Poisonous native plants

Coriaria arborea (tutu). Photo: John SawyerFor a poison emergency in New Zealand call 0800 POISON (0800 764 766) New Zealand National Poisons Centre.

Many plants produce chemicals that are toxic to humans or other animals. These are often produced to protect the plant from browsing insects or mammals or from bacteria and fungi. In some cases the poisons protect the plant from competition with other plant species. Only rarely do these toxic chemicals affect humans but it is important to be able to recognise them so you can avoid using them in the garden and so you can educate your children not to eat them.

As foraging becomes more popular it is particularly important to be confident of correct plant identification before you eat something, especially since a lot of the online content about foraging is produced for European and American audiences with very different flora and often only using common names local to northern hemisphere audiences.

A range of native plants in New Zealand can be poisonous if not treated with caution, including: Coriaria spp. (8 species), karaka (Corynocarpus laevigatus), ngaio (Myoporum laetum), titoki (Alectryon excelsus) and ongaonga (Urtica ferox).

For more information see:

Poisonous native plants (Te Ara - Encyclopedia of NZ)
Henry Connor and John Fountain. 2009. Plants that poison - a New Zealand guide. Published by Manaaki Whenua Press.
Poisonous plants in New Zealand (Landcare Research)
Poisonous plants in New Zealand (RNZ Institute of Horticulture)
Top 10 poisonous plants in New Zealand (National Poison Centre)

Below is a list of native and naturalised exotic plants in New Zealand which are known to be poisonous: