<em>Datura</em> and <em>Brugmansia</em>: sow, plant and care for

Description and botany

Brugmansia or arborescent daturas are plants from Central and South America, whereas genus Datura sensu stricto occurs in tropical, subtropical and warm-temperate regions of the Americas but also in Asia (southern China), Africa, Europe and Australia. The former comprises six species distinguished by large pendulous flowers, non-spiny fruits (rare in cultivation) and long lifespan of several decades. With thick, sparsely ramified shoots, they can reach 5–6 m in height and 2–3 m in width in warm, humid conditions if not cut back by frost each year. The latter, herbaceous in habit, retain the scientific name Datura and include 12 species. These non-woody perennials with short life-span resprout readily in mild climates from a stump formed by a tuberous root and can form a bush 1–1.50 m in all directions within 2–3 months.

Datura carry many vernacular names that encourage caution: Devil’s weed, Angel’s trumpets, Trumpet of the Last Judgement, Madman’s trumpet, Thorn apple… It is true that some species in the datura group are extremely toxic (narcotic and poisonous), even by simple contact, notably common thorn-apple.

Datura stramonium is an annual species of American origin that is increasingly found in France in floodplain valleys downstream of large urban areas. It is recognisable by erect white trumpet-shaped flowers and very spiny fruits, green then beige, about 5 cm in diameter. Its spontaneous presence very often indicates soil pollution, whether from urban, industrial or agricultural pollution due to pesticides or fertilisers, or from excessive salts (compacted coastal soils or over-irrigated areas).

Brugmansia arborea – botanical illustration

It is strongly recommended not to touch it and to wear gloves and a mask if removal is necessary because of its narcotic content. Note that honey produced from bees foraging on Datura stramonium can cause poisoning, as can fumes from burning the plant. By contrast, Datura innoxia (syn. Datura meteloides) and Datura metel, sold as seeds for ornamental gardens, are less poisonous, as name innoxia (“inoffensive”) implies, although caution remains advisable, as with Brugmansia.

Brugmansia and Datura belong to family Solanaceae, like tomatoes, tobacco, potato but also deadly nightshade and mandrake, long associated with witchcraft because of their toxicity.

Leaves about twenty centimetres long are alternate and deciduous in our climate. In Brugmansia the lamina is light green, velvety and soft, ovate with smooth margins on mature leaves, with a few teeth when juvenile. In Datura leaves are entire or angular-edged with a very veined, often puckered dark green lamina, sometimes bluish, borne on ramified stems often tinged purple or deep red. Leaves measure 5–20 cm long by 4–15 cm wide. Foliage emits a fetid odour when handled. Variegated cultivars exist. The two ornamentally sold species, Datura innoxia and Datura metel, are very similar but differ by number of secondary veins arising from the central vein of each leaf.

Flowers, usually numerous but solitary, emerge from a large elongated pale-green bud that splits down the middle. The corolla with 5 fused petals forms a funnel of varying length, expanding widely to reach 18 cm in diameter and 30 cm long in hybrid Brugmansia. Colours range from pure white to pale pink and pale golden yellow as in Brugmansia arborea, bright orange in B. sanguinea, and intense violet sometimes mixed with white in Datura metel. Petals bear a central vein and end in a curved point giving the flower a horned trumpet appearance. In double-flowered varieties opening is spectacular when spiral petals unfurl. The corolla is preceded by a fused calyx forming a greenish tube or collar (as in Datura innoxia). Sweet fragrance emitted by datura flowers in evening and at night has earned them the name “Angel’s trumpets”. Their flowers are frequently visited by nectar‑foraging insects such as night moths, hummingbirds and bats.

Spherical capsules of herbaceous Daturas are notable for their spiny surface (not sharp while fruit is still green), which gave them the nicknames “thorn apple” or “stinking burr”. On drying, fruits turn from green to beige then split in two to release black seeds about 2 mm. In Brugmansia, fruits are smooth and fleshy, sometimes very long and slender. Seeing these fruits in cultivation here is rare, especially as many hybrids are sterile. Brugmansia arborea is the only self-fertile species capable of producing fruits for us.

