Common Ragwort

Ragwort

Common Ragwort (Senecio Jacobaea) is poisonous to horses and other livestock and can have potentially fatal consequences if ingested either in its green or dried state. Over 90 per cent of complaints that The Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (DEFRA) receives about injurious weeds concern ragwort. The Ragwort Control Act came into force in 2004.

Amending the Weed Act, it provides added protection to horses and allowed for the production of a  Code of Practice on How to Prevent the Spread of Ragwort and the supplementary Guidance on the Disposal Options for Common Ragwort. Both are recommended reading for horse-keepers and can be downloaded from this website or obtained from the Natural England office listed below.

DEFRA can take enforcement action requiring an occupier of land on which ragwort is growing to take action to prevent the weed from spreading onto land used for grazing, forage production or other agricultural activities.