This is serious guys, I was removing my young sago palm from my garden when I was painful stuck three times from the long needles who grows on the trunk, in the next day I start having burn itching around my eyes and legs and arm. two days later my eyes start to swelling very bad and a had to use ice every one hour to relive the swelling. Next day went to a doctor for treatment. I was given a shot of depomedrol plus pills of cetirizine and prednisone. The itching problem disappear in the next day and the swelling eyes took about three days. Thanks god not a single allergic reaction to the prescription but I stay away from that beautiful palm.

Definitely something to keep in mind. I wonder if it's kind of like poison oak and poison ivy when it comes down to who has a reaction? I'm not allergic to either of those and can literally pull them up by hand without any reaction...same with my sago's, been stuck and pricked hundreds of times with no reaction. I do wear long sleeves when I prune and gloves though as a precaution.

First off I am a veterinarian by profession with a focus in comparative physiology and comparative pathology and not a gardener or horticulturalist. Sgao palms are know to be toxic by oral consumption in dogs and occasionally in cats although most cats are bright enough to avoid eating them. As a general rule of thumb many toxins have cross species capabilities (i.e., if it effects dogs there is a good chance it will affect humans). A possibility that might need to be investigated in your husbands situation was what insects or arthropods (e.g., ticks and fleas) were living in the area under the Sago Palm. In the last decade there has been an explosion of information regarding tick borne and flea transmitted infectious diseases (do a literature search on Ed Breitschwerdt at North Carolina State). What you describe might be attributable to borelliosis, bartonellosis, ehrlichiosis, anaplasmosis, and / or ricketsiosis. You might want to have your physicians contact an infectious disease specialist and work with a company by the name of Galaxy Diagnostics. All of the aforementioned diseases can be very difficult to diagnose.

Eliza, how is your hubby doing? I sure hope he has made a full recovery!

Interesting⦠must be some variation in sensitivity to certain things that may be on these plants⦠the leaves themselves are fairly plastic-like and not likely to give up any toxic material if poked by them⦠but perhaps there are pollens on them etc. that might be the problem (maybe even Cycas pollen, which is known to be somewhat allergenic to some).

My friend and I have moved hundreds of these large plants from location to location, and been scratched, poked, pretty severely stabbed, bled, and even had some fall on us scraping us up all over⦠some of these plants weigh many hundreds of pounds. So far, neither of us have had any reaction to these jabs, scratches or even the deeper lacerations (other than what one would get with any laceration or puncture). These cycads do have lots of sharp things all over, particularly near the base of each leaf and next to the leaves on the crowns. Been doing this for about 20 years. Not heard of any one getting seriously hurt or reacting in a way that several of you have described, either. But there will be people that react to just about anything I have learned. Certainly have discovered this when it comes to plants the ooze irritating saps⦠some people get at worst a mild rash while others have to be hospitalized (fortunately those latter incidents seem pretty rare).

The Sago Palm is lethal and contains three highly toxic chemicals.

I was looking up on how to care for a Sago Palm and found that it is lethal. The Sago Palm contains three highly toxic chemicals: cycasin, BMMA (B-methylamino-L-alanine) and macrozamin. These are carcinogens, cyanide and neuro toxins.

Dogs have died from eating the seeds (which dogs crave) and the leaves of the Sago.

I'm worried that a curious small child would put one of the brightly colored Sago Palm seeds in its mouth.

If enough of the toxins are absorbed (contact and eating), you risk death or permanent liver damage.

Please let me know if there is any more information on the dangers of the Sago Palm.

Thank you

We have 3 Sago Palms and a few pups planted by a previous owner. Thanks for this thread. I'll make sure DH wears long sleeves and gloves when he works around them. I have tried to give them away, but to no avail. They are huge and blocking our view, so he's always out there pruning something.

I am researching on how to get rid of my Sago Palms.

One advice was to definitely not mulch it because all the toxins and poisons will go into your garden.

Which makes me wonder about what toxins the Sago Palm is putting in my garden just by being there and particularly from any water run off.

