday I put some feed in the bird feeder and when I come out back out there was a rabbit sitting right there and I walked basically arm's length from it and it just looked at me like where's my food? We're talking wild rabbits here, cottontails, anyway. So I had been doing some work in dehydrating some apples, so I brought some apple core and peelings out, put it out for it. And the reason I had to go out and do the fill the bird feeder was because the squirrels and chipmunks find a way to climb the metal pole. Chipmunks find a way to climb the metal pole. So this morning there I am out there greasing the pole with petroleum jelly and it keeps the chipmunks and the squirrels off out of the feeder because it's kind of like a shepherd's what do they call it? A shepherd's hook, that it sits on the feeder but it's about four or five feet off the ground and the squirrels and the chipmunks climb up this metal pole to get over to the feeder and then clean it out. And in one night they'll clean out the entire thing. So this morning I'm out with petroleum jelly making sure that all the birds that come to the feeder whether it's the goldfinches, the chirping of the house, sparrows, the cardinals, et cetera, et cetera that all come up, get their fair share of the food.
Speaker 6:And you know we had a podcast where we did and I got to tell you that Marlin app to listen from bird calls and tell you what the bird calls. I'm enjoying that so much because everywhere I go now I turn that on doesn't matter whether I'm on a golf course and I'm seeing, hearing. Well, I'm hearing all kinds of bird sounds and it's identifying for me, which is a really pleasure. So if you haven't got that app it's called Merlin and it's from the States, it's free, it's a great one and it identifies bird sounds. I talked about it on one of the previous podcasts, but today we have Monica Litska. Good morning, monica, and how are you?
Speaker 7:Good morning, Jerry. I'm doing very, very well. How are you?
Speaker 6:I'm okay, so did I get the last name right? Did I pronounce?
Speaker 7:it right, you got it.
Speaker 6:Very good, you know, I believe. Tell us about where. Where are you from, monica?
Speaker 7:yeah, um, so I am, um, I work for a non-profit organization called the invasive species center and the invasive species center. We mobilize action against invasive species that harm the environment, economy and society, and so we're based in Sault Ste Marie, so we do have a lot of staff there, but we also have quite a few people like myself working remotely across the province. So, personally, I am located in the Georgina area, which is just an hour north of Toronto.
Speaker 6:Okay, yeah, because a lot of our international listeners we kind of give them a background of where people are and so about an hour north of Toronto. Okay, yeah, because a lot of our international listeners we kind of give them a background of where people are and so about an hour north of Toronto up near Lake Simcoe, correct?
Speaker 7:That's correct.
Speaker 6:Yeah, very good. Now, monica, the reason I asked you to come on the show is because I want to talk about and I'm hearing more and more about it wild parsnip and giant hogweed. So tell us, let's start with wild parsnip. Tell us what is wild parsnip and giant hogweed. So tell us, let's start with wild parsnip. Tell us what is wild parsnip and what's happening with it. And where did it come from, how did it get here and how did the whole wild parsnip start?
Speaker 7:Yeah, so with wild parsnip, and, if you don't mind, I actually would like to start off just explaining a little bit more about the name itself. Yes, yeah. So I feel like just learning the scientific name can really show us a lot of. It can help unravel those characteristics of a plant and give us a little bit about the history of the plant as well, bit about the history of the plants as well. And so with wild parsnip, its scientific name is Pastienka sativa and it has some ancient roots. So the name comes from the Latin word pastus, which means food, and sativa, meaning cultivated.
Speaker 7:So what's fascinating is that before potatoes, parsnip was a staple food across Eurasia. So it's known for its sweet and its starchy roots. And, yeah, so wild parsnip today, I think we kind of are all familiar with it for a different reason. It's known for its toxic effect, causing skin reactions. So those reactions can be like burns or blisters. But the cultivated varieties were less of a hazard, and I think this might be because food types were selected for lower toxin levels or just because people handle them in ways that avoided the sap exposure, but without humans selecting it for its you know, that tasty root it slowly started to just kind of revert to a more aggressive, hardy, wild form, and that's what we now know it to be wild parsnip. So in a sense, it's gone from this domesticated plant almost gone, feral, I'd like to say and it's become widespread and invasive across North America.
Speaker 6:So is it something that people can eat the roots just like regular parsnip?
Speaker 7:So, from what I understand, is that wild parsnip, the root itself is a lot more fibrous because it's it's just has been, you know, slowly kind of reverted to being more aggressive, in the sense that it has now focused more, a lot more on seed production, for example, and so it doesn't necessarily and we're not cultivating it anymore to have tasty roots. So I myself I've never tried wild parsnip before.
