It looks like an innocuous yellow plant which can be seen growing in fields across the county.

But ragwort can be fatal to livestock and one in five horse owners in the county have experienced animals being harmed by the plant.

If eaten in quantity, ragwort causes cirrhosis of the liver which cannot be cured, and animals can even become addicted to the plant if they eat it on a regular basis.

Horses are particularly susceptible, but it can also affect sheep, pigs and goats.

And until now, the full extent of the danger - and ways to combat it - has not been clear.

This is set to change after horse-lovers in Kent provided data for the largest ever survey into the effects and control of the plant.

Claire McCaffery-Clarke, BHS Development Officer for the South-East, said: “Our survey enabled us to better understand the extent of the problem that ragwort causes in Kent as well as on a national scale.

"Introducing a toolkit and local Ragwort Action Partnerships will be important in raising awareness of the best practice... as well as improving communication between the individuals and organisations affected by ragwort and involved in the control of the weed."

These plans come after The British Horse Society, supported by Defra, conducted the largest survey of the English equine population to assess levels of awareness and concern about ragwort.

It received 13,963 responses and showed a high awareness of ragwort, both in terms of its appearance and the affect it can have on livestock.

Key findings in Kent included:

21% of the respondents knew personally of instances where horses had been suspected or confirmed as having been harmed by ragwort poisoning.

93% said that they take preventative measures to reduce the risk of ragwort on the land that they own, rent or manage

57% of respondents had taken no action when they had seen ragwort growing on land that they did not themselves own – the main reasons being that they did not know who to contact and they did not think they would be listened to.

The British Horse Society said it was confident the introduction of a toolkit and local Ragwort Action Partnerships will help raise awareness of ways to control the spread of ragwort.

It also said it not want to destroy all ragwort and recognised ragwort’s value as a plant for pollinators such as bees.

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