For me, the beauty of the Sago is just not worth the risk.

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Please do some more research before pulling them. These plants are not dangerous, except for small children and dogs that eat whatever they find on the ground. Moreover, all cycads are endangered species.

I do appreciate this chance to have a discussion of the sago palm.

Because it is such a beautiful plant, but I am concerned about the dangers.

Do you agree that death or permanent liver damage would occur if a dog or child ate the seeds?

And unfortunately, dogs love the taste of the Sago seeds and have died.

And I hope a child has not been enticed to put the colorful seeds in their mouth.

I believe that the Sago is lethal to people (children) and animals and that utmost precaution should be taking by those who sell them or have them in their gardens.

I am continuing to look for more information, however, so far, the information that I have found says that the Sago is highly dangerous.

I look forward to any information that you have.

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I have tried to get rid of mine many times. Every landscaper that comes here is made an offer, but they all refuse. They must know about the toxic traits of the Sago. Mine are simply in the way. They are huge and blocking our views. I think we will just prune them to nothing week after week and eventually replace them with something neat and low growing.

I have a backyard filled with them and have been growing them for some 30 years. In fact, most of my plants are toxic to some degree or other (Hellebores, Eurphorbia, Oleander, Laurel, Foxglove (Digitalis)..., and the Poison Ivy is practically a ground cover. This is the reason why so many of them are, in fact, deer resistant to deer proof (though not the ivy curiously enough). I see lots of wildlife (wild turkey, deer, fox, coyote, a colony of feral cats, and eagles), but few cadavers. I don't disagree that these cycads possess toxins, but don't you have to eat them or possibly inhale their charred, burning remains. Most animals are not suicidal (except for man). This whole thread sounds borderline hysterical. Our nation's kids have become allergic to most everything because they now grow up in such sterile homes. We have become a nation of worry wards who are afraid to let children venture out in the natural world for fear that they might encounter a peanut. Sorry, I'm of the philosophy that whatever doesn't kill you, will make you stronger.

P.S., You can always sell your Sagos on eBay.

Just 20 years ago Sagos were frequently stolen out of yards around southern California... but due mostly to their becoming so commonly available now, hardly anyone bothers anymore. Used to be able to get hundreds of dollars for some larger SAgos, even over $1000 for very large ones... nowadays people will pay to have them dug up and hauled away. How times have changed... getting rid of a large Sago is a lot of back-breaking work, and they are very spiny... but not wanting to move them has little to do with their toxicity as that is rarely transferred by simply handling or being poked by them. Have to actually eat them to get the toxicity. They just aren't worth it any more.

Does any one know what the outcome of the person who became ill after pruning a sago palm (see the Eliza_beth_2010 post at the beginning)

I'm thinking that we have two threads going, this one & 'Poisonous Sago Palms'.

Wow! I feel the pain! After retracing my activities doing yard work and deducing the probable causes of my pain and the symptoms i.e., redness, tenderness, slight bumpiness, we concluded that I was punctured [or attacked by the Sago Palm Tree (SPT)]. I was pulling weeds from underneath the SPT and received multiple pricks on my back and chest from the drooping palm leaves. When I stood up I must have gotten punctured once or twice on my chest too. I don't do yard work that much, so I was ignorant to the woes of a SPT. I Hate This Tree! This happened on Saturday, September 19, 2015 in the late afternoon. I didn't think anything about being pricked by the SPT and I didn't any immediate pain. I continued to work the rest of the day until sundown, which I then started feeling my back itch - I scratched my back like a bear against the brick wall. I do remember trying to drink water with my right hand and it was shaking too much that I used my left hand to raise the water bottle. It wasn't until much later into the late night and early morning I was feeling "flu-like symptoms". I put a ice gel pack on my back and chest to alleviate the itching and pain that is when I noticed the redness and pain. After two rounds of ice packs, I took a warm-to-hot shower and followed up with another round of ice treatment. I was just too uncomfortable to sleep until I was exhausted and fell asleep around 4:30am. I had to sleep with a blanket. I continued the ice treatments on Sunday. I spread aloe gel on my chest, but I couldn't spread any topical cream or gel on back until my parents returned home from their trip on late Sunday. MY Mother spread the aloe gel on my back and I spread it on my chest. I didn't need the ice anymore; however, on Monday I found some old prescription ointment and cream when I had "Contact Dermatitis". The infected areas appear to be healing, but it is a slow process and sometimes it feels like I had been punched and sometimes it feels like a really bad sunburn.

