AN INVERKEITHING mum has warned parents about the dangers of hogweed after her daughter was left with with burns and blisters from coming into contact with a toxic plant in her local playpark.

Amber Grey, 11, arrived home with a small scratch on her arm last week after playing at a park just off Alma Street and at first her family didn't think anything of it.

However, when the Inverkeithing Primary pupil's skin starting blistering and a large rash appeared, her mum suspected that hogweed could be the reason why Amber was reacting so badly.

Amber had to seek medical treatment for the painful burns and could be left with scarring as a result of her brush with the poisonous plant.

Mum-of-five Angie, of Spittalfield Crescent, said: "I noticed this small scratch on her arm when she came home on the Monday night and the next morning it seemed to have extended.

"She thought that she might have caught her nail on her arm but when I asked what she'd been doing, I found out that she been in the bushes at the park.

"Of course, it was a lovely day on the Tuesday and because the sun got to her arm, it started to blister by the evening.

"By Wednesday, I thought there was something not right and, by the evening, the whole arm was blistering and that's when the alarm bells started.

"For some reason, I just thought of hogweed even though I hadn't been down there to see. I showed her some pictures of hogweed and she believed it was the same plant."

Angie was straight on the phone to her GP who brought Amber in to get dressings on her arm.

After a week, the blisters have healed but she's been left with a big burn down her arm which has to be covered from the sun.

The flowers of hogweed are white and it could look like any wild plant but it's actually very harmful.

Giant hogweed is more dangerous but if the sap of the plant comes into contact with the skin, it can cause severe, painful burns and make the skin sensitive to strong sunlight.

Some people have been left with three-degree burns as a result of the toxic sap.

Angie added: "Hogweed normally has flowers on so it was a bit deceiving with this one as it hasn't but they might not flower in their first two years.

"After I put out a warning online, Councillor Alice McGarry replied that the parks team would investigate.

"The first few days, Amber's arm was very sore to touch but now it's very itchy.

"We don't know if it will scar yet as it depends on the severity but it's expected that the skin will remain sensitive to the sun.

"It could have been a lot worse though so I'm glad of that."

Fife Council's John ONeil confirmed there was a small outbreak of hogweed in shrubbery on the periphery of the playpark.

He added: “The plant is in the early stages of growth which means we can remove the weed and treat the affected area as soon as possible."