Metopium toxiferum (Poisonwood)

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Metopium toxiferum (L.) Krug & Urb.

Poisonwood, Florida poisontree, hog gum

Kingdom	Plantae	Plants, but not fungi, lichens, or algae
Subkingdom	Tracheobionta	Vascular plants—plants with a “circulatory system” for delivering water and nutrients
Division	Magnoliophyta	Flowering plants, also known as angiosperms
Class	Magnoliopsida	Dicotyledons—plants with two initial seed leaves
Subclass	Rosidae	Roses, legumes, proteas, dogwoods, hydrangeas, mistletoes, euphorbias, grapes, many more
Order	Sapindales	Includes citrus; maples, horse-chestnuts, lychees and rambutans; mangos and cashews; frankincense and myrrh; mahogany and neem
Family	Anacardiaceae	Cashew or sumac family
Genus	Metopium	New Latin, from Metopium, genus of trees including the black poison; from Latin, juice from a species of Ferula; from Greek metōpion, diminutive of metōpon, a species of Ferula; probably from metōpon, “forehead”
Species	toxiferum	Presumably “toxic,” but I cannot find a reference

About plant names...

Poisonwood is native to the Caribbean region, including southern Florida, in shrublands and pine woodlands. It is related to poison oak, poison ivy, and poison sumac, and produces the same irritant, urushiol, which causes a maddening itchy, blistering rash.

Plants: Poisonwood ranges from a low shrub to a tree up to 49' (15 m) high and 16" (40 cm) in diameter. Bark is orange and brown, peeling in irregular plates.

Leaves: Leathery, alternate, odd pinnate in groups of 5-7, clustering at the tips of branches. Each leaf is ovate, up to 6-10" (15-25 cm) long × 2-3" (5-7.6 cm) wide, its margins slightly thickened. Spots of black resin appear irregularly. Leaf stems are smooth or with fine hairs, and swollen at the base.

Flowers: Flowers are in panicles.

Fruits: Berries (drupes) become orange-yellow when they ripen. Berries are roughly oval, about ⅜" (1 cm) in length.

Edibility: Poisonous Skull & Crossbones . Skin contact with any part of the tree produces severe irritation like that of poison ivy. Eating any part, or contact with smoke produced from its burning, is extremely dangerous. (Technically, not everyone is allergic.) Many birds and other animals can consume parts of the plant with no ill effects.

Online References:

Florida.plantatlas.usf.edu

The University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences

Www.levypreserve.org

Discover Life

Florida.plantatlas.usf.edu

4/14/2015 · Dagny Johnson Key Largo Hammock Botanical State Park, Key Largo, Florida
≈ 15 × 10" (37 × 25 cm)

4/14/2015 · Dagny Johnson Key Largo Hammock Botanical State Park, Key Largo, Florida
≈ 24 × 16" (59 × 39 cm)

4/14/2015 · Dagny Johnson Key Largo Hammock Botanical State Park, Key Largo, Florida
≈ 16 × 24" (39 × 59 cm)

Amyris toxifera L.

Metopium toxiferum description by Thomas H. Kent, last updated 25 May 2020.

4/14/2015 · Dagny Johnson Key Largo Hammock Botanical State Park, Key Largo, Florida
≈ 21 × 31" (53 × 79 cm)

4/13/2015 · Mahogany Hammock Trail, Everglades National Park, Florida

4/14/2015 · Dagny Johnson Key Largo Hammock Botanical State Park, Key Largo, Florida
≈ 31 × 21" (79 × 53 cm)

4/13/2015 · Mahogany Hammock Trail, Everglades National Park, Florida
≈ 31 × 38" (79 × 97 cm)

4/14/2015 · Dagny Johnson Key Largo Hammock Botanical State Park, Key Largo, Florida
≈ 31 × 21" (79 × 53 cm)

Range:

About this map...