When we first wrote about fire stick plants back in February, Phu Le’s dog had just gotten out of the hospital. His fur baby had intense chemical burns across its back and legs. The vet bill was over $2,000. Le posted the pics of the injuries (and the bill) on Nextdoor and the reaction was pretty overwhelming, Phu told us.
There was more to the story. Turns out there still is.
A lot of you know Lynn Hoopingarner as a longtime resident and Planning Commissioner. But Lynn is also a Certified Master Gardener. She recently put together her own written warning. She had some details we didn’t have that are worth sharing.
The big one: don’t burn these plants. The smoke is toxic. Most people would never think to. But if you’re clearing fire stick plants from a yard and you throw the cuttings in a fire pit, the sap releases compounds called diterpene esters into the smoke. Hoopingarner says that can cause severe respiratory damage and eye injury. The plant’s bad enough when you touch it. Apparently it’s also bad when you breathe it. Fire sticks are also related to that ubiquitous holiday plant — Poinsettias, both are Euphorbias. That same white sap when a Poinsettia leaf breaks off is from the same family. Except the fire stick version is obviously a lot more dangerous.
Lynn makes a great point about the risk not just to pets but your kids too. Think about it for a second. The branches are bright orange and red and easy to break off. A kid’s not going to know what the sap does until it’s already on their hands or in their eyes.
The City is sending Code Enforcement to West Knoll
WEHOonline reached out to the City. City Communications Director Joshua Schare back in February He said to file a service request — City app, City website, or call Code Enforcement directly and that they were sending out a team to look at the plants on West Knoll. Lynn lives around the corner from here and as of Friday afternoon nothing looks like it’s been done.
Recap one more time
Fire stick plants are those bright orange, red, and yellow ones with cylindrical branches and no leaves. You know, they look like sticks lol. They ooze a thick white sap the second a branch snaps. They’re drought-tolerant and they look great, which is why they’re everywhere in West Hollywood. Steve and I have them on our property. Most people walking past one have no idea what’s inside it. I know we sure didn’t and we have two cats. A 2024 case report published in a peer-reviewed medical journal underscored the need for public awareness of the plant’s toxic potential, especially for people who grow them in residential areas.
If your pet comes into contact with one of these, the advice is to go straight to the vet. Don’t wait to see if something develops. The burns don’t always show up right away and by the time they do, damage is already happening. That bill you’re second guessing will become a definite. See Phu Le’s story. As for you. If you touch it, splash cool water on your skin, but don’t jump in a hot shower; for some bizarre reason that makes it spread. Of course, your eyes are the scariest part and that’s a no brainer trip to the ER. You might even want to call 911. ASPCA poison line: (888) 426-4435. Human poison control: 1-800-222-1222.
To report a fire stick plant near a West Hollywood sidewalk, call Public Works at (323) 848-6400 or file a request at weho.org.
Lynn has a suggestion for the City: keep a list of prohibited plants and flag them at the permit stage. Don’t let them get planted in the first place
Another really important point is use gloves if you’re cutting or touching these in any way. That white sap can get on your hands and it’s horrible to remove. I had several plants at the house I used to rent at rugby and Westmount. Three different times in the decade I lived there I accidentally touched my eye after dealing with these plants. The third time I actually knew better. I used gloves, scrubbed my hands with dawn, dish, dishwashing soap, and a green scrubby and then hours later I happen to touch one of my eye to scratch it,… Read more »
A picture of the plant that this story is about might have been more useful than a pic of a dog’s injuries.
Hi, Ben. The picture is on the cover. We’ll add one to the story too to make sure nobody misses it.