Speaker 6:Perhaps there are some people who do forage for it, but um, I did mention that it is a a toxic plant, so there must be, um you have to handle it with with some special care right, so, um now, so people obviously I I'm saying, I'm suggesting should need it, because the toxins are must be in the, in the, the root, like normal parsnip, as well as the stem and the leaves and the seeds. Yes, noam.
Speaker 7:Yeah, I'm not too sure about the root itself, but definitely the stem and the leaves, and I believe also the toxic sap can also come out of the soft hairs that it has as well, and so the plant. It doesn't have to be broken for the sap to impact you. Simply just kind of just brushing up against it is enough to cause harm.
Speaker 6:Oh, okay, so is it kind of like stinging nettle, where it has these nettles where the formic acid in stinging nettle would sting the same, or, do you know, is it a different acid that causes problems with the wild parsnip?
Speaker 7:Yeah, that's a really good question. I've definitely been stung by stinging nettle before, and I don't think wild parsnip causes that same stinging effect. It does have a chemical called and forgive me if I pronounce this incorrectly funicumorins, and so that's the chemical that's found in the plant. And so when the sap is exposed to sunlight, that's when it causes the reaction, and the reaction that it causes is called phytophotodermatitis. So it shows up as a painful rash that can turn into a burn and then, in some more severe cases, blistering and scarring. My fiance, I'm pretty sure at one point he did get some wild parsnip blistering and scarring. He went off trail one time and he came back with a painful rash that later blistered, and so I suspect that was likely wild parsnip that he came in contact with.
Speaker 6:Okay, so how does it compare, say, to poison ivy? Because, I believe, do you not have to have the juice from poison ivy, so you have to break the leaves or the stems in order to get the rash or the infection, or however we want to call the result of getting it on you. Is it the same or is it a little bit different?
Speaker 7:Yeah, that's a really good question, and I think everyone will react differently when it comes to poison ivy. I think with poison ivy, even just brushing up against it could be enough. Some people can respond to that, and I'm going to use my fiance as an example too, because he seems to always be running up against all the hazardous plants. But for him, for example, he just has to brush up against it and he gets a reaction from it, whereas me, I've been in poison ivy tons of times before and I don't get a reaction from it. So everyone's going to react differently. I think with wild parsnip and even giant hogweed, if you do get that sap on you and it is exposed to sunlight, you will get a reaction for sure.
Speaker 6:But boy, it sounds like your fiancé. Your fiance is a guinea pig of some sort. Go over there and let's see how you react. I'm trying to figure that out. But so now if, if you cover it once, you're exposed to wild parsnip and the the whatever it is, whether it's just brushing it up against it or the juices from it, if you cover it because it's not exposed to the sunlight, will that stop the reaction or do you know?
Speaker 7:Yeah, so it does have to come in contact with sunlight for it to cause the reaction. Okay, and so you'll see the reaction happen within 24 to 48 hours of sun exposure.
Speaker 6:So once the sun has been exposed to it? Because the reason I'm asking is I had somebody come and see me and they asked about wild parsnip and that's what inspired us to talk about it on the show. And they were in Lindsay and their son had been exposed to wild parsnip and they asked will this cream, the skin cream, have help with it? And I said, to be honest, I've never. I don't know, I couldn't tell you, I don't know the details about wild parsnip. Let me see if I can get somebody on that has some expertise in it and that's guess what that's you and that's me, so I don't know.
Speaker 6:So if the rash is out there is, what can you use? Or can you cover it? And will the? Uh eliminating the sunlight stop it? Uh from spreading, or does it spread? Or how does it? Because I think with poison ivy the same thing, um, once you expose it and start to scratch, it'll spread throughout other parts of your body and that's simply because of the. My understanding is the fluid it gets relocated. Is it the same with wild parsnip? Or can you cover it and it'll stop the reaction or decrease it even more, or do you know?
Speaker 7:Yeah, from what I have experienced with my family, using my fiance as an example, um, it doesn't spread like poison Ivy. Um, essentially, once, um it is on the surface of your skin, it will. It will stay there. Um, if you do get exposed to it, it is advised that you do avoid the sun for at least 48 hours. Um, and then to seek medical attention as needed. In terms of creams, I'm not too familiar with what sort of cream that you would use. I think my always go-to has always just been aloe, but I wouldn't take advice. I'm not a trained medical person, so, yeah, I would get. I would seek medical attention from a from a doctor in that regards.
Speaker 6:Right, so okay. So how did wild parsnip get here? Has it always been here? Is it something that's been introduced, or what?
