Delicate datura flowers: growing from seeds at home. Datura ordinary: a photo of a plant and a description of this herb

One of the most mysterious and legendary plants with amazingly beautiful tubular flowers is called Datura, which fully reflects its reputation as a powerful hallucinogen. In the scientific classification, it is called datura (lat. Dature). Expressive, spreading and fragrant shrubs can bring southern, tropical notes to any plantation. The pharmacological properties of the plant are still used today in classical and folk medicine, homeopathic practice. It is traditionally a popular source of various manipulations and legends in religious teachings and rituals, occultism.

Description

Datura or Datura is a genus of plants in the Solanaceae family. These are tall grasses, in their natural habitat they grow like evergreen shrubs, are distinguished by large leaves, decorative fragrant flowers with a bell at the end. Perennial plant is grown in gardens due to cold winters middle lane as a seasonal annual. It grows as a beautiful spreading bush, distinguished by large velvet leaves and spectacular tubular bell flowers.

Stem glabrous, erect, branched, hollow, triple-forked configuration. Sometimes it acquires a reddish-violet color at the base. It has a tap-branched root. The leaves are alternate, on long petioles, oval-pointed in shape. The upper part is dark green, the lower one is lighter. Their size differs significantly on the same plant. Basal leaves are narrow, long, lanceolate, and have a shorter petiole.

Shoots can grow up to one and a half meters in length. The first powerful shoot bifurcates when it reaches a height of 30 cm, giving way to a conical bud, from which a tightly rolled flower is formed. It gradually grows in length, at the end unfolding into a large single funnel with a diameter of about 20 cm. The colors range from white to various shades of purple, yellow, cream. After the first flower, you need to wait for the next 1-2 weeks, they appear in the branching nodes, their number constantly increases and reaches a maximum by autumn, when several flowers bloom at the same time every night.

Flowers are single, large. The corolla is funnel-shaped. The calyx is pentahedral, toothed, long-tubular. Each of them blooms only one night, but the total bloom is very abundant before frost. Long funnels open only at dusk, filling the night air with an exotic scent.

The fruit is a large, four-celled, poly-seeded egg-shaped capsule with thorns. Datura bears fruit in August and September. Seeds are rounded, irregularly reniform, compressed, with a large, elliptic surface, black in color. They have amazing endurance, do not lose germination for decades.

Datura structure

Types and varieties

There are many ordinary, double and semi-double forms - their classification is not quite well established, and until now is difficult. In ornamental plantations, there are mainly two types of plants of the genus datura.

Datura ordinary- v natural conditions at home, a weed, a powerful herb, an annual, reaches a height of 1.5 m. It is characterized by a smaller size of flowers, because of its weak decorativeness it is rarely grown in cultivated plantings.

Datura indian- very ornamental plant, a perennial that is grown as an annual. The bush is strongly branched, the trunk is lignified at the very bottom, the petiole leaves are relatively large.

Indian datura varieties are represented by numerous hybrids.

Very popular variety series "Ballerina" with spectacular flowers of white, yellow, white-violet, purple color. Plants are relatively cold-resistant.

Datature of the variety series "Ballerina"

A popular hybrid "Medea" with large white flowers of a simple shape, with bent edges, up to 15-20 cm long.

Datura indian or harmless occurs in the middle lane, is distinguished by single white flowers, is very poisonous, grown for medicinal purposes, has two subspecies.

Photo gallery of views

Growing and caring

Datura is an unpretentious plant, it grows more in breadth than upward. In bright light, a beautiful lush bush forms, blooms profusely, with good care - up to late autumn... In partial shade it looks much more modest, in deep shade it can lose leaves and even die.

During active growth, large leaves evaporate a large number of moisture, so the plant requires abundant regular watering. With a lack of moisture, the plant can shed all the leaves and buds, so you need to maintain the humidity of the surrounding air. It is especially important to keep the soil evenly moist. It should be well-drained, nutritious, rich in organic matter. Acidic soils are excluded.

Datura indian

The datura plant is so powerful that it is difficult to overfeed. Until the end of summer, top dressing should be a weekly full mineral fertilizer (20 g per 10 l), you can alternate mineral and organic fertilizers... For flowering, watering with hard water is recommended, as an option, let us assume a single watering with milk of lime at a concentration of 1 g / l. From time to time, in order to avoid corrosion of the foliage, the leaves should be sprayed warm water without lime admixtures.

With a lack of water and nutrition, the folded tubules of the datura flowers may not bloom. Faded flowers must be removed. In place of flowers, by the fall, thorny fruits appear, resembling a nut. Seeds fully ripen for 1-2 months.

Datura plantings should not be thickened, the distance between individual bushes should be at least a meter. When growing and caring for datura, care should be taken - the plant is poisonous.

