<em>Datura</em> and <em>Brugmansia</em>: sowing, planting and care

Description and botany

Brugmansia or arborescent daturas are plants of Central and South America while genus Datura in the strict sense occurs in tropical, subtropical and warm-temperate regions of the Americas but also in Asia (southern China), Africa, Europe and Australia. The first comprise 6 species distinguished by large pendulous flowers, non-thorny fruits (rare in cultivation) and a long life span of several decades. With thick, rather sparsely ramified branches, they can reach 5–6 m tall and 2–3 m wide in warm, humid conditions if not killed back by frost each year. The latter, herbaceous in habit, retain the scientific name Datura and include 12 species. These non-woody, short-lived perennials resprout easily in mild climates from the stump formed by a tuberous root and can form a shrub 1 to 1.50 m in every direction within 2–3 months.

Datura carry numerous vernacular names that encourage caution: jimsonweed, angel’s trumpets, trumpet of the Last Judgment, madman’s trumpet, thorn apple… It is true that some datura species are extremely toxic (narcotic and poisonous), even by simple contact, particularly common stramonium.

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

Brugmansia arborea – botanical illustration

It is strongly recommended not to touch it and to wear gloves and a mask if you need to pull it up because of its narcotic content. Note that honey produced by bees foraging on Datura stramonium can cause poisoning, as can smoke from burning the plant. By contrast, species Datura innoxia (syn. Datura meteloides) and Datura metel sold as garden seed are less poisonous, as the name innoxia (meaning “inoffensive”) suggests, although caution is still required, as with Brugmansia.

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

Leaves about 20 cm long are alternate and deciduous in our climate. In Brugmansia, the lamina is light green, velvety and soft, ovate with smooth margins on the mature leaf, bearing a few teeth when juvenile. In Datura, leaves are entire or with angular margins, the lamina very prominently veined and often puckered, dark green sometimes bluish, borne on ramified stems often tinged purple or blackish red. They measure between 5 and 20 cm long and 4 to 15 cm wide. Foliage gives off a foul odour when touched. Variegated cultivars exist. The two ornamental species marketed, Datura innoxia and Datura metel, are very similar but differ in the number of secondary veins arising from the central vein of each leaf.

The flowers, generally numerous but solitary, develop from a large pale-green elongated bud that splits down the middle. The corolla with 5 fused petals forms a funnel of variable length, flaring widely to reach up to 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 show a central vein and end in a curved point, giving the flower a horned trumpet appearance. In double-flowered varieties, opening is spectacular when spiralled petals unfold. The corolla is preceded by a fused calyx forming a greenish tube or a collar (Datura innoxia). The sweet fragrance emitted by datura flowers in the evening and at night has earned them the name “angel’s trumpets”. Their flowers are frequently visited by pollinators such as night moths, hummingbirds and bats.

The spherical capsules of herbaceous Daturas are notable for their thorny surface (not sharp while the fruit is still green), which earned them the nicknames “thorn apple” or “stinking chestnut”. When drying, fruits turn from green to beige then split open to release black seeds about 2 mm across. In Brugmansia, fruits are smooth and fleshy, sometimes very long and slender. It is rare to see these fruits in cultivation here, especially since many hybrids grown are sterile. Brugmansia arborea is the only self-fertile species capable of producing fruit here.

Development of a Datura flower

Datura metel and Datura innoxia have medicinal uses at low doses (for rheumatism, anti-inflammatory treatments…), but are above all 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 to sow

Brugmansia arborea

Shrubby Datura, protect from frost; produces large pendulous white trumpets, highly fragrant. Plant in ground or in pot according to climate, in fertile soil.