I tried uploading a couple of photos, but they didn't upload. maybe it is a size limitation. Anyway, I have increased my water intake and I was definitely drinking a lot of water while doing the yard work. I am hoping that my physical stature (6' 1", 260lbs - 265lbs) helps to my advantage because this is really discomforting and painful. I cannot believe that this board is the best information that I could find about the harms to humans from the SPT. I am praying for recovery and drinking a lot of water!

I got stuck and the marks healed really slow until I put some cortisone on them. Then the swelling went down, and the itching stopped. Then they healed really fast.

go see a doctor! Feel better!

The Sago Palm (Cycas Revoluta... not really a palm) is indeed exceptionally toxic to animals and humans, but there is no evidence that is can harm you if you don't eat it. There does appear to be anecdotical experiences with skin problems, fever, infections et.c after contact (stabs, pokes et.c.) while pruning or maintaining it, so that seems to suggest that the plant can be harmful to some people upon contact, perhaps due to allergies.

As for its toxicity if ingested: that is a serious matter, it is a severe garden hazard for animals and small kids. All parts of the plants are severely toxic, but the seeds have the highest concentration of toxins. The colourful yellow or red berry-like seeds tend to attract dogs and may also attract small kids. I read somewhere that RSCPA estimates the fatality rate of pets that have snacked on the plant is 50 - 75%. The prognosis is poor even with prolonged intensive treatment (costing pet owners thousands of dollars). Even where pets survive, they may have severe liver damages and other chronic problems.

So while it is true that many garden plants are mildly toxic and some severely so, the Sago Palm/Cycas Revoluta poses a severe risk to pets and small kids. Unfortunately the plant is often sold without a warning label through online channels such as Ebay, or even in home garden centres, so there is a very real risk that pet owners and parents of little children buy this plant completely unaware of the risk it poses to their pets and children, and take no precautions.

(To sell Sago Palms/Cycas Revoluta without warning prospective buyers of the risks is grossly irresponsible by the way!)

The plant is also hard to kill (I guess there is a reason the species has survived for hundreds of millions of years! ;-) I thought I killed ours a year ago by cutting it down completely, there was nothing green left on it and I thought I was just waiting for the stump to die. However, it set new fangs and came up stronger, and is now much bigger than it was then, thriving with little "mini mes" around it. I wanted to get rid of it then, not because I knew it was toxic but because of its tendency to cut and stab whenever accidentally venturing near it (I find it rather hostile). We inherited it from the previous owner of the house, and I only recently found out, by coincidence, how great a hazard it is. We have two big dogs, which so far haven't shown interest in the plant as far as I can tell, and it has not yet produced any seeds/berries (that I can see), but we would not like to tempt fate, so it must go now. Finding out how to kill the plant effectively and dispose of it safely, and then doing so, is one of our main Christmas Holiday projects this year.

Ps. No, it is not a threatened species as someone suggested. It is fairly common as a decorative garden plant.

There's a lot of differing views about Cycas revoluta (and other species of Cycas which are just as poisonous), it all gets down to personal choices. I've never seen any warning labels on Cycas plants even though they are very common in most nurseries and quite popular plants. In their native habitat Cycas seeds were used as a food by indigenous people but after proper preparation to get rid of the toxins. Much the same as various taros, cassava and the like which are also highly toxic. In their raw state these all present a risk. Similarly, a lot of Aroids grown in the home are toxic, such as Philodendrons, Dieffenbachias, etc. People make their own decision on whether they want to grow these plants, but definitely would be good for them to be aware of the down side.

