[HilaryG]

I took my 83 yr old mum down to the plot today. She's visiting from 'up North'.  I  left her to potter around deciding what to have for tea and when I loked up she was munching some sweet pea seeds!!!  .  I screamed 'cos I have a vague memory that they are poisonous..........she spat them out .  She did say they were nice and sweet tho. She seems OK now and has already eaten a hearty tea and slaughtered me at Scrabble ........but just for the record, are sweet peas poisonous please? Thanks, Hil  (and Mum)

[DD.]

Unlike the edible pea, there is evidence that seeds of members of the genus Lathyrus, including sweet pea, are toxic if ingested in quantity. A related species, Lathyrus sativus, is grown for human consumption but when it forms a major part of the diet it causes symptoms of toxicity called lathyrism. However, as Lathyrus odoratus seeds are rarely ingested by humans in any quantity, there is little information on their toxicity to humans. However, sweet pea ingestion is thought to lead to similar symptoms, which have been called "odoratism", or "sweet pea lathyrism"[2].

So now you know!

[mumofstig]

In short.... eat too many you will be unwell

[tode]

But you'll smell lovely