LOCAL horse-lovers have been encouraged to learn that the Agriculture Ministry may issue stern letters to land-owners who allow ragwort to grow on their land.

Ragwort is a pervasive yellow wildflower which can be deadly poisonous to horses, sheep and cattle and has affected animals in this area, for example on common land near Walkhampton.

Christopher Warren, a vet with the Westmoor practice in Tavistock, said he had three or four cases of the illness brought to him last year. The outcome was usually fatal, he added.

'The biggest source of the problem is hay,' he said. 'It can come from anywhere and if it contains ragwort the animal is bound to eat it.'

The plant affects the liver and can cause jaundice, blindness and madness.

The number of deaths and illnesses of animals caused by the plant is unknown, because it can damage the liver slowly and the effects may often go unidentified.

The Agriculture Ministry dealt with 47 reported cases in Devon and Cornwall last year, 27 of which were on sites where ragwort had been found before.

It also fielded 197 telephone calls for advice between April and October.

The problem is made worse, according to the British Horse Society, by a few land-owners who continue to allow the plant to spread.

The Ministry has powers to serve clearance notices under the Weeds Act of 1959, but has generally been reluctant to do so because of the time and cost involved.

But the Ministry has told the BHS that it is willing to take a tougher line in serious cases and could write to those responsible ordering them to take action. In such cases it will stress that action needs to be taken early in the year, as by the summer it is too late to stop the spread of the plant.

BHS officer Carol Mewton, of Yelverton, said: 'It is fantastic news that the Ministry will support us. It should greatly help the campaign.'

The BHS has run 'root out ragwort' weeks for several years and the Highways Agency and Railtrack are also devoting effort to getting rid of it.

But it is extremely hard to remove completely and the roots tend to shoot again.