On the Cycas revoluta, if you want to get rid of it you can keep removing all new growth until the plant uses up all its food reserves. Basically stopping any photosynthesis. It will then die. Or you can inject the stump with herbicide.

By the way, being a threatened species isn't based on plants grown in artificial/garden settings. It's to do with plants in natural habitat. Pretty much all cycad species are listed under IUCN as such.

My dog is currently in the hospital with Sago Palm toxicity. The palms were here when we got the house. No problems for a year. But I came home to find my dog almost dead.

With two other dogs in the home and a todler, we ripped them out roots and all. I wish I would have known. I would have taken them out sooner

I never even bothered trying to grow a sago. Sure, they do look like palms, but to me, they seemed more like palm impostors, and it's just too much trouble.

Sago Palm is deadly to small mammals and toxic to the large.

I am glad that your toddler did not ingest any of the Sago Palm (particularly the seeds).

I hope that your dog will be OK. I've read that even if the dog lives, there will be liver damage.

And I hope that you continue to share your story about the lethal nature of Sago Palms

so that others will not have to suffer.

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Is your vet giving him the medicine that helps with his liver function while he is healing?

I remember reading an article that mentioned a vet using a charcoal based remedy to treat dogs that had been poisoned by a Sago Palm. I can't find the article right now, but will keep looking

my next door people took out one and i have not been near it but near my bedroom window i have been sick for months burning arms itchy badly ripping myself to bits bad after 5 weeks went to a doc no good didnt know ater 8 weeks went to another doc got steriods for a week but took a long time to feel human waiting for blood results now didnt touch the bloody thing be warned

well here it is 26/4 and still unwell from this bloody cycade steriods helped but was okay for 2 days then went and cut up palm leaves that night bad bad itchy realy bad bowel bad head bad legs week am beside myself not well near passed out after shopping and cutting up palm leaves i have had this since january if not longer the doctor that gave me the steriod said i am in trouble if they dont help dont know what he meant but no more cutting up palm leaves fffing ffffing thing didnt touch the rotten thing

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I believe that there should be a requirement to disclose the dangers of garden/house plants.

If any other product that you purchased had those same dangers as the Sago Palm - there would be a federal labeling requirement

However, I have found no governmental agency that governs house/garden plants,

So people only find out how dangerous the Sago Palm is when they get sick or their pet dies.

In the "Poisonous Sago Palm" thread, there is particularly interesting information on the dangers of the Sago Palm.

Search on 'poisonous sago' to see the other threads regarding the lethal nature of the Sago Palm

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I have had an issue with the Sago Palm. I trimmed the palm 3 months ago. I did have it touch my skin and neck. The areas it touched I had red blotches on my skin. A spot by my eye and my eyebrows became scabs. My dermatologist said it was from the sago trimming. I had no idea how bad it would be. Then it cleared but a couple weeks later it came back again. My dermatologist said I must have worn the hat or gloves without washing them from first reaction and touched my face and neck again. I'm on steriod and antibiotic again and notices areas on my neck that were affected are now brown spots. My dermatologist says it is from medicine and will

fade, but I am wondering if that is true or if it is something else. Has anyone heard of or experienced that?

I have several large sagos and other cycads. Have never had any reaction handling them and never wear gloves or protective clothing. J_sellers, when you say it touched your skin, what exactly are you referring to..., leaves, sap..

I don't doubt you had a reaction, but sometimes reactions can be very individual, still, I would like to understand the nature of the exposure so to avoid it with mine. Hope it gets better. Thanks in advance!

P.S., I live in DEER paradise, and they know enough to NEVER ever munch on them.

I get cut up almost every day from handling and mainly, walking through big cycads. I have never broken out or seen any special symptoms. My first reaction would be it is somethding else. However, I have met two people now that seemed to be overly sensitive to cycad material. One lady was having a neuro type reaction to the pollen dropping from her sagos that bookended her entrance to the house.

