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Notobubon galbanum
Also called Blisterbush, Blistering Bush
Blister bush (Notobubon galbanum) is a small fynbos shrub from South Africa's Western Cape, grown for its attractive parsley-like foliage and green-yellow flower heads. Its sap contains phototoxic compounds, so it needs careful siting away from skin contact.
Notobubon galbanum, re-classified from Peucedanum galbanum in 2008, commonly called the blister bush or hog's fennel, is a South African plant that is best known for its ability to cause painful blistering after contact. In Afrikaans this plant species is known as bergseldery (i.e., "mountain celery").
The plant is in the family Apiaceae, subfamily Apioideae. Although it is in the same family as edible plants such as the carrot and herbs such as fennel and dill, it is not edible and touching it can cause severe blistering particularly if the irritant chemicals are exposed to sunlight (phytophotodermatitis).
Though undeniably an attractive garden subject, this fynbos plant is rarely propagated on account of its phototoxic foliage. When cultivated, it prefers a relatively sunny position, but tolerates a mildly shady or moist spot provided that this is coupled with well-drained soil. For obvious reasons, a location should be chosen where it will not be likely to come in contact with human skin.
The blister bush is native to the Table Mountain and western Cape Fold Belt region of the Western Cape in South Africa. It is usually found at medium- to high-altitudes in partially shady and damp areas but will also grow at lower altitudes and in areas of direct sunshine. The plant grows in the winter rainfall areas, which are relatively frost-free and have well-drained soils.
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Notobubon galbanum by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.
The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