Semi-double form of datura

Reproduction

Datura is grown from seeds or cuttings.

• Cuttings root in warm water or substrate in a couple of weeks. Healthy mature shoots with 2-3 nodes are suitable for propagation of datura by cuttings, an incision is made right under the node, the leaves are removed, the leaves that have withered during the rooting process are cut in half. A clear bag and a warm place will ensure fast rooting. After the first leaves appear, after 10 days, you can remove the bag and let the plants acclimate. The substrate is prepared from a combination of vermiculite, peat, sphagnum and perlite. To accelerate the growth of cuttings, growth stimulants are used. When planting, moisten the substrate and slightly crush it. Cuttings are placed in a small depression up to the first leaf.
• The seeds are quite large, of various shapes, they are sown for seedlings in the spring, 10 weeks before the last frost. Preparation deserves special attention planting material... The seeds are placed in a container of a suitable size, poured over with warm water, left for half an hour, the emerging specimens are discarded, the water is drained, the seeds are dried. If desired, the seeds are soaked in a growth promoter.

Ripe fruit with seeds

To grow datura from seeds, they can be harvested on their own - the achenes are tied with gauze so as not to miss the moment of fruit opening and seed raining.

How to plant dope seedlings? A little peat is added to the container at the bottom, and soil mixture is added on top. Seeds spread out on the surface are sprinkled with a thin layer of compost. At first, they exclude the access of light by covering the crops, or moving them to a dark place. Seedlings are expected after 2-4 weeks. Germination temperature is from 10-12, optimal 25 C. After the first shoots appear, the container is transferred to a sufficiently lighted place. Water the seedlings, cover with glass. Crops are often ventilated, glass is wiped. After the appearance of 2-3 leaves, the seedlings dive, planting them in separate pots, and buried them in the ground.

At the beginning of June, the plant is transferred to the ground, before which the seedlings are gradually hardened. By the time of disembarkation on open space seedlings should be 15 cm tall. When transplanting, it is important to preserve the roots.

Young plants obtained in any way, from cuttings, all the more, bloom in the first year, with early spring sowing - from the second half of summer. Autumn seedlings do not hibernate in the ground. Once planted, Datura is easily self-seeding. Hybrid varieties during self-seeding, they lose their characteristics.

Seedling datura

Wintering

In the middle lane, datura is considered a tub plant, so it spends summer on outdoors, and in the winter in a cool room, with good lighting, high humidity protected from drafts. If there is no suitable space, you can restrict planting with ordinary white dope, which grows successfully by self-seeding.

The plant successfully hibernates in a bright room with a temperature not higher than 16 C, optimally 10-12 C. With a warmer content, the shoots of the datura stretch out and weaken. In winter, water is rarely watered, slightly maintaining the moisture content of the substrate. A certain amount of leaves may fall off, but under optimal conditions, the plant will not only completely retain the leaves, but may even bloom. During the winter, shoots grow from awakening buds. Winter buds weaken the plant and are best removed immediately. Losing part of the leaves in winter, plants in the spring definitely need pruning.

Datura can be grown in a tub as perennial

The overwintered plant in February-March, before the beginning of the growing season, is transferred to a fresh substrate, shortening the shoots. A substrate of greenhouse, clay-turf soil, sand, proportion 2: 4: 1 is recommended, humus, peat, sand can be combined equally. It is important to ensure drainage and drain hole... In large plants, the top layer of the earth is changed.

Diseases, pests

Datura is quite resistant to diseases and pests. Unfavourable conditions increase the likelihood of damage by pests: aphids, red spider mites. Threats are also posed by: forest bug, weevil, whitefly.

Of the diseases, the most common is gray rot.

Datura is self-sufficient, against the background of the lawn

Use in landscape design

Datura can be grown in group, single plantings, effectively filling the background of mixborders. Branching bushes with noticeable flowers will decorate any flower garden, while filling the garden with aroma. Indian datura is good as a potted, container specimen.

Datura creeps along the ground rather than stretches in height. This sprawling plant can be used in plantings, covering up empty spots after flowering early flowering perennials, from which practically nothing remains in the middle of summer. To raise the "soaring" flowers of dope to eye level, you can build a support from several branches.

Datature in landscape

The Datura plant has taken root all over the world, not least due to its various pharmacological properties. Its psychotropic effect and anti-asthmatic effect are widely used. It is a natural drug, antidote, antidepressant, prophylactic against rabies, tetanus.

Everyone is accustomed to considering dope grass as a pernicious weed. But in vain! This is very beautiful bush with large flowers that smell good. We grow several varieties, the flowers of which can be of completely different colors and shapes. Terry giants are especially beautiful, as in the photos below.

