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Officials Alert Residents About Giant Hogweed

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May 23, 2009 6:40 am US/Eastern

Officials Alert Residents About Giant Hogweed

EVANS CITY (KDKA) ― The Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture is warning people in Butler County about giant hogweed.

It's a member of the carrot and parsley family but contact with it can be scarring.

The plant can grow up to 15 feet tall. It has purple blotches, hairs and a hollow stem.

The problem is the sap.

"If I took and rubbed this against your arm and exposed you to sunlight – you would receive a nasty burn," Mike Zeller told KDKA's David Highfield in 2000 when the plant showed up in Fombell, Beaver County.

The hogweed was found along Ash Stop Road outside Evans City. The Department of Agriculture is treating the area.

The spot is near train tracks so officials think the seeds for giant hogweed might have come from a passing train.

Dried hogweed is OK to touch.

If you think you see giant hogweed, call the Giant Hogweed Hotline at 1-877-464-9333.


LINK:  Download Brochure On Giant Hogweed

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