I know this plant as Nandina, some know it as heavenly bamboo. I mentioned it earlier this year in stories, but am just getting around to making an official post about it.
This plant can be weedy and even invasive, but that's not even why you need to remove it from your landscape. It's a beautiful plant, I'll agree, but it produces cyanide and is TOXIC TO ALL ANIMALS. This includes birds. If a bird is hungry and cannot find it's normal food in fall, it WILL eat Nandina berries. And if it eats enough of them, it will die from cyanide poisoning. This is not how we support wildlife.
If you want to keep your Nandina plant or don't have time to remove/replace it right now, cut off the berries and dispose of them in the garbage. Now. Please!
Sources: Missouri Botanical Garden, Audubon Photo: @agardeninprogress
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