Amsinckia intermedia aka Common Fiddleneck

Amsinckia intermedia is a plant known by the name fiddleneck. It is an annual, with a life cycle of one year. It belongs to the borage family, whose name is Boraginaceae. Kew places the species in regions with a temperate climate. Its native range starts in western Canada and runs south. It reaches into Mexico, where its range includes Baja California. Sonora and Guadalupe also form part of its Mexican range. The Royal Horticultural Society lists it as non-native to Britain and Ireland.

Its one-year life cycle is a key part of how it grows. The sources give no size for the plant at full growth. They do not say how tall it can grow. Nor do they say how wide it can spread. They give no details of its stems or its leaves. The text does not state what colour its flowers are. It gives no dates for when the flowers bloom. It also does not describe the form of the fruit.

The evidence gives no guide to this plant’s needs in gardens. It does not say how much light the plant needs. It gives no advice on soil or how much to water. It lists no hardiness zones to guide where to grow it. Nor does it describe uses for the plant in a landscape. Its range has a temperate climate, but that alone is not enough. That fact does not tell us what garden care it needs.

Cornell warns that the seeds of this plant are poisonous. It names two main compounds that make the seeds toxic. Those compounds are intermedine and lycopsamine. Horses, pigs, and cattle are the animals most often affected. The seeds thus pose a concern where livestock meet this plant. This warning about the seeds matters in places those animals use.

The supplied evidence does not name any parts as safe to eat. It therefore gives no basis to call any part safe food. It also gives no account of poisoning in humans. Nor does it describe poisoning in pets kept in the home. These gaps do not establish safe edible parts or remove the seed warning.