My Aunt in Florida had a severe allergic reaction to a Sago Palm tree that scratched her when she was innocently gardening. It lowered her immune system, caused fevers and blotchy skin irritations that affected her life & liver. It was very intense. She learned that Sago Palm is arsenic and super toxic and some bodies react severely. I am now prejudice of Sago Palms and cannot stand them. My Aunt was in and out of the hospital all because of innocent scratches from this plant. It is not worth planting it!

I hope that your Aunt will be OK. This discussion thread has several examples of people being poisoned by the Sago Palm. Good Morning America had a show "The Sago Palm is a Hidden Danger for Your Pets" on May 24, 2016. After seeing the show, I contacted them to see if they would look into the dangers to people. But Good Morning America said that they only take show suggestions from their ABC affiliates. So without a personal story of a person being harmed, I have no chance of getting them interested in doing a show about Sago Palm dangers to people.

The sago "palm" sold in stores is a cycad, not a palm. Let's call it what it is. A palm is an angiosperm. A cycad is a gymnosperm. How different is that? A human is more closely related to a fish (same phylum).

well here it is 10.2 2017 wrote here 20016 about people next door taking palm out of ground well i have never recovered and now have cancer in hospice so thanks to the ffing palm be very very careful i didnt even know it was out of the ground let alone touch it

I was moving a sago palm in a pot last Sunday by rolling the rather large pot as one would do with a barrel. I was pricked by the plant on my left arm but didn't think much of it at the time. The next day my left arm swelled to a large red painful roundish bump just behind my elbow. It was quite painful and swollen like when one gets fluid in the elbow joint. It was even worse on Tuesday evening so my wife decided I would go see a doctor on Friday who prescribed painkillers, anti inflammatories,...and antibiotics. I wanted him to drain the elbow but he thought I was in too much pain to do so. I do not believe this was an allergic reaction I had. I've been tested for allergies across the spectrum and do not have any. To those of you who say you have to eat the plant I can tell you "it ain't' necessarily so." Today is Saturday(almost one week later) and my elbow is still red, swollen,...and painful but definitely getting better. However I think it's gonna' take some time to heal fully.

google "Good Morning America Sago Palm" to get their May 24, 2016 story on the dangers of the Sago for pets.

I agree that the fronds contain chemicals that are harmful. I trimmed back several dead fronds yesterday and obtained some pricks that didn’t bleed. About an hour later my arm began to itch. I washed it off but had some small bumps by bedtime. This morning my right forearm is broken out and red with about 100 bumps. I’m applying hydrocortisone cream in hopes that it’ll heal.

I was at the emergency vet all night with my dog because she ate some Sago pulp. I had the plant removed by a tree guy, but he left chunks around the yard that I didn't notice. She got violently ill and is now hospitalized for three days on an IV. It's very serious and scary. Please be careful everyone!

I pray your husband has recovered. This Cycas killed my 70 lb. 6 year old dog....the seeds....liver failure....our hearts are completely broken....we had no idea how evil and poisonous this horrible horrible plant is.....it needs to be illegal to sell.

After talking with me for a few years, my vet looked into this and found a medicine that heps the animal perform liver functions after eating cycad material. She told me she has saved a dozen dogs that would have normally died. Moire gets need to read up on this subject since there are millions of these plants around.

Keep in mind all cycads are poisonous in the same way. That means our native coontie here in Florida (which there are millions of plants just in Florida) and the cardboard plant from Mexico.

@plantsman56 What is the medicine? Please tell us.

yes!!!!!!! everything about them is poisonous, even the pollen.....it killed my 70 lb dog....causing liver failure that nothing could save her from. They should be ILLEGAL. please please please do not plant any of these horrid plants!!!!! My dog was only 6 years old and it killed her in NO TIME....i have no idea! Home Depot is not at least putting labels on them about how poisonous they are to humans, children and animals. What will it take to get rid of such a poisonous plant? still heartbroken

@Jen How long did it take to affect her liver? Kill her? I'm so sorry. I'm going through this with my cat right now.

