October 10, 2024, 10:46 am | Read time: 3 minutes

Whether in a soup as a spice, as an ingredient for pesto, or to refine potatoes – parsley enjoys great popularity. However, many people are unaware that this delicious culinary herb can be poisonous under certain circumstances. What is behind this?

Why parsley is poisonous

Many people use parsley in the kitchen, but the herb also has a dark side. During its first year, the plant forms the rosettes that we consume. The following year, it develops flowers, and after these have faded, seeds are formed. It is precisely this natural process that makes parsley a potential danger for certain people.

The seeds contain parsley oil, which contains apiol. This apiol acts on the smooth muscle fibers of the bladder, intestines, and especially the uterus. In the latter case, the toxin can even trigger a contraction of the uterus. Apiol can also cause allergic reactions. Too high a dosage can also lead to kidney and liver damage.

But not only the seeds are poisonous, the leaves of the plant also contain a certain amount of apiol, which increases massively after flowering. Parsley should, therefore, never be eaten during or after flowering, and the leaves should no longer be used to decorate dishes.

Note: In the past, parsley oil and the seeds were often used for abortions. Unfortunately, this use was not always positive for women, as this saying reminds us: “Parsley puts the man on the horse and the woman under the earth.” Parsley itself is also said to have an aphrodisiac effect.

How you can still use parsley in bloom

Unfortunately, once the plant has flowered, it is too late to eat or process it. But you shouldn’t pull it out yet, either. It is better to let it flower for a while longer. The seeds that develop during this time can be used to grow a new plant the following year. However, you should bear in mind that parsley does not thrive in the same place every year. It should, therefore, be planted in a different location every year for at least three years.

Parsley is very healthy before it flowers

Before parsley flowers, it is very healthy and contains many vitamins, minerals, and trace elements. In some countries, it has long been regarded as a medicinal plant. Parts of parsley are used, for example, to treat diabetes, high blood pressure, or kidney problems. Like many other green vegetables, parsley is rich in chlorophyll. This substance is said to help detoxify the body and, for example, remove heavy metals such as mercury.

Parsley can also be used to treat mosquito bites. If you rub a leaf between your fingers and then place it on the bite, the essential oils will relieve the itching.

More on the topic

0

Proceed with caution Planting and caring for the tasty culinary herb borage in the garden

Insects love it Planting and care tips for the common viper’s bugloss

Attention! Which vegetables should not be eaten raw?

The poisonous plants of the past years

Year	Name	Main active ingredients
2005	Wolf’s bane	Aconitine
2006	Peacock coneflower	Tannins, cardiac glycosides
2007	Red foxglove	Digitoxin
2008	Hercules perennial	Furocoumarins, psoralen
2009	Tobacco	Nicotine
2010	Autumn crocus	Colchicine
2011	Yew	Taxin
2012	Common laburnum	Cytisine
2013	Cherry laurel	Prunasin
2014	Isoquinoline alkaloids, protopine, sanguinarine, chelerythrine, cularine	Convallatoxin, convallatoxol, convalloside, desglucocheirrotoxin
2015	Delphinium	Diterpenoids, often methyllycaconitine
2016	California poppy	Alkaloids
2017	Bleeding heart	Isoquinoline alkaloids, protopine, sanuinarine, chelerythrine, cularine
2018	Moringa	Rizin
2019	Aronstab	Oxalate, saponin, coniine
2020	Black deadly nightshade	Hyoscyamine, scopolamine
2021	Opium poppy	Morphine, codeine
2022	Potato	Solanine
2023	Parsley	Apiol