# Threat to wildlife



## The Snark (Apr 4, 2014)

Deffenbachia is a very common ornamental plant often used to augment well tended (boring as all h*ll) gardens. It grows like wildfire and readily propagates by cuttings. If a stalk is unable to keep it upright it lies down on the ground and you will soom have a half dozen.
It is dangerous to animals and is sometimes known as 'Cattle Killer'. It doesn't contain a noxious poison but a crytalline substance that consumed in large quantities pretty much destroys a ruminants stomach and upper intestines.

The problem comes in when yards are trimmed and the cuttings are often dumped alongside the roads. One rainy season later and up they pop. A tasty treat for the free ranged cattle common throughout S.E. Asia. The one pictured is obviously a cultivated variegated hybrid.

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## pitbulllady (Apr 9, 2014)

It's a very common ornamental houseplant here in the US, and is responsible for many "poisonings" of pets and children due to the calcium oxalate crystals, which all Aroid plants have in their leaves and stems.  This family includes Taro("Elephant Ear"), Peace Lily, Jack-In-The-Pulpit and Antherium.

pitbulllady

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## The Snark (Apr 9, 2014)

Not a toxin, but dangerous all the same then. The problem appears to be disposing of cuttings. Into a land fill is fine but a number of people feel organic rubbish does no harm to the environment and will surreptitiously dump a truck load here and there. Now it is rare that I go on my bike rides and not see it growing here and there.


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## Louise E. Rothstein (Apr 22, 2014)

Few aroids take drying well.
If the toxic plants you speak of are uprooted and thoroughly dried they will become compostable:
If potentially "organic" neighbors are informed of this source of "Free compost" they just might decide to take care of it.


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## The Snark (Apr 22, 2014)

Louise E. Rothstein said:


> Few aroids take drying well.
> If the toxic plants you speak of are uprooted and thoroughly dried they will become compostable:
> If potentially "organic" neighbors are informed of this source of "Free compost" they just might decide to take care of it.


Unfortunately, several varieties as the one I posted a picture of here, appear to be extremely hardy. We have one growing in our yard which lay on it's side, withered and off the ground, for several months. Accidentally standing the 'dead' stalk upright and one rain shower later, it rooted. These things are TENACIOUS!! The bottom line is they are, like many ornamental plants imported to Europe and America, invasives used to an extremely competitive and harsh environment.

I am reminded of an Iris like plant here. I noticed my wife breaking off the flower stalks and simply dropping them on the ground. She explained she liked the plant and it's flowers and was spreading them around. Sure enough, one year later the yard is full of them.


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## Galapoheros (Apr 22, 2014)

Hopefully the wildlife will adapt to it if it's established there even if it takes 1000s of years, not that it doesn't sound like a prob atm.


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## Louise E. Rothstein (Apr 29, 2014)

Is the pictured aroid drought tolerant?

---------- Post added 04-29-2014 at 09:25 PM ----------

If it is not drying will work (or being boiled!!!!)


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## The Snark (Apr 29, 2014)

Louise E. Rothstein said:


> Is the pictured aroid drought tolerant?
> 
> ---------- Post added 04-29-2014 at 09:25 PM ----------
> 
> If it is not drying will work (or being boiled!!!!)


Extremely drought tolerant. The cuttings and clippings can lie on the ground for months during the dry season then a couple of good rains and up they come. We have one that became top heavy, fell over and died. I dumped it onto the river bank with the rest of the yard trimmings and the next year up came about 10 shoots from the 'dead' stalk.


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## Galapoheros (Apr 30, 2014)

The Snark said:


> Extremely drought tolerant. The cuttings and clippings can lie on the ground for months during the dry season then a couple of good rains and up they come. We have one that became top heavy, fell over and died. I dumped it onto the river bank with the rest of the yard trimmings and the next year up came about 10 shoots from the 'dead' stalk.


Sounds like it's closely related to grain mites.


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## Louise E. Rothstein (May 15, 2014)

Would it survive under water in an experimental aquarium tank-and,if so,for how long?