Development of a Datura flower

Datura metel and Datura innoxia have medicinal uses at low doses (for rheumatic conditions, anti‑inflammatory uses…), but are chiefly known for hallucinogenic effects used in ritual ceremonies by Aztec and Navajo peoples in North America (D. innoxia) and in India (D. metel).

Main varieties of Datura

Shrubby varieties

Varieties for sowing

Brugmansia arborea

Shrubby Datura needing protection from cold, producing large pendulous white trumpets, highly fragrant. Plant in open ground or in a pot depending on climate and in fertile soil.

• Flowering time August to December
• Height at maturity 2 m

See the product sheet

Brugmansia sanguinea - Red Angel's Trumpet

Hardiest species of Brugmansia in the genus, with long orange pendulous trumpet flowers that are not very open. Hardy to -7°C. Grow in a pot and bring indoors during winter.

• Flowering time July to November
• Height at maturity 2 m

See the product sheet

Datura metel Double Golden Queen Seeds - Brugmansia

Annual plant reaching up to 1.40 m in all directions, with large double funnel-shaped flowers, fragrant and tinged canary yellow. Despite the beauty of its flowering, toxicity of the entire plant greatly limits its presence in gardens.

• Flowering time August to November
• Height at maturity 1,40 m

See the product sheet

Datura metel Double White Lady Seeds - Brugmansia

Often grown as an annual, well suited to summer drought in drained, fertile soil. Forms a bush about 1 m across, with very fragrant double white flowers of slightly sinister charm, resembling large double funnels fitted with horns that curl upwards. Fruits shaped like thorny balls, like the rest of the plant, are toxic.

• Flowering time August to November
• Height at maturity 80 cm

See the product sheet

 

Datura metel Evening Fragrance Seeds - Brugmansia

Attractive horticultural selection of Datura innoxia, producing large white trumpet flowers shaded with lavender at the edges that give off a sweet scent on summer evenings. Bushy perennial often grown as an annual after spring sowing.

• Flowering time August to November
• Height at maturity 1 m

See the product sheet

Datura meteloides La Fleur Lilac Seeds - Brugmansia

Medium-sized plant with very fragrant mauve flowers. Fruits shaped like thorny balls, like the rest of the plant, are toxic.

• Flowering time August to November
• Height at maturity 45 cm

See the product sheet

Planting

Where to plant Datura?

To plant a Brugmansia in open ground, benefit from a mild climate such as around the Mediterranean or along the Atlantic coast. Choose a warm, sunny spot sheltered from cold and wind. Brugmansias require rich, deep soil that is well watered in summer. Soil must however be well drained to help the stump withstand frost (-7°C maximum for Brugmansia sanguinea, reputed to be the hardiest of the Brugmansias). You can perfectly to grow Brugmansia in a large pot 40 to 50 cm in diameter which can produce young plants 1.4 m across by the end of the season.

Herbaceous Datura can be sown on a bank in full sun north of the Loire or in partial shade in the Midi, on ordinary soil recently turned over, even calcareous and dry in summer if deep enough. They can help clean up polluted soil, colonise wasteland and roadsides. The plant produces a tuberous root that is sensitive to frost and excess water. You can protect the stump with a mulch to encourage regrowth the following year or resow seeds in spring. This plant is hardy in zone 9 (0 to -7°C).

Brugmansia arborea

When to plant?

Plant or sow daturas in spring as they need warmth to develop.

How to plant?

This plant is very easy to to grow whether Brugmansia or Datura, although constraints differ.

Brugmansia aurea, arborea, x candida…

• Sink the Brugmansia pot in a bucket of water to thoroughly moisten it and untangle the roots if they have begun to circle the pot.

