This plant was
origionally sold to me as
Datura metaloides, but some research tells me that this is probably
Datura inoxia v.
metaloides. Your more likely to know it under one of its common names,
Jimson weed, Angel Trumpet, Devils Horn, Devils Apple, Thorn Apple,
Yerba de diablo... among others.
The blooms measure 5 inches wide, and each trumpet is 8 inches long. During a full moon in the heat of summer, the plants can produce over 100 blooms a night, in well watered garden conditions, and while the plant is extremely beautiful, it shows up in history more for its poisonous and narcotic properties.
The name
Jimson weed should probably refer only to another member of this Genus, D.
Stramonium. In 1676, British
soldiers were sent to quell an uprising in the colony of Jamestown Virginia, known as Bacon's Rebellion. On their way, they landed to forage for fresh food on land before heading further south.
Soldiers pulled some of the plants, most probably mistaking them for the highly edible Burdock, and threw them in the pot with other greens. The British sailors then consumed the greens and promptly went AWOL and berserk for the next 5 to 11 days... (accounts as to the time frame vary) Since the plant was credited for saving the rebels, the plant became known as the Jamestown weed, and then overtime this has bees simplified to
Jimson. Incidentally, Roman soldiers under the command of Julius
Ceasar also fell prey to another relative, D.
alba, with much the same result.
Ingesting of any part of this plant can result in various symptoms, up to and including death, but that hasn't kept a few rather daring idiots from trying to find
Nirvana by chewing it. Most of the time, they end up in the hospital for the next few weeks, and occasionally they end up dead.
Here in my yard, it is in an enclosed area, to keep it away from the more experimentally inclined, and I just let it be beautiful with one exception... every morning I pull off the last nights blooms, for three reasons.
one: If allowed to go to seed, one plant can easily turn into thousands... and
two: The plants bloom better when not allowed to go to seed, and
three: most people who try to get a "high" off of it do so by chewing the seeds, and they won't be getting any from my yard...
Other than placement, the plants live up to their weed heritage... they are not fussy at all about soil conditions, and, while they like a little extra water and minimal fertilizing, they don't require it. Here in zone 7, they
sprout from the root every spring, and grow to 3 feet high and sprawl 4 to 5 feet wide. Further north, you will probably need to mulch it heavily, or allow one or two of the thorny seed pods to develop.
and some wild sunflowers that I never have the heart to pull up...
when they go to seed it's fun to watch the local birds feed on the seed heads...
