—In the countries in the process of becoming developing, plants are means important of things to solve the public health probleme of third world countries. Ornamental plants are generally introduced into our environment make into a city for esthetics, fragrance and ecological benefits reason. However, this characteristic of ornamental plants often has another face, a "toxic" character. Thisstudy in Abidjan town, aims to show a certain ambivalence ornamental plants which embellish our close environment.The first phase that study method consisted to make an inventory of all the ornamental plants present in the study area. Then the second phase, the way to approach is an ethnobotanical investigation doing among the populations in the study area. The way is a direct interview, which consisted of inquest the populations surveyed. Their answers are reported on an adapted sheet, designed for this purpose. Thus, we visited the horticulturists, florists and the populations on the corridor of the city of Abidjan. In this study, the quiz was at the center of the toxic effects of certain ornamental plants. To make this study possible the inventory of 286 ornamental species belonging to 85 families and divided up in 219 kind. According to our surveys, among the ornamental plants surveyed, we have catalogued 34 toxic ornamental species, or almost 12% of listed species. Also, 6 ornamental plants with toxic constituents, listed, are responsible for many poisoning cases: Asclepias curassavica L. (Asclepiadaceae), Datura metel L. (Solanaceae), Dieffenbachia picta Schott (Araceae), Lantana camara L. (Verbenaceae ), Nerium oleander L. (Apocynaceae) and Thevetia peruviana (Pers.) K. Schum. (Apocynaceae). The esthetic and "toxic" dimension contributes to the ambivalence of these ornamental plants.
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