• Dig a wide hole at least three times the width of the rootball and up to 50 cm deep.
• Add a few shovelfuls of compost or well-rotted manure or one to two handfuls of organic fertiliser to the soil. In a pot, choose a good geranium potting compost, taking care to put gravel or clay pebbles at the bottom of the pot to a depth of 5 cm.
• Place the plant in the planting hole.
• Replace the soil and firm gently.
• Water liberally then mulch.

Datura metel, innoxia (meteloides)…

You can grow Datura as a perennial either by buying young plants or by sowing yourself (see Sowing). You can also grow it as an annual, pulling up the young plant at the end of summer, in a container as in open ground.

• Work the soil deeply as the plant likes well-tilled soil.
• Level the surface then dig a hole the size of the rootball.

In pots, make a mix of 2/3 good potting compost to 1/3 river sand for Brugmansias, 50% potting compost to 50% sand for Daturas.

Caring for Datura and Brugmansia

• Water Brugmansia generously whose lush foliage consumes a lot of water. Don’t hesitate to add fertiliser for flowering plants if kept in a pot.
• You can overwinter Brugmansia in a conservatory at a moderate temperature between 10 and 15°C or higher to prolong its flowering. If short of space, a dark space (garage, cellar…) protected from frost is also suitable: leaves will fall and you can reduce the branches. The young plant can regrow from the ground if stems have frozen.

It is possible to reduce the branches before overwintering your Brugmansia

• Repot in autumn or spring into a larger pot, or simply change the surface compost if keeping the plant in the same large container.
• Perennial Datura is well suited to summer drought. Water only if foliage is completely wilted by late afternoon.
• In winter, protect the stump with a thick mulch which will insulate it from both frost and moisture. Its root is indeed sensitive to excess moisture.
• In a pot, water frequently.
• Remember to remove Datura fruits before they disperse their seeds to avoid being overrun. Make sure to wear gloves and a mask when handling this genus of plants. Wash hands thoroughly after contact.

Propagation: propagation by cuttings, sowing

The simplest propagation is to propagate Brugmansia by cuttings in summer and sow Datura in February–March.

Propagation by cuttings

Propagation by cuttings can be done in a glass of water or in a pot.

• Prepare a deep pot by filling it with potting compost mixed with sand.
• Take tips of herbaceous shoots about 15 cm long, free of buds or older wood.
• Remove leaves located near base of the cutting.
• Insert them to two-thirds of their length, avoiding them touching each other.
• Firm compost gently all around to remove air pockets and ensure good contact between potting compost and cutting.
• Keep them covered in shade, for example by placing a cut transparent plastic bottle over them.
• In autumn, separate rooted cuttings and pot them, keeping under glass until spring.

Sowing

Datura seeds can remain in soil for several years before conditions become favourable for germination.

• Soak Datura seeds in a bowl of warm water for 24 hours.
• Sow in moist potting compost, spacing seeds 5 cm apart.
• Cover with 5 mm of fine potting compost and press lightly with a board.
• Keep at a temperature of 15 to 20°C in a bright place.
• Germination will take between 21 and 60 days. Growth will be faster thereafter.
• Prick out seedlings when they reach about 10 cm.
• Water each plant carefully without leaving water to stand in saucers beneath pots.

Flowering occurs in summer, from July to October, about 4 months after sowing.

Uses and associations

Datura, and particularly shrubby Datura, are spectacular specimens usually placed alone on a lawn or against a sunny house wall to enjoy their night-time fragrance during summer evenings.

An example of a sunny large-pot combination: Brugmansia arborea, Petunia Surfinia ‘Snow’ and Helichrysum petiolare at its base

When grown in a trough or large pot, it will dominate a sunlit terrace — for example with Convolvulus sabatius (Mauritanian bindweed) or Impatiens to cover its base. Herbaceous Datura such as Evening Fragrance can adorn the edges of a path alongside Four o’clocks (Mirabilis jalapa), equally easy to to grow since they can regrow from tubercles each year just like Datura. You can also ornament the base of a small tree such as crape myrtle (Lagerstroemia) or cover a newly formed embankment by broadcasting seeds.