Anybody try freezing it,boiling it,or immersing it in a leakproof bucket...in total darkness...?

(Since it hasn't taken over the world it MUST die of something!!!)


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## lagomorphette (May 19, 2014)

Louise E. Rothstein said:


> Would it survive under water in an experimental aquarium tank-and,if so,for how long?


Plants in this family are often sold as "aquatic plants" in pet stores, but they are, in truth, terrestrial. If you keep it 100% submersed, it can survive for a while (maybe...6-10 months??), but it eventually falls apart. Some can definitely survive with roots in water, leaves in the air. Peace lillies are the plants that were so trending to keep in betta vases there for a while in the 80s/90s.

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## The Snark (May 19, 2014)

Originally a tropical plant confined primarily to rainforest locales. It's use as an ornamental has spread it far and wide around the globe. I don't believe it is cold - frost resistant, but it has a high adaptability factor. It won't propagate in water that I have seen but as mentioned, can survive in swamps. The problem with it being spread by humans is it being relocated to where there is no competition. Rainforests is dog eat dog for light and room to grow, switching from humid swamp in the rainy seasons to arid desert conditions pre rain hot season giving competitors ample opportunity.


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## vespers (May 20, 2014)

Louise E. Rothstein said:


> Would it survive under water in an experimental aquarium tank-and,if so,for how long?
> 
> Anybody try freezing it,boiling it,or immersing it in a leakproof bucket...in total darkness...?
> 
> (Since it hasn't taken over the world it MUST die of something!!!)


Let my girlfriend take care of it. She's killed a Dieffenbachia before.

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## lagomorphette (May 20, 2014)

vespers said:


> Let my girlfriend take care of it. She's killed a Dieffenbachia before.


hahahaha! That takes skill.


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## The Snark (May 20, 2014)

vespers said:


> Let my girlfriend take care of it. She's killed a Dieffenbachia before.


I'm something of an expert at killing plants myself. Surrounded by dozens of homes with fabulous collections of orchids, our always tend to look like the barely managed to make it through the Spanish Inquisitions. But the scrap of a stem of a diffenbachia a neighbor gave us that I dug a little dent in the ground and tossed in... I now view almost with alarm. Nearly 5 feet tall, propped up with a broken plastic chair (to keep it from lying down and producing several dozen mutant offspring), accidentally dosed several times with herbicide as I tried to kill the adjacent acacia, it is possibly the healthiest plant in our garden. (To be honest, the dog dug the dent with it's nose. I just kicked some dirt back in.)


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## Entomancer (Aug 26, 2014)

You mean a non-native plant is killing a destructive, methane-spewing, non-native mammal?

Ohhhh nooooo.........


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## Louise E. Rothstein (Aug 26, 2014)

Threat to wildlife

Evidently many of the people who think they have black thumbs will recolor their thumbs if they adopt these aroids.
Which could enable people who think they "can't" grow either ornamental or oxygenating plants to begin to do so.

But people who plant "aquatic" plants that aren't really aquatic will kill the same plants within a year...and an unlit bucket might be considerably quicker.
People who have a lot of invasive aroids and would rather grow other plants might try bucketing the invaders under lightproof lids to find out how long it takes
to prepare unwanted aroids to be transformed into plants that are more desired.

P.S.

If you bucket these-and open the bucket before they disintegrate-

Don't leave the bucket sitting open to light afterward

if you want to compost them

Anytime soon.


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## The Snark (Aug 27, 2014)

Louise E. Rothstein said:


> Threat to wildlife
> 
> Evidently many of the people who think they have black thumbs will recolor their thumbs if they adopt these aroids.
> Which could enable people who think they "can't" grow either ornamental or oxygenating plants to begin to do so.
> ...


Exception to the rule... In repotting plants at LA County arboretums I had the extreme worst survival rate. When working with my father who was a professional gardener I often had a 50% mortality rate against his <2%. It's called hot hands. Extreme yang. Chinese horticulturists are well versed in the phenomenon.


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