Don’t let these Poisonous Lambsquarters Look-Alikes fool you! Learn the key differences and stay safe from these toxic specimens!
Lambsquarters is a popular edible nutritious weed, but beware of its poisonous look-alikes. These harmful imposters can pose a risk to your personal and pets’ well-being. That’s why read this article to distinguish between them.
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Poisonous Lambsquarters Look-Alikes
1. Bittersweet Nightshade
Botanical Name –Â Solanum dulcamara
Bittersweet nightshade resembles lambsquarters with its green, arrow-shaped leaves. Unlike lambsquarters, its leaves are always arranged in a pair of three. This plant is poisonous to humans, pets, and horses.
2. Carolina horsenettle
Botanical Name –Â Solanum carolinense
Like lambsquarters, the Carolina horsenettle has green serrated leaves. However, you can easily differentiate this plant from lambsquarters with its white to light violet blooms.
3. Ground Cherry
Botanical Name – Physalis spp.
Ground cherry can be mistaken for lambsquarters because of its similar leaf shape and growth habit. The edible husked berries set this plant apart from the lambsquarters.
4. Jimsonweed
Botanical Name –Â Datura stramonium
With its irregularly toothed leaves, jimsonweed is another poisonous lambsquarters look-alikes. Its seeds and leaves are toxic to humans because of the tropane alkaloid content.
5. Palmer Amaranth
Botanical Name –Â Amaranthus palmeri
Palmer amaranth is an annual weed with dense clusters of tiny green flowers. It’s often confused with lambsquarters due to similar leaf shapes.
6. Belladonna
Botanical Name –Â Atropa belladonna
Belladonna is often misidentified as lambsquarters due to the strikingly identical foliage. Despite its toxic nature, this perennial herb has been used for medicinal purposes.
7. Black Nightshade
Botanical Name –Â Solanum nigrum
This poisonous lambsquarters look-alike plant produces wavy to dentate margined foliage and white-petalled blooms. It prefers full sunlight exposure but can easily tolerate some shade.
8. Pokeweed
Botanical Name –Â Phytolacca americana
The young pokeweed looks identical to lambsquarters due to its leaf structure. It can be easily identified by the reddish-purple stems because lambsquarters stems’ are green.
9. Common Foxglove
Botanical Name –Â Digitalis purpurea
Common foxglove is popular for its tall spikes of white, purple or pink bell-shaped flowers. Its foliage can be mistaken for lambsquarters due to matching leaf patterns.
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