Speaker 7:Yeah, so that's a that's a really great question. And so and so, wild parsnip. It is native plant to Europe and Asia and it was introduced to Canada, the United States, south America, new Zealand and it was very likely that it was brought over here to North America by early European settlers who grew it as a root crop. So yeah, so by 1943, there were reports of wild parsnip actually growing in every province, every Canadian province. But the first reports of cultivated form in Canada it dates back to the early 1600s. So it's been around for quite a while. So it's been around for quite a while In terms of its habitat. It's often found in areas that is exposed to full sunlight. So I think that also kind of helps in its aid right.
Speaker 7:When you get the sap on you, you're likely in an area maybe with full sunlight already, but it can also grow in semi-shade of forests and also riverbanks. It really thrives in meadows and grassland conditions or environments. As you can imagine, these are very exposed areas so they can tolerate a variety of soils, but they cannot survive in flooded environments. Here in Ontario you're mostly going to be finding wild parsnip growing in disturbed areas, so you can think alongside roadsides, trails, shorelines, forest clearings, just anywhere where that suitable habitat is, even just along fence rows, those edge habitats, agricultural fields. It grows really well with a lot of perennial grasses as well.
Speaker 6:So what zones does it grow in? Is it all Ontario? Are you going to find it in the Sioux, sault Ste Marie, in Southern Ontario, in Thunder Bay, in Moosonee, whereabouts?
Speaker 7:are we finding it yeah, so you're gonna find it um all, all across um canada and every province except um I believe it was none of it.
Speaker 6:Okay, yeah all right, so so you can find it everywhere. And how does it get spread? Like? Is it birds are consuming the seeds and then passing it and moving it to different areas, or do we know?
Speaker 7:Yeah, so it does spread through seed production, and so seeds can move around by wind, water, animals or human activity. So seeds can hitch a ride on our hiking boots, for example. So those seeds, it can get stuck in soil or clay, for example, and that gets stuck to the bottom of our boots. It can get stuck in tires, so any ATVs, for example, or it can just get moved around by our equipment. So mowing, for example, or machinery is another means of spread.
Speaker 6:Yeah, I know One of my Chocolate Lab's buddies, cooper, one of his owners was working at a golf course apparently and they didn't know that they had wild parsnip there. Know that they had wild parsnip there and he was sent out to use a whippersnapper like a trimmer and just got covered all over his face and everywhere from it. So it does spread around. Now my understanding is, although I haven't seen it and I haven't seen a lot of information about it, it kind of looks like Queen Anne's lace for people that know what Queen Anne's lace look like. Is that correct?
Speaker 7:Yeah. So, yeah, it does have a couple of different key characteristics. So wild parsnip it's sometimes also referred to as yellow parsnip, and that yellow part to the name is helpful because it does have yellow flowers. So Queen Anne's lace has yellow flower yeah, sorry, not yellow white flowers. Yes, and lace has yellow flower yeah, sorry, not yellow White flowers yes, and so wild parsnip. It reaches heights of, I'd say, between four to five feet tall. It has a light green and deeply grooved hollow stem, and that is one of its key characteristics. It's deeply grooved hollow stem. It has very few white hairs and the leaves are also another key identifying feature. It resembles celery.
Speaker 6:Oh, so it looks like celery. The stem looks like celery, the leaves do. Oh, the leaves do so. And yeah, because there's other stuff like do you know what lavage is?
Speaker 7:Oh, I do. Yeah, I think I had it growing in my garden last year.
Speaker 6:Yeah, I know I have lavage growing in mine and it kind of looks like the leaves on lavage look like celery as well and the head of lavage. Although lavage will get quite tall Mine are probably seven feet tall right now but the head of it kind of looks like Queen Anne's lace almost as well once it's seeded and gone to seed. But yeah, so same kind of leaves as celery or lavage for those that know lavage. So, monica, how does one, if you come across it, what do you do? How do you get rid of it? Like, how do we stop or decrease the spread as much as possible?
Speaker 7:Yeah, and so I think you touched on a really important point, and that's prevention. So, when it comes to invasive species, prevention is everything. So it's easier to stop a plant from taking hold than it is to remove it and manage it once it gets established. So that means monitoring and reporting invasive species and also understanding what they look like. So we know that there are invasive species that have lookalikes, right. So, while it's parsnip, looks like Queen Anne's lace, as you mentioned, even giant hogweed they all look very, very similar. So it's really important that we learn to understand what invasive species look like, especially before we decide to remove it or create any management plan for it.
Speaker 7:And then I also mentioned earlier, too, about seeds getting stuck in your boots. So helping to prevent the spread of invasive species by cleaning your boots or gear after you walk the trail, for example, that does go a very long way in helping to reduce any spread. And so, yeah, and if you're involved in any restoration work as well, planting native species to cover up that bare soil, that can also make a big difference.
