General poisoning notes:

Narcissus (Narcissus poeticus) is an ornamental bulb that is planted outdoors as a perennial and is occasionally used indoors as a winter forced flower. This plant contains allergens in the aboveground plant parts, which cause dermatitis in sensitive humans. Ingesting the bulbs can cause poisoning in humans and has also poisoned some cattle. Family pets could be at risk if they ingest quantities of this plant. Serious cases of poisoning are rare. Humans have been poisoned only when the bulbs were mistaken for onions (Mitchell and Rook 1979, Litovitz and Fahey 1982, Cooper and Johnson 1984). See notes under daffodil (Narcissus pseudonarcissus) for more information.

References:

Cooper, M. R., Johnson, A. W. 1984. Poisonous plants in Britain and their effects on animals and man. Her Majesty's Stationery Office, London, England. 305 pp.

Lampe, K. F., McCann, M. A. 1985. AMA Handbook of poisonous and injurious plants. American Medical Assoc. Chicago, Ill., USA. 432 pp.

Litovitz, T. L., Fahey, B. A. 1982. Please don't eat the daffodils. N. Eng. J. Med., 306: 547.

Mitchell, J. C., Rook, A. 1979. Botanical dermatology. Greenglass Ltd, Vancouver, B.C., Canada. 787 pp.

Nomenclature:

Scientific Name: Narcissus poeticus L.
 

Vernacular name(s): narcissus

Scientific family name: Amaryllidaceae

Vernacular family name: amaryllis

Go to ITIS*^ca for more taxonomic information on: Narcissus poeticus

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

Plant or plant parts used in or around the home.

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

narcissus:

Images: images.google.com

Notes on Poisonous plant parts:

See notes under daffodil (Narcissus pseudonarcissus) for more information.

Toxic parts:

bulbs
flowers
leaves
 

References:

Lampe, K. F., McCann, M. A. 1985. AMA Handbook of poisonous and injurious plants. American Medical Assoc. Chicago, Ill., USA. 432 pp.

Notes on Toxic plant chemicals:

The bulbs contain oxalate crystals as well as an alkaloid lycorine, which cause toxic problems. Unknown allergens in the leaves and flowers cause dermatitis in sensitive individuals (Mitchell and Rook 1979).

Toxic plant chemicals:

lycorine
oxalate
 

References:

Lampe, K. F., McCann, M. A. 1985. AMA Handbook of poisonous and injurious plants. American Medical Assoc. Chicago, Ill., USA. 432 pp.

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:

convulsions
gastroenteritis
 

Notes on poisoning:

In World War II, cattle were fed bulbs of daffodils, with toxic results. Ingesting narcissus bulbs can have similar results. The animals were given these plants because of scare food supplies (Cooper and Johnson 1984).

References:

Cooper, M. R., Johnson, A. W. 1984. Poisonous plants in Britain and their effects on animals and man. Her Majesty's Stationery Office, London, England. 305 pp.

Humans

General symptoms of poisoning:

dizziness
eczema
erythema
nausea
skin, flushed
vomiting
 

Notes on poisoning:

Symptoms of ingesting narcissus bulbs include lightheadedness, nausea, and vomiting. More severe symptoms are rare because of rapid emesis (Litovitz and Fahey 1982).

References:

Litovitz, T. L., Fahey, B. A. 1982. Please don't eat the daffodils. N. Eng. J. Med., 306: 547.

Mitchell, J. C., Rook, A. 1979. Botanical dermatology. Greenglass Ltd, Vancouver, B.C., Canada. 787 pp.