Native Plants
Q. Who is Mr. Smarty Plants?
A: There are those who suspect Wildflower Center volunteers are the culpable and capable culprits. Yet, others think staff members play some, albeit small, role. You can torture us with your plant questions, but we will never reveal the Green Guru's secret identity.
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Ask Mr. Smarty Plants
Ask Mr. Smarty Plants is a free service provided by the staff and volunteers at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center.
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Monday - June 15, 2009
From: san marcos, CA
Region: California
Topic: Poisonous Plants
Title: Photinia toxicity to dogs
Answered by: Jackie OKeefe
QUESTION:
is the photinia bush toxic to dogs??ANSWER:
The Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center disseminates information about our native plants and seeks to encourage their use in their native habitats. Our range of expertise is limited to this arena.
There are multiple photinia varieties. The commonly used landscape plant is Red-Tipped Photinia, Photinia fraseri, a hybrid of Asian parentage. According to The Merck Veterinary Manual, it is toxic to horses and other ruminants (grazing animals), but there is no indication of toxicity to dogs.
Heteromeles arbutifolia (toyon) , or Christmasberry, is a southern California native of the chapparal community which is a photinia relative. It is on a California list under the name Photinia arbutifolia as a plant which is poisonous to humans, but is not listed as toxic to dogs.
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