Speaker 6:Yeah, yeah, so, monica so one of it is. So you mentioned your fiance going and you sending him in. Go over there. Let's see how you react. How can you tell? What does the rash look like or what is it identified by, because all of a sudden you get a rash. Is it something? Is it a burning sensation? Is it what? Is it something specific? Is there some way to identify or can you tell? Or is that something we need medical people to give us?
Speaker 7:a breakdown on. I think there's some photos online that you can search up. They're not the prettiest photos so I give some caution if you are to look at what that looks like. But yeah, so typically you're going to develop a painful rash that's going to feel almost like a burn and then over a couple of days, that can turn into a blister and then, once that blistering is done, it does sometimes scar or discolor your skin, right, but I mean that scarring my fiance. It's been a couple of years now and he does not have that scarring anymore.
Speaker 6:Okay. So it's kind of a burning rash sensation. It's not like an itchy one or a stinging or a burning sensation.
Speaker 7:I think so. It's more of a burning sensation. I think the itching would come afterwards, once it's starting to heal. I think that's just the normal. Part of the healing process is when you start to feel that itch. But it wouldn direct um a direct cause that you would feel right away right now.
Speaker 6:Um, there used to be a forester that uh handled the um, the lindsey peterborough district and bob was his name, bless his soul. And bob used to have uhster's companies go in and do logging in quite frankly, it was the Ganaraska and a lot of times the area wouldn't be cleaned up. So you know, if there isn't a half decent truckload size, they end up leaving some of the logs there. And so I'd ask Bob, you know, and I'd help him out. He got a benefit and I got a benefit, so I'd take a clean up logs and one of the patches I got into was late fall, early winter, and it was.
Speaker 6:These were some oak logs and they weren't number one stick which is used for veneer or things like that. It was mostly smaller pieces, four or five feet long, anyways. So I was handling all these and a day or so later I noticed I was covered in poison ivy. Is this the same sort of thing that, if so, if something else has been exposed to it, that you can pick it up off a log or branches or stuff like that, or would you know?
Speaker 7:Hmm, yeah, I'm not too sure about that. I don't know how long the sap would last on a surface. I'm not too sure.
Speaker 6:Yeah, Now how about pets? I know what about my chocolate lab. Can he get exposed to it in the same way people do? Does it affect them the same? And if my pet gets exposed, can he pass it on to me?
Speaker 7:Yeah. So that's all really good questions, I think with. I'm not too sure about pets but I know with agricultural livestock it does impact them, so the chemical compounds, when ingested it can cause a couple of problems. So the animal's not able to put on weight and I think it will still cause some infertility issues as well. But that's ingestion right. So I'm not too I haven't looked into in terms of contact with pets, but I think you know it's better to be safe than sorry. So if you are, if you do see a wild parsnip or a plant that you're not too sure about, you know, just take some caution where your pet goes into or decides to explore and then maybe after a walk just to wipe them down.
Speaker 3:Great back in 2016, frank and I had a vision to amass the single largest database of muskie angling education material anywhere in the world. Our dream was to harness the knowledge of this amazing community and share it with passionate anglers just like you thus the ugly pike podcast was born and quickly grew to become one of the top fishing podcasts in North America.
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Speaker 6:And now it's time for another testimonial for Chaga Health and Wellness. Okay, we're here in Lindsay, ontario, with Rusty, who's up from California and visits us every year, and Rusty has been a faithful Chaga user for a long time. Rusty, maybe you can just tell us about your experience with Chaga.
Speaker 4:Well, I feel that it's had a significant impact on my health and well-being. I believe in what I'm doing. I think that Jerry is very knowledgeable on it. If he says something, I take that very seriously.
Speaker 4:He has spent most of his life in the health care field and certainly knows what he's talking about, and I like to be around people like that because that's what keeps me healthy. And I'm 80 now and I'm going to try to enjoy what I've created with the motorcycle and one thing or another, which will require that I live for at least another 10 years to get back what I've invested in my health and wellness.
Speaker 6:So you're seeing a big benefit from it an overall healthy environment and when you go back to California next month, you actually take quite a bit with you back to California, don't you?
Speaker 4:Oh yes, we're going to be there for eight months and we don't want to run out, so we take it back and we take it every day and you know, like I say, it's not a problem for me.
Speaker 6:Right, so how do you take it, rusty?
Speaker 4:I put a tablespoon, or a teaspoon rather, in my coffee each morning. Okay, when I brew the coffee, yeah, and I put it in as the coffee's brewing, I put that in with it, oh, very good. And I put a little bit of cinnamon in with it too, right. And then I sweeten my coffee because take the bitterness, a little bit of bitterness I use a chaga and maple mix.
Speaker 6:Very good.
Speaker 4:That you make up for those that want to be well and stay well, okay.
Speaker 6:Well, thanks very much. We appreciate you taking the time and sharing your Chaga experience with you, and we'll make sure you have a safe trip back to California.
