General poisoning notes:

Green tansy mustard (Descurainia pinnata) is a native herb found in fields and rangelands across central and western Canada. Poisoning has occurred in cases where animals have fed almost exclusively on the plants over long periods. Cattle, goats, and horses have been poisoned (Kingsbury 1964, Staley 1976).

References:

Kingsbury, J. M. 1964. Poisonous plants of the United States and Canada. Prentice-Hall Inc., Englewood Cliffs, N.J., USA. 626 pp.

Staley, E. S. 1976. A treatment for tansy mustard poisoning. Bovine Pract., 11: 35.

Nomenclature:

Scientific Name: Descurainia pinnata (Walt.) Britt.
 

Vernacular name(s): green tansy mustard

Scientific family name: Cruciferae

Vernacular family name: mustard

Go to ITIS*^ca for more taxonomic information on: Descurainia pinnata

References:

Agriculture Quebec. 1975. Noms des maladies des plantes du Canada/ Names of plant diseases in Canada. , Quebec City, Que., Canada. 288 pp.

Alex, J. F., Cayouette, R., Mulligan, G. A. 1980. Common and botanical names of weeds in Canada/Noms populaire et scientifiques des plantes nuisibles du Canada. Revised. Agric. Can. Publ., Ottawa, Ont., Canada. 132 pp.

Bailey, L. H., Bailey, E. Z. 1976. Hortus third. Revised. MacMillan, New York, N.Y., USA. 1290 pp.

Scoggan, H. J. 1978, 1979. The flora of Canada. Nat. Mus. Nat. Sci. (Ottawa) Publ. Bot. 7(1)-7(4). 1711 pp.

Van Wijk, H. L. 1911. A dictionary of plant names. Martinus Nijhoff, The Hague, The Netherlands. 1444 pp.

Victorin, M. 1964. Flore Laurentienne. 2nd ed. Univ. Montreal, Montreal, Que., Canada. 952 pp.

Geographic Information

Alberta
British Columbia
Manitoba
Northwest Territories
Ontario
Quebec
Saskatchewan
 

References:

Bailey, L. H., Bailey, E. Z. 1976. Hortus third. Revised. MacMillan, New York, N.Y., USA. 1290 pp.

Boivin, B. 1966, 1967. Énumération des plantes du Canada. Provencheria 6. Nat. Can. (Que.) 93: 253-274; 371-437; 583-646; 989-1063. 94: 131-157; 471-528; 625-655.

Image or illustration

green tansy mustard:

Images: images.google.com

Toxic parts:

leaves
seeds
 

References:

Staley, E. S. 1976. A treatment for tansy mustard poisoning. Bovine Pract., 11: 35.

Toxic plant chemicals:

unknown chemical
 

References:

Staley, E. S. 1976. A treatment for tansy mustard poisoning. Bovine Pract., 11: 35.

Animals/Human Poisoning:

Note: When an animal is listed without additional information, the literature (as of 1993) contained no detailed explanation.

Cattle

General symptoms of poisoning:

blindness
death
weight loss
 

Notes on poisoning:

Symptoms in cattle start with partial or complete blindness, followed by an inability to use the tongue or throat, leading to an inability to eat. Death occurs if treatment is not applied to recover the ability to eat and see. Treatment has included administering 9-14 L of water twice daily to improve digestion. More recent treatment involves intravenous injections of ethanol diluted in Ringers solution (Staley 1976).

References:

Kingsbury, J. M. 1964. Poisonous plants of the United States and Canada. Prentice-Hall Inc., Englewood Cliffs, N.J., USA. 626 pp.

Staley, E. S. 1976. A treatment for tansy mustard poisoning. Bovine Pract., 11: 35.

Goats

Horses