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Originally Posted by Dan Salter  Most of us know about pulling ragwort and how to handle it etc...i think the point here is why is it in such abundance this year? it has to be something to do with the strang weather we have had...
Jez watch those plants you leave for the cinnebars...id have them out just before they seed mate otherwise youll be back to square one next year.
I too recently read a report ( after plenty of summer days out pulling ragwort with the wildlife trust) that you should indeed wear gloves and probably dust masks as the poisons can get through skin and be breathed in...im probably too late and the damage is done but worth putting into practice for anyone who runs a volunteer group.
Dan |
I don't want to intiate a repeat of the recent unhappiness and I don't propose to continue posting at length as I am too busy, but as a professional biologist I do feel that this does need to be answered. There is considerable concern in the entomological community that, while ragwort does need to be controlled, some of the stories that are being circulated are not accurate. Certainly as a scientist I believe a lot of the press stories available leave something to be desired. Some people will be aware of the campaigning work done on this by the Buglife- The Invertebrate Conservation Trust.
Having looked at the toxicity to humans I believe that most of the stuff in the press recently is not valid.
The following link is to an article written by Esther Hegt, who Google tells me is a member of this forum, and Dr Peiter Pelser a researcher on ragwort at Miami University. It is an English language translation of an article which seems to be at least partly based around some of the work that has been published in one of the Dutch journals.
Jakobskruiskruid,feiten en fabels
2) Report on the internet by Dr. Knottenbelt (Liverpool University). This veterinarian is quoted on the internet quite a lot, because he stated, during a debate in the House of Commons, that the toxic substance in ragwort can almost certainly be absorbed through the skin(6). In response to this we contacted Dr. Knottenbelt. Through an email he informed us that there is no scientific proof for his statements. He writes that he himself has suffered liver damage after manually removing ragwort plants. The results of this ‘experiment’ have not been published and, according to us, are not obtained through a good scientific trial.
Through our research about the sources of the reports on the danger of touching ragwort, we conclude that there is no substantial evidence that there is a health risk for people. The amount of pyrrolizidine alkaloids that might be absorbed through the skin is very low and there is no proof that these alkaloids are being changed into a toxic form. Ragwort can cause an allergic skin reaction upon contact; compositae dermatitis(7). This allergy can appear after touching or eating the plant. This allergy is not caused by the pyrrolizidine alkaloids but by others substances that are common in many of the members of the Sunflower family (sesquiterpene lactonen)(8).