Category Archives: Poisonous Plants

Dead Man’s Fingers Fungus

Posted on June 26, 2019 by James J. Murray, Fiction Writer

I’ll bet you’re thinking this blog is about a disease, and maybe a “yucky” one at that. Nope . . . not even close! This is all about another type of fungus—mushrooms. Mushrooms are a culinary delight, including such wonderful … Continue reading →

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Strychnine – A Dramatic Poison!

Posted on November 7, 2018 by James J. Murray, Fiction Writer

Historically, strychnine is one of the more popular methods that writers have used to kill off characters in literature and film. Even the queen of murder mystery writing, Agatha Christi, used this method in her works. The primary source of … Continue reading →

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Aconite – A Two-Edged Sword!

Posted on February 21, 2018 by James J. Murray, Fiction Writer

Many botanical compounds have important medical uses, and some of modern medicine’s most important drugs were derived initially from plant sources. However, some of these botanical compounds have a very narrow dosage range between a therapeutic effect and toxicity. This … Continue reading →

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Peyote and My Short Story

Posted on October 18, 2017 by James J. Murray, Fiction Writer

Years ago, I contributed a short story to a Christmas anthology that a friend was publishing. My piece was named “Santa’s Secret Helper” and it was a rather hilarious (and irreverent) take on what can go wrong when a curmudgeon … Continue reading →

Posted in A How To Blog on Murder Plot Ideas, A Mystery Short Story, A Non-Murder Plot, About Ancient Forgotten Cures, About Medications/Pharmacy, Ancient Curing Potions, Blog Writers, Blogging, Chemical Poisons, Chemicals Used For Murder, Christmas Anthology, Christmas Short Stories, Deadly Plant Poisons, Designing Murder Plots, Developing Story Arcs, Developing Story Plots, Developing Storyline Ideas, Dramatic Murder Weapons, Drug Abuse, Drug Misadventures, Drug Poisoning, Drugs and Amnesia, Drugs For Murder Plots, Drugs Used For Murder, Growing As A Writer, Hallucinogenic Drugs, How to Choose a Murder Weapon for a Plot Idea, Ideas for Murder Scenes, Interesting Murder Weapons, James J. Murray Blog, Lethal Botanicals, Medical Research on Psychedelic Drugs, Mescaline, Misuse of Drugs, Murder Mayhem and Medicine, Murder Weapons Discussed, Murder With Drugs, New Blog, New Methods of Murder, New Uses for Old Drugs, Peyote, Peyote and Tribal Rituals, Pharmacy/Pharmaceuticals, Plant Poisons, Plants That Kill, Plants Used For Murder, Plotting Interesting Murder Scenes, Poisonous Plants, Prescription For Murder Blog, Psychedelic Drugs, Psychoactive Designer Drugs, Psychotropic Botanicals, Santa's Secret Helper, Short Stories of Suspense and Mystery, Short Story Development, Unique Murder Plots, Unique Murder Weapons, Writing Dramatic Murder Scenes | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Ricin – A Most Lethal Weapon

Posted on October 11, 2017 by James J. Murray, Fiction Writer

I was shopping with a friend recently and she had castor oil on her grocery list. That gave me pause. From my early days as a retail pharmacist, I remembered that castor oil was sold over the counter as a … Continue reading →

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BELLADONNA – It’s More Than a Pretty Woman

Posted on April 5, 2017 by James J. Murray, Fiction Writer

Some of history’s most lethal substances were once used for cosmetic purposes—well, at least before their deadly qualities became obvious. Unfortunately, the evolution from cosmetic to murder weapon developed somewhat from an “on the job training” thing! An example of … Continue reading →

