Species guide
Giant hogweed
Skin irritantHeracleum mantegazzianum
How to recognise it
Enormous — up to 5 m — with a thick green stem blotched purple and covered in coarse hairs, huge jagged leaves, and a broad umbrella of white flowers.
Is it dangerous?
Its sap is phototoxic: skin that contacts it then gets sunlight can develop severe burns and blisters that scar, and eye contact can damage sight.
Commonly confused with
- Cow parsnip / common hogweed — much smaller, less or no purple blotching
What to do
Do not touch it. If sap contacts skin, wash it off, keep the area out of sunlight, and seek medical advice. In some regions it must be reported to authorities.
Never decide what's safe to eat or touch from a photo or a web page. Identification here is for learning and curiosity only. For anything you might eat, handle or that could harm you or a pet, consult a qualified local expert — and seek medical or veterinary care if exposure has happened.
Recorded 235,015 times in the wild worldwide.
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