Speaker 4:Sure enough, all right, okay, thank you, jerry, yeah.
Speaker 6:Thanks Rusty, thanks Sue.
Speaker 4:My pleasure.
Speaker 6:We interrupt this program to bring you a special offer from Chaga Health and Wellness. If you've listened this far and you're still wondering about this strange mushroom that I keep talking about and whether you would benefit from it or not, I may have something of interest to you. To thank you for listening to the show, I'm going to make trying Chaga that much easier by giving you a dollar off all our Chaga products at checkout. All you have to do is head over to our website, chagahealthandwellnesscom, place a few items in the cart and check out with the code CANOPY C-A-N-O-P-Y.
Speaker 6:If you're new to Chaga, I'd highly recommend the regular Chaga tea. This comes with 15 tea bags per package and each bag gives you around five or six cups of tea. Hey, thanks for listening Back to the episode. So, monica, so if, for example, you happen to be into an area where you find out afterwards, or whatever, there's wild parsnip there and you think you've been exposed to it, but you haven't really had the sun issue, is it something that you can wash off with soap and water to stop it from affecting you?
Speaker 7:Yep, you got it Soap and cool water.
Speaker 6:Okay, and that'll eliminate it from being active if it hasn't been activated by the sun already. Yes that's correct, okay, so where's a good site that people can go to to identify wild parsnips so they can get a look at it, so they know what we're talking about?
Speaker 7:Yeah, so you can visit our website at invasivespeciecenterca or you can also use tools like apps. So, for example, inaturalist. That is a fantastic app where you can identify and report invasive species. Edmaps is also another fantastic app that you can report your invasive species to. Both Edmaps and iNaturalist they're connected and so whatever report that you post in either or it will show up, and so two fantastic apps that I highly recommend anybody to check out. It's great if you're just starting to learn what invasive species is, because you simply snap a photo and then it's going to bring up all the options of what it thinks that picture is and then it's going to record those results and that data is very useful for researchers and scientists. Everybody. We look at that data. We use that as data. Um another means you can also call into the Ontario invading species awareness program. So I know this is this Ontario base um, but aside from um, the phone number, um, going to our website would be a good start.
Speaker 6:Right, okay. So what else? Anything else that you can tell us about wild parsnip and how to avoid it, or do you dig it out? Is that one of the key ways?
Speaker 7:Yeah. So in terms of management, I do want to say with management, something to consider is that oftentimes it is a long-term commitment and you also do need a clear plan before you go into it. So just a couple of tips that I would like to share. If you do have a population, so you want to first just focus on those satellite populations, so those populations that exist outside of the main population, because if you tackle that first, you're going to have a good chance of stopping it from spreading any further. And then also, too, you want to target areas where the plant poses the most risk. So near trails maybe you have it in your backyard in parks or along water courseways, so anywhere where people, or even pets, they can come in contact with it.
Speaker 7:Springtime, that is your best window for control, especially in its early stages, and you can hand pull, using gloves, of course, or dig out the plant using a spade. And then, if you are dealing with larger populations, it would be pretty difficult to dig out those populations. So oftentimes the management recommendation is to use a herbicide treatment and, if you have the means, after you have done the removal, covering the site with a thick layer of mulch. I've heard that can also help to stop the seeds from germinating. And then too, of course, the very last thing is you want to follow up with the site and you also want to replant the area with native species, because that will help you keep the site stable and to help to prevent regrowth.
Speaker 6:So is there a specific native species? Like I know a lot of people will say, you know you overseed with grass to choke out other plants. Is that the same sort of thing with wild parsnip? You can try and do.
Speaker 7:Yeah, yeah, so you can use a type of cover crops or you can also just plant directly into the ground. It depends on your location and what's native to your area, and also your site condition as well. Um, so if you're working with a wetter site, for example, compared to a meadow site, um, so those are all things that you have to take into consideration when you do decide to replant the area. Um, the other consideration is that, um, if you are going in planting, then you want to mark that plant, know where you put that plant, because you're going to want to follow up regularly to ensure that there's no re-sprouts and you don't want to accidentally remove what you just planted by accident. So you want to know where you put your plants.
Speaker 6:Now, does wild parsnip? Does it propagate through rhizomes as well? So you'd have shoots that are offshoots and then shoot up. Or is it just through seed or do you know?
Speaker 7:Just the seed.
Speaker 6:Okay, and so one thing is then is the other thing is if you get people who are trying to manage it so they dig it up, they follow all the protocols, then what do they do with it afterwards? Because a lot of people just say, oh, just put it inside the yard waste bag and put it out at the curb, but that's not what you want to do, right?
