RECENT AMERICAN WORK ON FEEDING STUFFS. 525 



POISONOUS PLANTS AND INJURIOUS FEEDING STUFFS. 



The nuniborof fiinu aiiiuuils iuuuially injured or killed hy «'Jitin»r pois- 

 onous plants is fairly largo. The American investit^alors have devoted 

 consideiable attention to the study of these materials, wliich (juite 

 commonly form a part of pasture j^rasses or cured forage crops. A 

 summary of the work along these lines, published during the time 

 covered by this summary, should include the following: 



The Nebraska Station Report for 1S91> contains notes by C'. E. Bessey " 

 on vai'ious poisonous plants growing in that State. 



At the ^lontana Station K. \. Wilcox'' published a list of j)lants 

 which were known to be poisonous, or which were suspected of being 

 injurious to stock. Of the species mentioned, the purple and tall lark- 

 spur, aconite, lupine, death camass, nightshade, and water hemlock 

 are known to have caused the death of a number of animals, while loco 

 weeds are suspected of being injurious. Cases of poisoning by lupines 

 were investigated, and it was found that the most severe losses have 

 been due to eating these plants in the form of hay, the poisoning in 

 all cases being apparently due to eating the ripe or nearly ripe seed. 

 The bulletin also contains an account of the poisoning of cows l)y f(>ed- 

 ing smutty-oat hav and a study of poisoning believed to be caused by 

 ergot growing on native grasses. 



1). A. Brodie,'" at the AVashington Station, carried on a number of 

 experiments with (Eiianthe sarmentosa^ Angelica gejntjtexa^ A. hender- 

 S07ii^ Slum cicutaefoliuin^ Ileracleurn lanatuni., Conioselinuni gmelini, 

 which indicated that these plants were not poisonous. Death or serious 

 s^'mptoms of poisoning were observed when steers were fed fresh new 

 roots of Clcutu vagansy although neither the young plant nor the 

 mature plant, including roots, proved poisonous. No bad etiects were 

 observed when cured Clcutd ragans found in hay was fed to steers. 



The Division of liotiuiy of the I'^nited States Department of Agri- 

 culture pu))lished an extended report l)y \ . K. Chesnut and E. V. 

 Wilcox*' on the stock-poisoning plants of Montana. The most impor- 

 tant of these are considered to be Zygad^mis venenosus^ DclpJiinhnh 

 glaucuvi^ D. hlcolor^ Clcutaoccidentalix^ AragaJImxpicatm^ A. higopm^ 

 A. splendens^ Lup'mnn leuco])hyUus^ L. {sericeiix, luid L. <';/<iiu'iih. 



A number of experiments were made in the tn>atment of poisoned 

 animals, sheep, cattle, and rabbits, and especially promising n'sults 

 were obtained from the use of permanganate of potash as an oxidizing 

 agent, administered as soon a.s possible after .symptoms of poisoning 

 were manifested. 



« Nebraska Sta. Rpt. 1899, p. 28. 



'' Mcmtnnii HUi. Bui. 22. 



<■ Washinjrton Sta. Rul. 45. 



dU. S. Dept. A^T., Divinioii nf Rotniiy \\n\. 2»>. 



