I am so sorry that this happened to you, Margyrose! I have horrible reactions to poison ivy & oak where I also landed in the ER once because it spread so quickly and violently. Other than that, I actually didn't have any allergies, even seasonal, until about 3 years ago when I suddenly couldn't eat any fruit, and I *love* fruit. It lasted for about 8 months & then just as suddenly went away, except plums which I still can't eat. As for the Datura / Angel Trumpets, it actually gives me a little high (I feel lightheaded & my vision gets trippy) when I smell or touch it too much. The other thing that we should keep in mind is pets, since various plants affect our pets in different ways. I recently learned that garlic is mildly toxic for dogs, and that raisins can give them liver failure. I'm so sorry that you're in such suffering, but I am really glad that we're discussing this since it's a good reminder to be mindful to take care & educate ourselves & each other. Speedy recovery! Grace

Marcia, Please help me find out what kind of snake I came across today. While I was at the local dog park (near Orlando) I came across a yellow with black stripes snake. It looked to be between 3.5-4 feet long and did not appear at first glance (that was all I gave it out of fear) to be shiny. I was about 3 feet from it and didn't know it until my dog almost stepped on it. She obviously didn't see it either. The snake seemed a pit peeved about the whole thing but it decided not to attack and to slowly slither towards ME to get away from my dog. Needless to say, I took off in a different direction real quick and hollered for my dog to follow. I am not like you or others on this site. I am not a fan of snakes and am extremely afraid of them. Although, I don't mind the black racers that seem to have taken up permanent residence in MY back yard and they love to procreate often (or so it seems). I have seen a lot less field rats since the racers moved in and that makes me very happy. Anyway, can you help me figure out what this snake was? I have spent hours and hours online tonight trying to find it and just can't seem to find anything that looks like it. I am guessing that it is not dangerous to me or my dogs??? I am scared to take my dogs back through those woods that they so dearly love. As soon as I told them, "No more woods until the snakes are gone again," they "told" me to find it if it was dangerous or not and if it isn't that they want to go back again. So that is mostly why I am asking you for your help. We all love the walks but I am afraid of the snakes. Please help me feel safer about going back. Thanks in advance for your help.

I'm writing this from my computer that had the problem; so far so good. The dust was cleaned out it, fans were also cleaned, and the modem was replaced. We started with the cheapest part first. I really hope it is just the modem!! Like I said before: "...I rebooted and all seemed okay,that is until I tried to dial up the internet again. Boom, blue screen again. ...I got out the books and started checking the diagnostic lights, and any other troubleshooting guidance they provided. All appeared to be fine." A year ago when I had hard drive problems the diagnostic lights on the back were correct for the problem it had. I know, you're laughing at me now, those are probably like dummy lights on a dashboard and only tell you what the problem is when it is too late. But this didn't act like it did a year ago and then I only got one or two bootups in before it completely died. I'll keep everything backed up and pay close attention to anything weird and hopefully I won't see the bsod again! You are all great and I've saved all your comments and the links to both my computers! I'll let you know if this saga continues.

Hmmm, there's much more research to be done... When we go camping in a state park in a nature preserve in FL, there are tons of poison ivy and pokeweed in and around (and above) the campsites. The PI is one of the plants that appear on a sign about various common plants in the park, and in the little info pamphlet they give you so you can handle yourself more appropriately and safely in the park. The sign basically has a more polished version of, "here's what it looks like, it's here because it's native and important source of food for birds so don't touch it if it gives you a rash." There's no mention of pokeweed, growing within reach of hundreds of kids and bearing its berries for months every year. If it were a problem, they would at least put it on the sign. Poison Control has a calm, reasonable article. http://www.poison.org/articles/2012-aug/pokeberries-and-grap... Their statistics also indicate that kids are much more likely to be poisoned by cleaning stuff or medications (click "poison exposure statistics, pokeweed isn't among the things listed): http://www.chop.edu/centers-programs/poison-control-center/p... From a very brief search, one can glean that various honeysuckle berries pose a similar degree of threat. Nobody is worried or warning about kids eating those, and they probably are much more common in the garden/landscape. https://www.google.com/#q=honeysuckle+berries+toxic Have you ever seen a can of Oleander greens for sale? http://waynesword.palomar.edu/ecoph24.htm People buy and plant Oleander, a much more toxic entity, in their yard on purpose, but if you have a pokeweed, you will be urged to kill it. Guaranteed, every time the plant is mentioned, somebody will mention how menacingly dangerous it is. I agree that one needs to follow the recipe for poke sallet if they're going to experiment epicuriously, but there should be some perspective about discussing its toxicity, and/or suitability for any particular gardener/garden setting. There are various "toxins" in many parts of plants widely considered edible/food, and not all parts of every plant are edible. Tomatoes and potatoes come to mind. Tomato and potato leaves aren't considered edible because of the solanine. This is why potatoes must be stored in the dark or they turn green and can then cause indigestion because of the increase in solanine. If one is in the U.S., P. americana is a native, an important food source for many birds. One article says that pokeweed has long been thought to have medicinal value. "At one time it was employed to cure everything from boils to acne. Today, pokeberry is being researched as a possible treatment for cancer. According to the American Cancer Society, a chemical found in pokeberry juice has been used to successfully treat cancerous tumors in laboratory mice. The chemical is also being tested to determine whether it can protect cells from HIV and AIDS. Remarkably, the lowly pokeberry may help solve the energy crisis. Researchers at Wake Forest University have discovered that a dye derived from pokeberries doubles the efficiency of fibers used in solar cells to absorb solar energy." The sprouts pull easily the first year, and it is not difficult to keep mature plants from occurring by pulling or hoeing/scuffling sprouts while young and delicate. Boiling water poured on a mature root will kill it. After watching plant ID forums since they were invented, I've seen that most people who ask for pokeweed ID make the effort to say something about how attractive they think it is. In all my years of gardening in both OH and AL, I've seen pokeweed sprouts in my own garden maybe a total of a dozen times. There's also the dye thing that's had varying degrees of prevalence throughout history, and something people still like to do. One of my favorite things about this plant is the disproven myth that the Declaration of Independence was written in pokeberry ink. No less charming even if not true, because it could have been. I was thrilled to get a scroungy little sprout in our front yard last year. It was a puny thing and I guess it died because it's not back. If anyone is looking for a rationalization to keep a pokeweed plant that grabbed their attention enough to try to ID it, there are plenty.