oh my gosh......i'm so very very very sorry!!!!! Our other dog got ahold of one too (4 days after my first dog died). It was during the holidays so we could not get our two large sago palms removed for 4 days. Somehow the 2nd dog found a seed that must have rolled under a bush and we didn't see it. Anyway, we got him to the the vet within MINUTES and they made him throw up and ran charcoal thru his system to absorb anything that might have left his stomach. It worked, and he is fine 1.5 years later BUT the seed had not left his stomach. It is my understanding from my vet that had the seed or part of the plant gotten out of his stomach and into his system he would have died too. I'm just wondering if they keep running charcoal thru your cat if they could absorb the poisons? I'm so so very sorry that i can not be more help. Does he/she have black black stool? It's a sure sign of liver failure i was told. Please let me know how your cat is! It took approximately 4 to 5 days for our dog to die (i'm guessing because she really didn't show signs of even being sick for the first day and was just lethargic with black stool until she was completely down)...our hearts are completely broken as i feel i should have known about these HORRID POISONOUS PLANTS! Even now as i tell EVERYONE about them they don't remove them...it is beyond my comprehension. Prayers for you and your kitty!

Sago palms are ugly and evil. I bought a house with a large one in the front yard. Pulled it out the ground with a rope tied to my truck and drug it off to the side of the house to die, then I will burn its dried out corpse. My hand was pricked several times through my gloves and later that day I noticed a bunch of red, fluid filled bumps. Not itchy or painful like others reported, only hurts when touched. Next day the bumps look slightly bigger. Started using hydrocortisone and hoping that helps. Found this thread looking for info to see if I should be worried about this getting worse or potentially life threatening. Sounds like reactions are varied depending on the person. I’m just glad I got it dug up. I hate that thing.

I have a fan palm? Tree, cut some of the fan palml.was cover with black dust and other junk? Now been coughing my head off , losing my voice I have lost to a whisper,can this junk that in my lung cause health

I was aware that sagos were toxic to dogs and all, but I assumed it was only ingesting them. I was pruning my perennials a few days ago and wanted to clean up the sagos, as the bottom layer was touching the ground. I wore gloves, but was wearing a tshirt and managed to scrape up both my arms pretty good. I didn't have a second thought about it until now. You see, later that afternoon I developed a nasty head ache that I thought was just one of my migraines I get once or twice year, but i felt a little different. By bedtime I was extremely nauseated and ended up vomiting, then followed up with diarrhea. After about an hour of vomiting, the symptoms subsided and I was able to sleep. I assumed it was over but have continued to have mild headaches that come and go as well as cramping when using the bathroom. It has been about 4 days now, and I currently he another mild headache. I did a little googling and found this chain of comments...Im wondering if should bother to go get seen or if the worst is over and they can't do anything or it is completely unrelated to those stinking palms....The only toxic plant...everything else was blueberry bushes.

it caused liver failure in my dog. I think you should go to dr. and see what to do to flush your liver. I would hope this small amount won't do long term damage but i'd sure want all of it out of my system. The pollen from them is highly toxic as well, by the way. Sorry this happened to you. It makes me furious that they still grow and sell these plants. I know too many people that their dogs ate the berries and died from liver failure (mine included).

Just pruned my large Sago Palm, I was wearing short sleeves and noticed I began to itch, I put on a long sleeve shirt but the damage was done, I have a severe rash mostly on my right arm, I am living on Benadryl and Ibuprofin, I have a bad headache and body aches and pretty much slept the day away ! I had no idea the plant had toxins ! BEWARE ! FYI ~ I found out I'm alergic to the poisonous Morning Glory plant also !

I was doing landscaping work for my boss and was tasked with taking the branches off and taking off the bulbs . i was pomed very many times in the arms and have had sever hives all over my body off and on for the past 3 days only because of taking bennadryll and zertec it stopped shortly i have had this happen before but it has never came back after taking bennadryll but i have also never had alot of contact with one before and been poked so many times not really sure what to do am planning on going to the hospital if it comes back tommorow . im not very sure what im allergic to though since there are lots of diffrent carzongenic componds and other thisng linked to the plant . it is very itchy and puffs up my whole boddy wirh hives . planninv on going to the hospit if its back tommorow