A huge miracle of the bells Datura decorate my garden for several years. Seeing this amazing plant one day, I decided to plant it in my garden, and, frankly, a bit did not regret about it. Every evening the huge Datura flowers exude a wondrous subtle scent, enveloping and intoxicating.
In fairness, it should be said that Datura flowers wilt pretty quickly, but kompensiruet that bush is very much flowers. Upset gardeners and the fact that the beauty of the plant is quite insidious, it hides a terrible property — its poisonous. In all Datura is poisonous: stems, leaves, flowers, and even roots. “A mad potion,” namely, also known as Datura, called so for the properties of the plant that ingestion causes a fantastic hallucinations and delusions, and in large doses causes long-lasting mental disorders, madness, memory loss. In the history of Datura was often used for poisoning victims of political conspiracy and fraud.
Growing Datura
The birthplace of Datura, however, as most exotic plants — Asia. Today the plant is cultivated as a garden, in many countries, and in some of them it grows like a weed.
Datura is strongly ramified perennial herbaceous plant with a strong root system, reaching heights up to 1.5 m. Flowers Datura can be both white and yellow, purple, pink and even purple. Fruit plants — ovoid four-seeded of the box, the outside completely covered with small spines.
Growing Datura – is a simple process even for the novice gardener, but got a secret for you — the best Datura feels ordinary manure or compost heap. Not knowing how to disguise a pile of dung, I have picked up a plant for her and, after reading the recommendations of numerous gardeners, have stopped the choice on Datura, which was just perfect. This amazing plant not merely disguised a pile of dung for its decorative leaves and flowers, but completely broke their amazing aroma coming from the heap, to put it mildly, not very pleasant smell.
Reproduction of Datura seeds
The soil mixture for sowing seeds of Datura to prepare in advance, I do it in the fall. Ideally, it should consist of 2 parts sifted garden soil, 1 part coarse river sand and 2 parts humus. Datura seeds sown seedlings in late March, and in open ground in early may, choosing for its cultivation are the most warm and Sunny places.
Due to the fact that the seeds of the Datura are characterized by low vigour, his first shoots appear only after 10-30 days after sowing. In order to accelerate the germination of seeds, I’m giving them the seedbed preparation: pour hot water, the supernatant is discarded, the rest — sow.
Pre-emergence soil should always be moist to do this, I set the container of seeds with ordinary paper. After the first germs of Datura seedlings are transferred to a cool but well lit place. With the appearance of two true leaves start to her swordplay. The seedlings are carefully planted, buried them under the cotyledons, that is only for the benefit of the plant.
In the open ground planted nomination at the end of may, the Distance between the seedlings to leave about 1 m from each other again — the plant loves open space. For planting Datura need to choose windproof Sunny, draft-free place, which the plant does not tolerate.
Datura seeds sprout from depth of no more than 10 cm, remember that, by sowing the plant directly in the open ground. The flowering phase begins at the 3 weeks after sowing.
Reproduction of Datura cuttings
Perfectly reproduces the Datura and cuttings. Why in mid-September cut not woody stalk of the plant with 2-3 internodes, and rooting it in plain water or directly in soil. In may, rooted in the fall and already pretty grown plants should be planted in open ground.
If you Datura is grown as a perennial, transferring it to winter indoors, rooting cuttings is possible throughout the year.
Care for Datura
Datura — undemanding plant and needs, perhaps, only in nutritional loose soil, abundant watering and pruning — from him, by the way, depends the permanent flowering plants.
Watering Datura preferably through the day, and if summer will be hot, then daily. If you intend to continue growing Datura indoors as houseplants in winter, watering is significantly reduced — up to twice a week. You also need to do with feeding. During the growth of feeding Datura weekly, complete mineral fertilizer and organic matter, alternating feeding and no continue to feed up during dormancy, which occurs in plants in the winter. In acidic soils the plant is recommended once a season to shed of lime milk (1 g per 1 liter of water).
The second essential condition for the successful cultivation of Datura as perennial – trim. This is due to the fact that Datura flowers are formed only on young shoots. Therefore, with the onset of autumn, after flowering, you should trim the branches of the plant, thus forming a crown of Datura. To promote flowering, you need to regularly remove the faded blossoms, on the seeds leaving only those boxes, which were formed instead of the first flowers. Mature seeds of Datura only two months after the formation of the ovaries.
In the first year of growing Datura I was never able to collect their seeds: ripen, they literally instantly crumbled to the ground. To prevent this, in the following years I began to put on “lump” bags of ordinary nylon tights.
Types of Datura
More recently, the genus of Datura took the number of species that are today highlighted in a separate genus — Brugmansia:
- Brugmansia arborea;
- Brugmansia vulcanicola;
- Brugmansia versicolor;
- Brugmansia aurea;
- Brugmansia suaveolens;
- BrugmansiaB sanguinea.
Today, genus Datura includes only herbaceous plants, which flowers only grow upwards.
Datura stramonium
A plant with large entire leaves and elegant flowers.
Large flowers have an intense aroma.
Datura metel
A plant with large beautiful flowers.
Its name he received because the most common in India, where it is considered a sacred plant, and call it “flower to Shiva”.
Datura Innoxia
Prefers to grow on vacant lots, sometimes forming thickets.
This annual plant with a characteristic unpleasant smell beautiful flowers-bells.
Large white flowers are placed singly in forks of branches.
Datura stramonium var. tatula
A very beautiful lilac-blue colored flowers.
The aroma is intense.
Datura stramonium f. inermis
This variety of Datura is in high demand.
Seed pods of Datura without thorns.