Speaker 7:Exactly. Very good point. So with wild parsnip, or even giant hogweed too, you never want to burn or compost it. If you do burn it, you do risk exposing the sap into the air, and we don't want that. You also never want to dump the plant material or just any invasive plant material for that matter into natural areas, so it does still have a chance to reseed, if you did collect some seeds. So instead you want to seal the plant material in a black plastic bag and then leave it out in the sun for at least two weeks to fully solarize and dry out, and then you can dispose of them with your regular household garbage that just simply goes to landfill.
Speaker 6:Okay, interesting. Well, that's certainly one of the key areas that I wanted to talk about was wild parsnip, because I don't really have a lot of exposure or a lot of individuals, but it just started coming up and having that it was a youth and then starting asking and my mother telling me about there's notification on her hiking, her walking trails that be cautious because there's wild parsnip in the area, and so I thought I'd have somebody on. But the other one is is is giant hogweed. Now let's go down the same route with that. Uh, so did you send your fiancee out to check anywhere for?
Speaker 6:hogweed no um, yeah, so. So what does giant hogweed look like and how did it get here, or where is it from?
Speaker 7:yeah, yeah, so, um, yeah, giant, giant hogweed is one of those plants that I caution everyone against. I've heard that giant hogweed that will cause more severe reaction than wild parsnip, for example, and so, of course, I mean two species that you want to be aware of, but, like wild parsnip, I'd like to just maybe just talk about the name, the scientific name, because it gives us some clues into what giant hogweed looks like, and I find it quite fascinating myself. And so the name giant hogweed, a scientific name, is Heracleum manzigatsinum, and it has roots going back over 2,000 years and it connects to Hercules, the Greek hero that I think we all know, and it makes sense when you see the plant's massive size. And so this is what I found pretty interesting. And so this is what I found pretty interesting.
Speaker 7:So the genius name Heracleion, that was mentioned by a gentleman named Theophrastus, and he was a student of Aristotle and he was known as the father of botany, and he described a healing plant called Penicillia Heracleion, and that translates to Hercules, all Healer.
Speaker 7:So many scholars actually believe that this refers to a member of the Heracleion group, which is the same genus that includes giant hogweed.
Speaker 7:So this shows that humans have recognized and recorded these plants since ancient Greece, which to me is really, really fascinating, and I think also to the second. The species name is also pretty fascinating as well. So the species name is Mantigetsina, and so that honors Paolo Mantigessa, and he was an 18th century Italian scientist who really dreamed up early ideas of space travel, credit cards, air conditioning and, I think, even AI as well, and so the plant was officially named in 1890 by botanists Samir and Lavier, and they're essentially they're naming it in tribute to Paolo Mantegazza, and so again, this kind of blends, this ancient botanical tradition, I think, with modern scientific recognition, and also too, for me I find it pretty poetic because Paolo was this visionary thinker, and giant hogweed is also very present here in the future, so along with all of his ideas that he thought about at that time, right. So he was thinking very early on of credit cards and air conditioning, maybe, perhaps even poisonous plants as well.
Speaker 6:Interesting. So okay, so you mentioned about ancient Greece and these sort of historic. How did it get to North America then? Do we know?
Speaker 7:Yeah, yes, so we do know. So the 19th century it was introduced to parts of Europe first, and that was just out of ornamental curiosity and then since then it has just quickly spread and established itself. In fact, it is still on display at the Alan Wick Poison Garden in Northumberland, england. So I find that pretty fascinating if you're ever in that area, and yeah, it's a poison garden, which is really really neat in my mind. But yeah, so that's how it got here. It's native range, it's giant hogweed reminds me almost of a sleeping giant. So it originates in the sub-alpine regions of western Cacasa Mountains and that forms a natural boundary between Europe and Asia.
Speaker 6:Okay, so it was kind of in. Yeah, I find it interesting that a lot of these things were ornamental curiosity you mentioned about and things like that, that it looked like and where it is. But you know how some of these things get into North America in the first place, like purple loosestrife, coming in as an ornamental plant that was used by you know people for plant displays because of the purple, and now all of a sudden we have to deal with this. So what does it look like? And kind of give us a description of giant hogweed.
Speaker 7:Yeah, so giant hogweed. It's a massive, striking plant, and when I say massive I really mean that it's massive. So it can grow up to five meters tall, so that's 18 feet. It has thick, hollow green stem that is blotched with purple spots. Sometimes those spots are almost like streaks, and it's covered in very coarse white hairs. So if you think of, like his name suggests, hogweed, so hog, you can think of hogs having very coarse hair. That's what it looks like.
