How poisonous is laburnum?

Laburnum may look very appealing, but these plants are poisonous and therefore caution is advised.

In 2012, the laburnum (Laburnum spec.) even received the title of poisonous plant of the year. Find out which parts of the laburnum plant are poisonous and what dangerous consequences it can have for humans and animals in this article.

Is laburnum poisonous?

The laburnum is clearly classified as poisonous. Depending on the dose, moderate to eventually fatal poisoning symptoms may occur. These include, for example, gastrointestinal complaints, vomiting, irritated mucous membranes, seizures and circulatory problems. If a lethal dose is ingested, paralysis of the entire body may occur, with death resulting from respiratory paralysis. However, as long as no parts of the plant are absorbed into the body through consumption, you do not have to worry about toxicity, because the laburnum poses little danger when merely touched.

Which parts of laburnum are poisonous?

The poisonous alkaloid cytisine is contained in the whole plant of the two laburnum species, as well as in the hybrid forms. It is most highly concentrated in the seeds of the laburnum, which can be particularly treacherous as the fruits may be attractive to some children due to their bean-like shape. The leaves of the alpine golden rain (Laburnum alpinum) also contain the poisonous substance ammodendrine. The toxin levels can fluctuate somewhat depending on the season. For children, the lethal dose is about 10 to 15 seeds, for adults about 15 to 20 seeds — for the flowers, the lethal effect occurs after about 10.

Is laburnum poisonous for dogs and cats?

Laburnum is also toxic to mammals, including dogs and cats, and to birds. If parts of the plant are ingested, the symptoms of poisoning already described occur. In dogs, the lethal dose is expected to be around 2 to 7g per kilogram of body weight. However, the animals usually vomit very quickly after ingestion, which prevents more severe consequences. Cats tend not to have this protective mechanism, which is why in this case already about 2 to 4g of the seeds per kilogram have fatal consequences.

Getting rid of laburnum

If you prefer to get rid of laburnum for the safety of your loved ones, you can dig up smaller specimens of laburnum with a spade. As it is a shallow rooter, this should work well. However, if the laburnum has already reached its full growth height and is more of a small tree than a shrub, heavy machinery will probably be needed to get rid of the laburnum and its roots.

See our article on Chinese wisteria (Wisteria sinensis), which is very similar to the flower of the laburnum except for the colour.