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

See the product sheet

Brugmansia sanguinea - Red Angel's Trumpet

Most hardy species of Brugmansia in genus with long orange pendulous trumpet flowers that are not very open. Withstands down to -7°C. To grow in 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 up to 1.40 m in all directions with large double funnel-shaped flowers, fragrant, tinged canary yellow. Despite beauty of flowering, toxicity of whole plant severely 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 free-draining fertile soil. Forms bush 1 m across, with double white flowers of slightly sinister charm, resembling large double funnel-shaped blooms with upturned 'horns', highly fragrant. Fruits are spiny balls and, like rest of 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 exhale a suave perfume on summer evenings. Bushy perennial plant often grown as 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 highly fragrant mauve flowers. Fruits are spiny balls and, like rest of 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 the ground, it is necessary to have a mild climate such as around the Mediterranean or along the Atlantic coast. Choose a warm, sunny spot sheltered from cold and wind. Brugmansia require a rich, deep soil and regular watering 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 Brugmansia). You can perfectly to grow Brugmansia in a large pot 40 to 50 cm in diameter, which can produce young plants 1.40 m across by the end of the season.

Herbaceous Datura can be sown on a bank well exposed to sun north of the Loire or in partial shade in Midi, on ordinary soil recently dug over, even calcareous and dry in summer if deep enough. They can help to reclaim polluted soil, colonise fallow land and road verges. The plant produces a tuberous root that dislikes frost and excess water. You can protect the stump with mulch to encourage regrowth the following year or reseed with 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 grow whether Brugmansia or Datura, though requirements differ.

Brugmansia aurea, arborea, x candida…

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

• Dig a wide hole at least three times the diameter 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 for example, taking care to place gravel or clay balls at the bottom of the pot to a depth of 5 cm.
• Place the young plant in the planting hole.
• Replace soil and firm lightly.
• Water generously 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 plant at the end of summer, in a container or in the ground.

• Work soil deeply as plant likes soil that has been dug over.
• Level soil then dig a hole the size of the rootball.

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

Caring for Datura and Brugmansia

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

You can prune branches before overwintering your Brugmansia

• Repot it in autumn or in spring into a larger pot or simply replace surface compost if you keep plant in same large container.
• Perennial Datura is well adapted to summer drought. Water only if foliage is limp at end of day.
• In winter, protect the stump over winter with a thick mulch that will insulate it from both frost and excess moisture. Its root is indeed sensitive to waterlogging.
• In a pot, waterings will need to be frequent.
• Don’t forget to remove fruits from Daturas before they disperse their seeds to avoid being overrun. Make sure to wear gloves and a mask when handling this type of plant. Wash hands thoroughly after contact.

Propagation: propagation by cuttings, sowing

The simplest propagation method 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 15 cm long herbaceous shoot tips, free of buds or older wood.
• Remove leaves located near base of cutting.
• Insert them into compost to two‑thirds of their length, ensuring they do not touch each other.
• Firm compost gently around to remove air pockets and ensure good contact between potting compost and cutting.
• Place them under cover in shade, for example by placing a cut‑down transparent plastic bottle over them.
• In autumn, separate rooted cuttings and pot them, keeping them under glass until spring.

Sowing

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

• Soak Datura seeds in a bowl of lukewarm water for 24 hours.
• Sow in moist potting compost, spacing seeds 5 cm apart.
• Cover with 5 mm of fine potting compost and firm lightly with a flat board.
• Maintain at 15–20°C in a bright position.
• Germination will take between 21 and 60 days. Growth will be faster afterwards.
• Prick out seedlings when they reach about 10 cm.
• Water each plant carefully, avoiding water standing in saucers beneath pots.

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

Uses and companion plants

Daturas, particularly shrubby daturas, are spectacular subjects usually planted as solitary specimens in middle of lawn or against sunny wall of house to enjoy their night-time fragrance during summer evenings.

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

Placed in a trough or large pot, it will take pride of place on terrace in full sun with, for example, Mauritanian bindweed (Convolvulus sabatius) or Impatiens to carpet its base. Herbaceous daturas such as Evening Fragrance can grace edges of a path alongside four o’clocks (Mirabilis jalapa), equally easy to grow as they can return from tubercles each year just like daturas. You can also adorn base of a small tree such as crape myrtle (Lagerstroemia) or cover a newly planted slope by broadcasting seeds.