Speaker 7:And so that stem, that purple blotching on the stem and the coarse white hairs, that is its key ID feature of the plant. And another key ID feature of it is also its leaves. So they're huge, they're massive, they can be over a meter wide and they're deeply lobed and jagged. It's almost like a maple leaf on a massive scale and to me the leaves take on this angry appearance. Another identifying feature is that giant hogweed it typically takes two to five years to flower. So when it flowers it flowers from late June to July and it has these large umbrella-shaped clusters of small white flowers. It can reach up to a meter across and then after flowering it produces its seeds. So one plant it can produce over I think it's 10,000 wing seeds, and that easily spreads by wind, short distances or by water. In fact, it can actually travel for up to three days on water and then, after it produces seeds, it dies.
Speaker 6:Really so it dies. So if you come across it, I guess if the seed pods are removed or however the seed comes out, then the plant will normally die off regardless, or if you remove, that will it depends when you remove it.
Speaker 7:So in the management guide for giant hogweed it does mention that if you do remove the seed head too early, then you risk the plant trying to regrow those seed heads even more aggressively, even more aggressively. If you try to remove it a little too late, then you risk the seeds going, falling out and germinating. But essentially, yeah, so essentially once the plant is ready to flower once it does, it will die.
Speaker 6:Okay, so now the same thing. Then what does the uh reaction to and how is the reaction? Like you mentioned, just uh, brushing against wild parsnip is the same for giant hogweed, or is it different there?
Speaker 7:yep, it's the same. They both have that same chemical that I mentioned earlier. Um, it's the same thing. It's going to cause a phytophotodermatitis effect. With giant hogweed the blistering is a lot more severe. I think with wild parsnip I could be wrong here it may not always lead to a blister, just depending on how severe it is. But with giant hogweed it will lead to a blister, and so they typically say that giant hogweed it's a lot more severe.
Speaker 6:Okay, and so it's the same blistering that's caused by exposure to the sun again, correct?
Speaker 7:Yes, that's correct.
Speaker 6:And so the same thing there. If you get exposure to it and you haven't been exposed to the sun. Again, correct? Yes, that's correct. And so the same thing there. If you get exposure to it and you haven't been exposed to the sun, you can wash it off with soap and water. Yep, that's correct. Okay and so? And now? What's the best way because this thing is so large and the leaves are so huge to try and manage it? It's not like parsnip where you can kind of contain it sort of thing, correct? Or how do we deal with that?
Speaker 7:Yeah, so it's very similar to wild parsnip. It's spring is your best friend here. That's the best window for control because that's when all plants are just starting to come up, right? So as it just starts to come up, it's still going to be, the leaves are still going to be really, really small, and so that's your time. That's your best time to control it, because if you wait a little too long and when those leaves massive leaves appear, then the risk of you know getting the sap on you and other management control options, like digging out that, becomes a lot less feasible. So spring is your best time and you can also dig it out as well. But with giant hogweed or wild parsnip, it's very important that you are being mindful of your management and making sure that you are wearing the proper PPE, so personal protection equipment.
Speaker 4:Right.
Speaker 6:So with your clothes? I didn't talk about that with parsnip, but the same thing here. So if you get it on, if you're in and happen to be exposed to it and it's on your clothes, it can probably transfer to the person and you just wash that in detergent and that'll clear it up.
Speaker 7:Yes, yes, it will Okay.
Speaker 6:Okay, and the same thing. Now, monica, where does one find the sites to identify giant hogweed and are municipalities aware about it? And I know there's some notification I've seen on some of the trails beware of giant hogweed. Or now I'm hearing wild parsnip. Same thing there. What?
Speaker 7:are the sites to identify.
Speaker 7:Yeah, exactly so, with both wild parsnip and giant hogweed.
Speaker 7:I didn't mention this yet, but we do have a best management guide that is available on our website, including um fact sheets as well, and so, um, those are fantastic resources that I encourage anyone to look up and uh become familiar with, especially, if you do, if you do have some um other species on your property, then it'll give you the proper way to management.
Speaker 7:It goes into a lot more detail than what I gave today. Using those exact same tools is where you can report it or try to identify it, so it's iNaturalist or EdMaps. And, in terms of municipalities, so both giant hogweed and wild parsnip, they are classified as a noxious weed under the Ontario Weed Control Act, and so, in addition to this provincial legislation, many municipalities, they have their own property standards or community bylaws that addresses the maintenance of vegetation, which includes invasive plants, and so these local bylaws that can require property owners, for example, to remove noxious weeds that present this risk to public safety or just the enjoyment of shared spaces. But I'd say that most municipalities, they are familiar with the bylaws and they are familiar with giant hogweed and wild parsnip as well because of its risk that it poses to public health.
Speaker 6:All right. So, monica, I recall I had somebody I want to talk about Phragmites. Is there programs available to the municipalities to try and deal with it in the same way that there is with Phragmites?
