A dangerous plant in New York leaves severe burns and can even change human DNA: how to recognize it

A little-known plant can cause third-degree burns and even change human DNA. It is distributed throughout New York State, reports New York Post.

Hogweed Mantegazzi (lat. Heracléum mantegazziánum) is one of the most Hazardous invasive plants in the USA. It grows throughout New York State.

Hogweed is filled with sap that causes phytophotodermatitis. This means that it stops the skin's ability to protect itself from the sun's harmful rays. In extreme cases, exposure results in third-degree burns and even blindness. And the consequences can last for months or even years.

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Even simple contact with hogweed is enough to cause painful pustules and skin damage. And most people who come into contact with this noxious weed don't even realize it until it's too late. You can see what the plant looks like in this video:

Ordinary cleaning of the territory turned into horror

That's what happened to Patrick Jones when he spent a hot day last July clearing brush around his church in Syracuse.

Jones, 33, used a lawnmower to cut the stems of giant hogweed, a towering plant with innocuous-looking white flowers similar to gypsophila.

After about 30 minutes, he began to feel itching and burning on his skin.

“I thought it was the effects of nettles, so I applied cortisone cream to my skin and went about my business,” said the associate pastor of Life Church.

“I felt a lot of burning, itching and swelling all week. Pustules and blisters appeared on the skin, which burst and left open sores,” Jones said.

An unpleasant reaction to giant hogweed juice may worsen over time.

"It's pretty painful for the first few days," explained Daniel H. Waldhorn, an invasive plant expert with the state Department of Environmental Conservation. “The consequences can last for months or even years.”

In Jones' case, the blisters were limited to his legs, although his arms were also slightly sore.

This all got worse when a plant burn triggered Lyme disease in the pastor.

Green predator

Introduced to the United States from the Caucasus Mountains in Russia and Eurasia more than two centuries ago, giant hogweed quickly became known as a dangerous predator. It causes terrible burns to people and animals that dare to get too close. In addition, hogweed destroys native plants.

It is especially common in New York thanks to unsuspecting garden centers. They sold this beautiful flowering plant in the early 1900s. It is present in all but nine of New York's 62 counties.

Over the past five years, the state Poison Control Center has received just 10 reports of hogweed cases, but the low number can be deceiving.

“It may not be accurate,” Waldhorn said. – We receive many messages from people who say that they were burned by hogweed. We ask them to send photos. It turns out that this is a different plant. This is often wild parsnip, another plant in the same family that can cause a fairly similar burn. This plant is also widespread. There are people who have been burned by hogweed but may never have reported it. So it's difficult to say exactly how many people were burned. We definitely get a few cases a year.”

Fighting the plant

Since 2020, burns have been reported in Genesee, Steuben, Erie, Oneida, Broome, Warren, Monroe and Onondaga counties.

Although his reaction was severe and prolonged, Jones never reported his interaction with the hogweed to authorities.

The doctor prescribed him ointment and antibiotics, but the blisters lasted for more than two weeks. The rash cleared up within a month, but it left scars on both of Jones' legs.

Even a year later, the rash flares up from time to time, seemingly without any known cause.

“Nothing special, they appear randomly. Usually just severe blisters and itching,” Jones admitted.

Each plant spits up to 100 seeds. Considered a federally designated noxious weed, it's no surprise that hogweed is very difficult to eradicate.

The New York City Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) is working to eradicate areas where this invasive plant grows. In 2008, a program to combat it was launched.

DEC encourages people who think they have encountered hogweed to report it to authorities so they can inspect the area and safely remove the plants.

Cutting the stems with a lawnmower, as Jones did, is one of the worst things to do, causing toxic sap to splatter.

Experts say the easiest way to prevent potential exposure is to stay away from the harmful plant altogether.