Posted in A How To Blog on Murder Plot Ideas, A How To Blog on Murder Weapons, About Medications/Pharmacy, About Murder, All About Murder, Belladonna and Hyoscyamine Toxins, Belladonna and Scopolamine Toxins, Belladonna As A Murder Weapon, Belladonna Drugs, Beneficial Venoms, Blog About Poisons in Fiction Writing, Blog Writers, Blogging, Bloodless Death Scene Writing, Botanical Murder Weapons, Botanicals That Kill, Chemical Poisons, Chemicals Used For Murder, Deadly Cosmetics, Deadly Plant Poisons, Deadly Poisons Discussed, Designer Poisons Used For Murder, Designing Murder Plots, Developing Storyline Ideas, Dramatic Murder Weapons, Drug Misadventures, Drug Poisoning, Drugs For Murder Plots, Drugs Made From Deadly Nightshade, Drugs Used For Murder, How to Choose a Murder Weapon for a Plot Idea, How To Write A BloodLess Murder Scene, Hyoscine, Ideas for Murder Scenes, Instruments of Death, Interesting Murder Weapons, James J. Murray Blog, Killing Off Characters in Your Novel, Killing With Poisonous Plants, Lethal Agents and Murder, Lethal Botanicals, Lethal Chemicals in Murder Mysteries, Lethal Poisons, Methods of Murder, Murder Mayhem and Medicine, Murder Weapons Discussed, Murder With Drugs, Murder With Poisonous Plants, New Blog, New Methods of Murder, Plant Poisons, Plants That Kill, Plants Used For Murder, Plotting Interesting Murder Scenes, Poisonous Plants, Poisons and Murder, Prescription For Murder Blog, Scopolamine Adverse Effects, Scopolamine and Amnesia, Thallium Poisoning, Thallium Used to Murder, The Science of Murder, The Toxicity of Deadly Nightshade, The Toxicity of the Belladonna Plant, Tools for Murder, Top 10 Most Poisonous Plants, Top Ten Most Famous Poisons, Unique Murder Plots, Unique Murder Weapons, Uses of Tincture of Belladonna, Using Deadly Nightshade as a Murder Weapon, Ways To Kill | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

The Narcissus Plant – Pretty But Deadly!

Posted on February 15, 2017 by James J. Murray, Fiction Writer

I’ve blogged before about some deceptively attractive plants that can be lethal when ingested, and I have one more to add to the list. Parts of the beautiful, flowering narcissus plant can be quite poisonous and deadly! Narcissus is a … Continue reading →

Posted in A How To Blog on Murder Weapons, About James J. Murray, About Murder, About Writing, All About Murder, Blog Writers, Blogging, Bloodless Death Scene Writing, Botanical Murder Weapons, Botanicals That Kill, Chemicals Used For Murder, Common Varieties of Narcissus Plant Family, Contact Poisons, Daffodil Plant Dangers, Deadly Daffodil Bulbs, Deadly Poison Lycorine, Deadly Poisons Discussed, Designing Murder Plots, Developing Better Writing Skills, Developing Story Plots, Drug Poisoning, Drug Poisoning in Children, Drugs For Murder Plots, Drugs Used For Murder, Eating Poisonous Plants, How to Choose a Murder Weapon for a Plot Idea, How To Write A BloodLess Murder Scene, Ideas for Murder Scenes, Interesting Murder Weapons, James J. Murray Blog, Jonquil Plant Dangers, Killing a Villain in a Novel, Killing Off Characters in Your Novel, Killing With Poisonous Plants, Lethal Botanicals, Lethal Poisons, Murder Mayhem and Medicine, Murder Weapons Discussed, Murder With Poisonous Plants, Narcissus Plant Dangers, New Blog, New Methods To Kill Characters in Your Novel, Plants That Kill, Plants Used For Murder, Plotting Interesting Murder Scenes, Poisonous Daffodil Bulbs, Poisonous Narcissus Plant, Poisonous Plants, Poisons and Murder, Poisons Used For Murder, Prescription For Murder Blog, The Science of Murder, Tools for Murder, Top 10 Most Poisonous Plants, Unique Murder Plots, Unique Murder Weapons | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Aconite – A Two-Edged Sword!

Posted on April 13, 2016 by James J. Murray, Fiction Writer

Many botanical compounds have important medical uses, and some of modern medicine’s most important drugs were derived initially from plant sources. However, some of these botanical compounds have a very narrow dosage range between a therapeutic effect and toxicity. This … Continue reading →

