Omnia SanaThis tool aids identification but does not replace an expert. Never eat a wild plant or fungus on the strength of a single feature. When in doubt, throw it out.
Parsley can be confused with 2 dangerous plants/fungi. Check every distinguishing feature before you trust an identification.
Ingestion causes burning of the mouth, salivation, muscle weakness and an ascending paralysis that can stop breathing; a few leaves or seeds can be fatal, and the mind stays clear as paralysis sets in.
Confusable part: Leaves and stems (foliage); the divided leaves resemble flat-leaf parsley, especially before flowering.
Poison hemlock is in the same family as parsley and its foliage is often described as parsley- or carrot-top-like; it can be confused with edible parsley-family plants. Its alkaloid coniine causes a paralysis that stops breathing, and eating even a small amount of any part can be fatal.
How to tell them apart
- Poison hemlock stems are smooth, hairless and marked with purple or red spots and streaks; garden parsley stems have no purple blotching.
- Crushed poison hemlock smells foul and musty ('mousy'); parsley smells clean and pleasantly herby.
- Poison hemlock grows tall (often 1.5 to 3 m) with hollow stems; culinary parsley is a low herb.
Inspect the stem: hairless and smooth with purple or red spots and streaks = poison hemlock - do not eat. Confirm with the crushed-plant smell (foul and mousy versus parsley's pleasant herb scent).
A hemlock relative that mimics parsley and chervil; ingestion has caused burning of the mouth, nausea, vomiting and neurological symptoms, particularly in children — treat any parsley look-alike with a foul or garlicky smell as suspect.
Confusable part: Leaves and foliage; the finely divided glossy leaves closely resemble flat-leaf (Italian) parsley - the origin of the name 'fool's parsley'.
Named directly for the confusion with parsley, fool's parsley contains toxic polyacetylenes; poisoning causes burning in the mouth and throat and gastrointestinal and neurological effects, and it is especially a risk to children.
How to tell them apart
- In flower, each little umbel of fool's parsley has three or four long, narrow bracteoles hanging downward beneath it (a 'beard'); true parsley has no such long drooping bracteoles.
- Crushed fool's parsley smells foul, acrid and mousy; parsley smells clean and pleasantly herby.
- Fool's parsley leaves are hairless, more finely divided, and darker and glossier than culinary parsley.
Look under the flower clusters for three or four long, downward-hanging bracteoles (a 'beard') - present in fool's parsley, absent in true parsley - and cross-check the foul mousy smell versus parsley's pleasant scent. If a parsley-like plant only smells 'off' and isn't flowering, don't use it without expert confirmation.
Educational identification aid compiled from the Omnia Sana plant database and cited botanical and toxicological sources. Not medical advice and not a substitute for expert identification.