caustic-creeper

Dictionary of Australasian Words Phrases and Usages by Edward E. Morris

n.


name given to Euphorbiadrummondii, Boiss., N.O. Euphorbiaceae.

1889. J. H. Maiden, `Useful Native Plants,' p. 127:

«Called `caustic-creeper' in Queensland. Called `milk-plant'and `pox-plant' about Bourke. This weed is unquestionablypoisonous to sheep, and has recently (Oct. 1887) been reportedas having been fatal to a flock near Bourke, New SouthWales. . . . When eaten by sheep in the early morning, beforethe heat of the sun has dried it up, it is almost certain to befatal. Its effect on sheep is curious. The head swells to anenormous extent, becoming so heavy that the animal cannotsupport it, and therefore drags it along the ground; the earssuppurate. (Bailey and Gordon.)»

Related Words