Despite their natural beauty, flowers aren’t always what they’re cracked up to be. The irony in giving flowers at a funeral, when flowers have been the cause of death in some cases, is something to investigate. This may come as news to some, but some flowers can be incredibly toxic and have resulted in some rather peculiar accidents or even worse, death. Following, is a list of some of the strangest cases of flower deaths and injuries and some important facts that can help prevent you from getting hurt or poisoned by these cunning beauties. Let these stories be your guide…

Don’t Sell Flowers on the side of a Highway

Only a month ago, the San Diego Tribune reported a story about a Lakeside woman who was struck and killed selling flowers on the side of a highway. Apparently, a taxi driver had stopped to talk to her, when, all of a sudden, a pickup came crashing into the taxi, bringing her to her ill-fated death.

Beware of Deadly Rose Thorns

The New York Times reported a case in 1911, of a woman named Susan Reichart who pricked her finger on a rose thorn while working in her garden and died three days later. Poor Susan had gone out to her garden before breakfast one fine Monday morning to gather some flowers. Unfortunately, she got finger-stabbed by one of the thorns, drawing blood. Her first instinct was to suck the blood off her finger and go on with her day. Little did she know, the prick had caused blood poisoning, eventually leading to a slow and painful death.

Thorns can also cause tenosynovitisis which is the inflammation of the fluid-filled sheath (called the synovium) that surrounds a tendon.

Don’t Push Your Luck-Angel’s Trumpet May Send You Straight to Heaven

You may be familiar with this pretty flower for its variety of colors and lovely trumpet shape, but in reality, there is nothing angelic about it. This flower (a.k.a. Brugmansia), can be the devil’s poison. Drug experimenters try it for its hallucinogenic effects. Angel’s Trumpet contains a high concentration of alkaloids which can be deadly. Some of the effects when intoxicated with Angel’s Trumpet include: overtalkativeness, convulsive sobbing, aggressive behavior, motoric restelessness and sexual excitement. In one extreme case reported by National Centre for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) a man went crazy and severely mutilated himself after drinking Angel’s Trumpet tea.

Protect Yourself from Castor Bean and the KGB

Castor Bean, contains one of the most toxic substances called ricin, which is said to be twice as deadly as King Cobra venom and only requires an average of one five-thousandth of a gram to be lethal.

One of the most talked about stories concerning this deadly poison occurred in 1978. The KGB was suspect of using it in the murder of Bulgarian journalist/dissident Georgi Markov. Stories of how the event occurred vary. One count says that a ricin-laced pellet was fired from an umbrella tip as Markov was on his way to the headquarters of BBC’s World Service.

Another version says that the attacker used a syringe and injected the poison into Markov’s leg as he bent down to pick up his umbrella.

Don’t Mistake Autumn Crocus for Wild Garlic

Autumn Crocus (a.k.a. Colchicum Autumnale) has caused numerous intoxications and even deaths. One case involved a 76-year-old man that had a history of alcoholic liver disease and renal insufficiency. The man mistakenly ingested Colchicum autumnale thinking it was wild garlic (Aliium ursinum). 12 hours after ingestion he suffered persistent nausea, vomiting and diarrhea, eventually resulting in dehydration.