Posted in A How To Blog on Murder Weapons, About James J. Murray, About Medications/Pharmacy, About Murder, Aconite - A Two-Edged Sword, Aconite and Homeopathic Medicine, Aconite and Murder Mysteries, Aconite as a Medicine, Aconite as a Poison, Aconite Used For Murder, Aconitine Dosing and Usage, Aconitine Toxicity, Aconitum Plant Species, Acute Poisons, All About Murder, Blog About Poisons in Fiction Writing, Blog Writers, Blogging, Bloodless Death Scene Writing, Bloodless Death Scenes, Blue Rocket Plant and Murder, Botanical Murder Weapons, Botanicals That Kill, Chemical Weapons Discussions, Chemicals Used For Murder, Contact Poisons, Deadly Plant Poisons, Designer Poisons Used For Murder, Designing Murder Plots, Devil's Helmet and Murder, Drug Poisoning, Drugs For Murder Plots, Drugs Used For Murder, Eating Poisonous Plants, How to Choose a Murder Weapon for a Plot Idea, How To Write A BloodLess Murder Scene, Ideas for Murder Scenes, Instruments of Death, Interesting Murder Weapons, James J. Murray Blog, Killing Off Characters in Writing, Killing With Poisonous Plants, Leopard's Bane and Murder, Lethal Agents and Murder, Lethal Botanicals, Medical Uses of Aconite, Methods of Murder, Monkshood and Murder, Murder Mayhem and Medicine, Murder Weapons, Murder With Drugs, Murder With Poisonous Plants, New Blog, New Methods of Murder, New Methods To Kill Characters in Your Novel, Plant Poisons, Plants That Kill, Plants Used For Murder, Plotting Murder Scenes, Poisonous Aconite, Poisonous Plants, Poisons and Murder, Poisons Used to Murder, The Science of Murder, Tools of Murder, Unique Murder Weapons, Ways to Murder, Wolf's Bane and Murder, Writing Death Scenes, Writing Dramatic Murder Scenes | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 10 Comments

Mad About Mushrooms

Posted on December 2, 2015 by James J. Murray, Fiction Writer

The general term “mushrooms” includes a wide variety of fungal plants. They typically have a domed cap on a stalk and many have gills on the underside of the cap. Among the various mushroom species, many are considered nutritious and … Continue reading →

Posted in A How To Blog on Murder Plot Ideas, A How To Blog on Murder Weapons, About James J. Murray, About Murder, About Writing, All About Murder, Amanita Muscaria Mushrooms, Blog Writers, Blogging, Bloodless Death Scene Writing, Botanical Murder Weapons, Botanicals That Kill, Deadly Mushrooms, Deadly Plant Poisons, Designing Murder Plots, Dramatic Murder Weapons, Drug Poisoning, Ideas for Murder Scenes, James J. Murray, James J. Murray Blog, Killing With Poisonous Plants, Lethal Mushrooms, Methods of Murder, Murder Mayhem and Medicine, Murder Weapons Discussed, Murder With Poisonous Plants, Muscimol, New Blog, New Methods of Murder, Plant Poisons, Plants That Kill, Plants Used For Murder, Plotting Interesting Murder Scenes, Poisonous Mushrooms, Poisonous Plants, Poisonous Toadstools, Poisons and Murder, Poisons Used to Murder, Prescription For Murder Blog, Tools of Murder, Unique Murder Weapons, Ways to Murder, Writing Dramatic Murder Scenes | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

BELLADONNA – It’s More Than A Beautiful Woman

Posted on February 18, 2015 by James J. Murray, Fiction Writer

Often some of the most deadly substances were once used for cosmetic purposes—that is, before their lethal qualities became obvious. An example of such commercial carelessness was thallium being marketed as a depilatory agent. It effectively removed unwanted hair, but … Continue reading →

Posted in A How To Blog on Murder Plot Ideas, A How To Blog on Murder Weapons, About James J. Murray, About Murder, Belladonna and Hyoscyamine Toxins, Belladonna and Scopolamine Toxins, Belladonna As A Murder Weapon, Belladonna Drugs, Blog Writers, Blogging, Bloodless Death Scene Writing, Botanical Murder Weapons, Botanicals That Kill, Chemicals Used For Murder, Deadly Cosmetics, Deadly Plant Poisons, Dramatic Murder Weapons, Drug Poisoning, Drugs For Murder Plots, Drugs Made From Deadly Nightshade, Drugs Used For Murder, Ideas for Murder Scenes, Instruments of Death, Interesting Murder Weapons, Killing With Poisonous Plants, Lethal Agents and Murder, Lethal Botanicals, Murder Weapons, Murder With Poisonous Plants, Paralytic Shellfish Poisoning, Plant Poisons, Plants Used For Murder, Plotting Interesting Murder Scenes, Poisonous Plants, Poisons and Murder, Scopolamine Adverse Effects, Scopolamine and Amnesia, The Science of Murder, The Toxicity of Deadly Nightshade, The Toxicity of the Belladonna Plant, Tools for Murder, Uses of Tincture of Belladonna, Using Deadly Nightshade as a Murder Weapon, Ways To Kill | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment