Mushrooms, including poisonous mushrooms, are ubiquitous to this area of Maryland, including many Rockville parks. Additionally, there are several plants with toxic roots, stems or fruits (including berries).

Consumption of any plant or fungi from a local park can be dangerous or even fatal. City of Rockville code prohibits the removal of shrubs, bushes, plants or flowers from city parks, which includes foraging for mushrooms.

If you suspect you have consumed poisonous plants or fungi from any park in Rockville, call the National Capital Poison Center’s Poison Control Hotline immediately at 1-800-222-1222 for advice and assistance.

The National Capital Poison Center advises:

  • Teach children not to eat wild berries, plants or mushrooms. Watch them closely when outdoors.
  • Bring only non-toxic berries indoors for decorations. (Keep them out of reach; remember that even non-poisonous berries could be a choking hazard for small children.)
  • Never pick and eat wild mushrooms unless they’ve been identified by an expert.
  • Look-alike mushrooms can fool you. Learning how to identify mushrooms in one part of the country or another country is not reliable for identifying mushrooms in another area.
  • Cooking doesn’t make a poisonous mushroom safe. In fact, you can be poisoned by breathing in the cooking fumes from some poisonous mushrooms.
  • Even non-poisonous mushrooms can cause unpleasant reactions in people who are sensitive to them.
  • Symptoms from eating poisonous mushrooms can be delayed for many hours.

Many animals can consume toxic plants and fungi that are dangerous for human consumption.

See the code for more rules governing city parks. For more information on Rockville’s 66 parks, visit www.rockvillemd.gov/parks.