Therefore, I propose to take a chance and buy dope seeds. And here we will describe in detail how to plant seeds and give some tips for caring for it.

The Latin name of the Datura genus is Datura. And among the people, as they just do not call it: stupor-grass, stinking dope, water drunk, mad potion.

Datura grass is a representative of the Solanaceae family, which means a close relative of all well-known tomatoes, eggplants and potatoes. Only her sister is also a dangerous henbane. Here it is, the insidious beauty of dope - all parts of the plant are very poisonous!

In general, datura grass is a native of the warm climate of America, lives in Asia and Europe. She also reached the European part of Russia.

Despite the fact that this is a perennial plant, in central Russia it is grown as an annual crop. Recently, she has become very popular among fans of tall flowering plants... Who can be left indifferent by giant terry bells?

Germinate seeds faster!

Planting and growing datura is very easy! There is a huge amount of seeds of all kinds on the market of planting material. Any self-respecting company will surely hide the cherished 3-4 seeds in a multi-colored bag.

The seeds are rather large, covered with a dense seed coat. Germination rate is very high - 95%, lasts up to 10 years.

One obstacle is that it usually takes a very long time to wait for the first shoots, sometimes up to 30 days.

To rush the cute miracle of nature a little, you can soak the seeds in cool water or a growth stimulant solution for a couple of days. This will help loosen the tight bonds of the seed coat a little and give the light of new green life more quickly.
Practitioners recommend using a zip pack with a little water. Place the seeds there and wait until they hatch, then boldly plant them in the ground and enjoy the shoots.

Seedlings or directly into the ground?

In our country, it is better to plant datura on seedlings - it will bloom faster this way. Do not miss the opportunity to watch how a real giant grows from a small seed and will thank you for your efforts with the light and music of huge flowers-gramophones!

Suitable time for sowing seeds: March-April. V open ground seeds are sown in May.

How to grow seedlings?

When the first shoots are born, 2-3 weeks after sowing, they will develop very quickly. Therefore, it is worth taking care of the size of the pots. It is advisable to immediately sow one seed at a time in a container in order to subsequently avoid the stage of picking seedlings.

The seeding depth is 0.5-1 cm. The soil with the planted seeds is well watered, covered with glass and placed in a warm, dark place (18 - 20 ° C). Periodically planting should be ventilated and condensation removed from the glass surface. Do not allow the top soil layer to dry out. Don't forget to water!

When the first shoots appear, containers with sprouts are transferred to a well-lit room and provide regular watering.

Hardening of seedlings

Finally, the first real leaves appeared - it's time to start hardening the seedlings.
At first, 1-2 hours of outdoor walks are enough. When the seedlings get a little stronger, you can give them free rein for a longer period.

After 1 month of such walks, you can leave the seedlings outside overnight. Of course, only if night temperatures do not drop below +10 ° C.

When the time of spring frosts is over and the ground has warmed up enough (16-20 ° C), the seedlings can be placed on permanent place into the ground with a step of 20-30 cm between specimens. By the time they are planted in the garden, the seedlings should be 15 cm in height. Do not deepen the root collar!

The soil. It is better to choose the soil rich in organic matter. Datura grass loves loose nutritious soil, well-drained.

Place in the garden... There are several conditions required for a datura to develop properly. First, there is enough room to grow. Second, perfect sunny place or slightly shaded. In the shade, the flowering time will be shortened, and the plant will be strongly elongated. Last, no strong winds! Otherwise, the plant will tilt to the sides, break, lose buds.

• A bush with beautiful large flowers looks great as a single plant in the green of the lawn.
• Perfectly complements group plantings and mixborders.
• The plant can be used to fill voids in a flower bed after perennials have flowered.
• Datura Indian species is suitable for growing in a pot or container. However, in this case, it does not grow large.

Watering. Datura herb is very demanding on water quality. Soft water and regular watering will improve the flowering of this plant.

It grows actively in spring and summer, therefore, during this period it requires additional feeding and abundant watering spraying foliage. With a lack of moisture and humidity, it sheds buds and leaves.

Withered flowers must be removed so that the plant does not waste energy on the formation of fruits, but is completely devoted to flowering.

Fertilizers. It responds very gratefully to organic fertilizing (compost, droppings, manure). Grows well on compost heaps. It is advisable to apply mineral fertilizer 2-3 times a month.

You can find out what types of datura can be grown with us and see their photos in our about types of datura grass

For several years in a row. Seeing this amazing plant once, I decided to plant it in my garden, and, frankly, I didn’t regret it at all. Every evening huge datura flowers exude a wonderful delicate aroma, enveloping and intoxicating.

