National Meadows Day is an annual celebration of wildflower meadows across the UK. The event takes place annually on or around the first Saturday of the month, which this year falls on the 4th July 2020.
Around this time of year we tend to get an increase in the number of hogweed (Heracleum species) poisoning cases received. Heracleum is a genus of biennial and perennial herbs in the carrot family, Apiaceae. These plants contain varying concentrations of psoralens and it is these compounds that cause the characteristic phototoxic effects of hogweed, by sensitising the skin to sunlight.
Although ingestion of hogweed can cause dermal effects (such as dermatitis, oedema, erythema and burn-like lesions) in most cases dermal effects occur following actual contact with plant material. Ingestion of plant material can cause gastrointestinal effects as well as ulceration around the mouth and muzzle. Due to the unique nature of its mechanism of toxicity, treatment for hogweed toxicity varies depending on the route of exposure. Management of dermal effects is mainly supportive and animals should be kept out of sunlight, even if asymptomatic.
A BBC news article reports how the mild winter and recent nice weather, combined with the cessation of weed control over lockdown, has meant that Giant Hogweed is curren