Speaker 7:Yeah, that's a really good question. I'm not too familiar with any other program aside from the one that's the Invasive Species Center. What we offer from the one that's the invasive species center, what we offer right, um. So we do offer a um, a grant that helps to helps municipalities, conservation authorities um address invasive species um, and so that's something that I would encourage um anyone to to check out um. But aside from that one, yeah, I'm not too familiar with anything else. Usually the resources that it takes for municipalities, for example, to manage wild parsnip or giant hogweed, that, just from what I understand, just comes out of their own budget and usually that kind of falls into forest, forestry and within forestry there's invasive species management.
Speaker 6:So you know, and with all the things happening around the world, I often wonder if things like giant hogweed and wild parsnips are used as military deterrents for ground troops. You know, because all of a sudden, okay, that would certainly deter a lot of groups if all of a sudden they developed all these rashes and everything else from these plants. And I don't know if you know, because it certainly surprises me that they show up all the time. And of course there's the wonder of if other jurisdictions impact other locations with accidental introductions, of whether it's certain species that deplete. Well, look what happened with the emerald ash borer beetle and the ash trees in Ontario and across Canada, and the same thing there.
Speaker 6:So you know it. Just, it makes me wonder sometimes just how these things all come to be, and that's why I kind of trace back the how did it come in? What was the cause and that sort of reason to figure that sort of stuff out? But who knows Now, monica, what other ones we talked about wild parsnip and giant hogweed what other sort of ones are we going to hear about next? Do you think what other ones are out there maybe?
Speaker 7:Yeah, so in terms of keeping to the same family, so they're actually all part of the carrot family, we do have also a native species called cow parsnip.
Speaker 7:Okay, have also a native species called cow parsnip, and so cow parsnip it does also have a toxic impact, but that's usually considered just moderate compared to wild parsnip and giant hogweed. Cow parsnip, because it is our native species, it has the white flower that giant hogweed has. So I think a lot of people do get confused with cow parsnip and giant hogweed. But cow parsnip it doesn't have those purple blotches that I mentioned at the beginning along its stem, mentioned at the beginning along its stem. So it might have a purple tinge, but it's not very distinct purple blotches and it also has very fine white, soft hairs, so not coarse hog-like hairs that giant hogweed has. And it's also a lot smaller in height as well. It's also a lot smaller in height as well. So for height it grows up to. I believe it's two and a half meters high. So it's a little bit taller than wild parsnip, but a lot less. It's shorter than giant hogweed.
Speaker 6:So you said it's native species, though, correct?
Speaker 7:Yes, it is a native species. Okay, and so what's the impact with this one? Is it the same? You get the rashes once exposed to the sun. Yep, yep. I'm not too sure about the blisters, though I think blisters that's more of a severe impact that you would more so find with wild parsnip and giant hogweed. That you would more so find with wild parsnip and giant hogweed.
Speaker 6:And so why is this one called cow parsnip?
Speaker 7:Yeah, that's a good question. I haven't looked into why it's called cow parsnip. I suspect that it has something to do maybe with cows, it's my guess, but um, perhaps. Um, how? I don't know if this information is correct or not, but um, it might taint cow's milk. Um, again, I don't know if I'm remembering that correctly. Um, but that is something that I have to look into.
Speaker 6:Yeah, no problem, I just wondered because you know we're hearing about all these and, quite frankly, I think I briefly heard about wild parsnip but then all of a sudden my mother's talking about wild parsnip signs by her walking trails to watch out for, and then somebody exposed to it, and then I find out that at a golf course one of the people I know gets completely covered to it. And then I find out that, you know, at a golf course you know one of the people I know it gets completely covered in it, and so all these sort of things. And yeah, it's just kind of shocking to see and the impact that's out there and you know, and so the more that people know about it, the more information that they'll have, the better they can deal with it, right.
Speaker 7:Exactly.
Speaker 6:Yep. So, monica, how can people get in touch with you or find out more information about all those not so nice things that we just finished talking about?
Speaker 7:Yeah, so please visit our website, so invasivespeciescentreca through the contact page there as well. If you just send an email in or if you call in, you can also reach me. So if you have any further questions about these species, please feel welcome to reach out to the Invasive Species Centre, and I'd be happy to chat more about it.
Speaker 6:Yeah, and for any of those interested, you're probably taking donations for your fiancé for personal protection equipment.
Speaker 7:So when?
Speaker 6:you send him out that he's protected in the future.
Speaker 7:Thank you. Thank you, terry, for looking after him, no problem.
Speaker 6:So this is just something a little bit different that people are learning about things that are happening out there under the canopy, and we really appreciate you taking the time, monica, to be on our program. Thanks again.
Speaker 7:Thank you so much it was. It was a joy, no problem.
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