Poisonous 8ft plants towered over our homes for months… I was too scared to open my own front door – the council ignored us

Pensioners have hit out at council chiefs for taking eight months to clear beds of deadly hemlock outside their homes.

Furious Jean Crussell told how the poisonous plant was left to grow nearly eight feet high, forcing her to keep windows and doors closed and her dog shut inside.

Pictures from her garden in a quiet close in Bletchley, on the outskirts of Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, show the deadly shrub growing above head height and spiralling up to the roofs of the tiny 1950’s built bungalows.

The retired health and safety adviser told MailOnline: ‘It’s disgraceful that the council refused to act until we put pressure on them.’

The deadly shrub was spiralling up to the roofs of the tiny 1950’s built bungalows after being left to grow wild

Furious Jean Crussell told how the poisonous plant was left to grow nearly eight feet high, forcing her to keep windows and doors closed and her dog shut inside

She added: ‘They ignored our concerns for many months. The plant is known to be lethal and could have killed my dog and affected my health.’

The tenant, 79, who lives alone with her Labradoodle called Taxi, explained: ‘I suffer from hay fever and asthma and I’ve not been able to open my front door or windows all summer, no matter how hot it has got, because of the pollen and seeds from the hemlock.

‘I’ve had to keep my dog indoors and couldn’t risk it going outside and sniffing around on the beds.

‘The plant, growing in huge bunches, also blocked my view and stopped me looking across at my neighbours!’

Ms Crussell said that the Milton Keynes City Council is supposed to weed the area twice a year but officers had not shown their face for eight months. 

Instead, they repeatedly delayed their visit as the poisonous plant was left to grow wild – terrifying locals with its purple-spotted stems, clusters of white flowers and unpleasant, musty smell.

She continued: ‘I complained to the council and asked them to chop the hemlock down, and my neighbours did too, but there was no action.

‘No one seemed to know which department was responsible for it. They said they would come in May, then June, then July but they didn’t.

Pictures from her garden in a quiet close in Bletchley, on the outskirts of Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, show the deadly shrub growing above head height

Instead, they repeatedly delayed their visit as the poisonous plant was left to grow wild

Ms Crussell said that the Milton Keynes City Council is supposed to weed the area twice a year but officers had not shown their face for eight months

The plant terrified locals with its purple spotted stems, clusters of white flowers and unpleasant, musty smell

Allergic contact dermatitis on a person’s shin after they made contact with poison hemlock

How poisonous is hemlock? 

Hemlock is one of the most notorious plants in the world – and is famed for its toxicity throughout history.

It has distinctive purple spots on its thick stem, with clusters of white flowers and an unpleasant, musty smell.

Coming from the same family as carrots, it grows for two years before dying off – but its seeds can lay dormant for as much as five years.

Every part of the plant is highly toxic and can be fatal to humans. It remains poisonous for as much as three years after it dies off.

Consuming any part can lead to respiratory failure, with symptoms including trembling, burning sensation in digestive tract, increased salivation, dilated pupils, muscle pain, weakness, rapid followed by decreased heart rate, loss of speech, convulsions and unconsciousness.

‘Council workers are supposed to weed every spring and autumn but they’ve not been here for more than eight months

‘It just started growing quite vigorous among the ordinary weeds in the beds outside.

‘All the residents are naturally very worried as hemlock can be highly poisonous. There’s pets and young kids living in the close of 20 homes.

‘No one knows how the hemlock got here, it just self seeded and grew, and grew and grew!

‘In the spring it was already six feet high.’

Ms Crussell, who has lived on the close for 10 years, said the plant first started growing in the close of council homes two years ago after two new houses were added to the road.

And she claims that the only person who had been to try and sort the infestation was a council officer bearing some weedkiller – which even he admitted would not have any affect. 

The authority was finally spurred into action this week and removed the deadly plants. 

Ms Crussell added: ‘Two new properties were built two years ago on a former grassy area. It’s a nice little close.

‘But the hemlock took over! It was just inches from my front door and lounge window and towering up to the roof.

‘It shouldn’t be residents’ responsibility to clear it. These are council homes, many of us are retired and we pay rent and for communal maintenance which went up this year.

‘I was so cross I called my local paper, the MK Citizen and they ran an article on Monday. The next day the council finally came around to remove it.

‘They whipped it out quite quickly while I was out. They came suited and booted and masked on Tuesday and thankfully got rid of it. 

BEFORE AND AFTER – the mass of poisonous Hemlock has finally been removed after the council were shamed by the local paper

Ms Crussell, who has lived on the close for 10 years, said the plant first started growing in the close of council homes two years ago after two new houses were added to the road

‘But it shouldn’t take a negative article in a local newspaper to spur them into action.

She continued: ‘I had been out when they turned up but got a text from one of my neighbours to say what they were doing.

‘It was all removed with an hour or two. Why it took them eight months of excuses, I don’t know. We’d all been complaining for ages but we’re delighted it’s been done at long last.

‘But it will probably come back!’

She added: ‘Me and my next door neighbour were the worse affected. It was very unfair.

‘A council worker had come out last month with some weedkiller but took one look at the hemlock and said: ‘That won’t fix the problem’ and left without doing a thing.’

The plant has tiny white flowers and arranged in small, umbrella-shaped clusters on ends of branched stems. 

Neighbour Susan Bedborough said that the deadly plant had grown so high that it was like living with a ‘fence of hemlock’

All parts of Hemlock are acutely toxic and can harm people if they are eaten, breathed in or just touched

They are so poisonous that dead canes remain toxic for up to three years, and people removing the plant have to wear gloves and take frequent breaks

All parts of Hemlock are acutely toxic and can harm people if they are eaten, breathed in or just touched. 

Symptoms include dilation of the pupils, dizziness, and trembling followed by slowing of the heartbeat, paralysis of the central nervous system, muscle paralysis, and death due to respiratory failure.

They are so poisonous that dead canes remain toxic for up to three years, and people removing the plant have to wear gloves and take frequent breaks.

Its’ poisonous notoriety can be traced back through history – it was the plant that was given to the famous Greek philosopher Socrates at his execution.   

Her neighbour Susan Bedborough said: ‘The plant grew so high it was like living with a fence of hemlock.

‘It is a very poisonous plant and when I called the council to ask them to remove it, the adviser told me ‘Our priority is not weeding!

‘I asked her if she knew what hemlock was, explained how dangerous it was, and I know because I grew up on a farm, and she disconnected the call.

The council had raised residents’ rent and maintenance fees but not been to the close for eight months

 ‘The council put our rent and maintenance charge up but failed to provide an essential service.’

The retired carer, 75, added: ‘I’m just happy it has disappeared and hoping it won’t come back.

Local Dana said: ‘We all know hemlock is poisonous and needs to be removed.

‘The council should be out and about regularly doing maintenance here but they never bother. Finally they came out yesterday, dressed in protective gear and looking like little spacemen, and cut out and dug the clusters of plants out.’

Cllr Manish Verma, Ward Cllr for Tattenhoe, said; ‘It is clearly alarming that this extremely toxic plant was permitted to remain in a residential area, endangering both residents and their pets, as well as local wildlife. 

‘Labour administration should initiate an urgent and transparent investigation into how this situation was overlooked by their contractors and it would be in all of our residents interests, that they outline the measures that will be implemented to prevent such serious oversights in the future throughout our City. 

‘There may be similar issues elsewhere and the administration should take swift action to safeguard our residents from these poisonous plants.’