James Bye’s son was taken to hospital after eating a plant in the family garden. The EastEnders actor recently departed the role of Martin Fowler on the BBC soap.
The wife of the actor, Victoria Bye, runs an account for the family on Instagram called “LifewiththeByes”, the account has amassed over 130,000 followers and hundreds of posts have been shared. One of the most recent posts was uploaded three days ago and warned parents of potential dangers found in gardens.
In a video, Victoria said: “So we’ve had a bit of week” before telling followers she had spent a day and night in A&E with her son Rufus because he had eaten a “poisonous” plant in the garden.
On her Instagram caption, Victoria wrote: “So. More of a public service announcement than a post really but as we all know, life with kids is anything but predictable.
“So, after spending the night in hospital (I swear they’ll start charging us rent soon) after Rufus decided to snack on a plant in the garden — one I didn’t even know was dangerous. All hell let loose.”
She added: “Within minutes his tongue had started to swell, he was screaming & we had to call 999. (As always – NHS heroes, honestly.)
“Thankfully he’s absolutely fine now but it turned out the culprit was Italian Arum, a really common plant with bright orange berries that looks innocent but is seriously toxic if ingested.
“I mean, I had no idea. And once I started looking into it… turns out there are loads of plants like that quietly minding their own (deadly) business in UK gardens.”
The mum-of-four shared a list of plants that other parents should keep an eye on in their garden as they could pose risks. The list included:
- Foxglove – Beautiful. Can mess with your heart
- Deadly Nightshade – The clue’s in the nam
- Lily of the Valley – Smells great, very toxic
- Rhubarb (leaves) – Pie on top, poison underneath
- Yew – Classic hedge. Lethal seeds
- Daffodils – Bulbs look like onions. Are not onions
- Monkshood (Wolfsbane) – Even touching it can be dangerous
- Italian Arum – The one that sent my toddler to A&E
- Hemlock – tiny white flowers, wildly toxic
- Hydrangea – Cyanide-ish compounds. Nice
- Laburnum – Seeds = bad news
- Oleander – Toxic from root to tip
- Wisteria – Pods are a problem
- Bluebells & Snowdrops – Lovely. Toxic bulbs
- Ivy – Rashy – not fun
- Autumn Crocus – NOT to be confused with the spring ones
- Buckthorn – Wild diarrhoea vibes
Victoria has since shared that her son is “absolutely fine now.” After calling it a “mum fail”, others were quick to offer support after the hospital trip. Paula wrote: “Not a mum fail at all – these things happen, glad to hear he’s doing ok – big hugs to you both.”
Maria commented: “So glad Rufus is ok, its very scary when this happens. The Italian arum is also poisonous to our doggies too. Well done Vicki on sharing all this information after what must have been a rough night.”
Arum ‘Marmoratum’ causes an upset stomach, irritates skin and is harmful if ingested. It is toxic to cats, dogs, horses people, birds and livestock.