In fairness, it is worth saying that dope flowers wither rather quickly, but this is compensated by the fact that there are a lot of them on the bush. Gardeners are saddened by the fact that the beauty of the plant is quite insidious, it hides a terrible property - his. Everything is poisonous in datura: stems, leaves, flowers and even roots. "Crazy Potion", which is what the people also call datura, received such a name for the properties of the plant, which, when ingested, causes fantastic hallucinations and delirium, and in large doses leads to prolonged mental disorders, insanity, memory loss. Datura has often been used in history to poison victims of political conspiracies and fraudsters.

Growing datura

The homeland of dope - Asia

Datura is a perennial, highly branching herb with a powerful root system, reaching a height of up to 1.5 m. Datura flowers can be either white or yellow, purple, pink and even purple. The fruits of the plant are ovoid, multi-seeded, four-leafed capsules, completely covered on the outside with small thorns.

Growing datura is a simple process even for a novice gardener, but I will tell you one secret - the dope feels best on an ordinary or heap. Not knowing how to disguise the dung heap, I have been selecting a plant for it for a long time and, after reading the recommendations of numerous gardeners, I opted for the datura, which was just perfect. This amazing plant didn't just disguise the dung heap with its decorative leaves and flowers, but also completely interrupted with its amazing aroma emanating from the heap, to put it mildly, not a very pleasant smell :)

In central Russia, datura is grown as a seasonal annual, but if the plant is removed to the room before the first frost, it can also be grown as a perennial. True, this requires space, it will not work to grow datura on the windowsill, in my room she won a corner of 1.5 m2.

Datura propagation by seeds

Due to the fact that dope seeds have a low germination energy, its first shoots appear only 10-30 days after sowing. In order to speed up the germination of seeds, I spend them: I fill hot water, the ones that come up - I throw them away, the rest - I sow.

Before sprouting, the soil must be constantly moist, for this I cover the container with the seeds with plain paper. After the appearance of the first sprouts of the datura, I transfer the seedlings to a rather cool, but well-lit place. With the appearance of two true leaves, I proceed to it. I carefully plant the seedlings, burying them under the very cotyledons, which is only for the benefit of the plant.

I plant the datura in the open ground at the end of May. I leave the distance between the seedlings about 1 m from each other, I repeat - the plant loves space very much. To plant datura, you need to choose a windproof, sunny place without drafts, which the plant does not tolerate.

Datura seeds germinate from a depth not exceeding 10 cm, remember this when sowing the plant directly into open ground. The flowering phase begins in Datura 3 weeks after sowing.

Reproduction of datura by cuttings

If you are growing datura as a perennial, transferring it to winter time indoors, the cuttings can be rooted throughout the year.

Datura care

Datura is an unpretentious plant

It is advisable to water the datura every other day, and if the summer turns out to be hot, then every day. If you intend to continue growing datura indoors, as indoor plant then in winter period watering is significantly reduced - up to once a week. The same must be done with. During the development period, we feed the datura weekly, with full fertilizer and, alternating feeding, and stop feeding during the dormant period, which occurs in the plant in winter. On soils, the plant is recommended to be shed with milk once a season (1 g per 1 liter of water).

The second prerequisite for the successful cultivation of datura as a perennial is pruning. This is due to the fact that flowers on the datura are formed only on young shoots. Therefore, with the onset of autumn, after flowering, it is necessary to cut off the branches of the plant, thus forming the crown of the datura. To activate flowering, you need to regularly remove faded inflorescences, leaving only those capsules for the seeds that were formed instead of the very first flowers. Datura seeds ripen only two months after the formation of ovaries.

In the first year of growing datura, I did not manage to collect my seeds: when they ripened, they literally instantly crumbled to the ground. In order to prevent this, in subsequent years I began to put bags of ordinary nylon tights on the "bumps".

Types of datura

• Brugmansia arborea;
• Brugmansia vulcanicola;
• Brugmansia versicolor;
• Brugmansia aurea;
• Brugmansia suaveolens;
• Brugmansia B sanguinea.

Today the genus Datura includes only herbaceous plants with characteristic large bell-shaped flowers growing exclusively upward (and not like in Brugmansia - downward).

Datura stramonium - common dope

The large flowers have an intense aroma.

Datura metel - Indian Datura

The Indian Datura got its name because it is most widespread in India, where it is considered a sacred plant, and they call it "the flower of Shiva".

Datura Innoxia - Indian Datura

This annual plant with a characteristic unpleasant odor beautiful flowers bells.

Large white flowers are located singly in the forks of branches.

Datura stramonium var. tatula

The aroma is intense.

Datura stramonium f. inermis

The secret lies in the seed pods, which are unusual for dope, without thorns.

Do you grow this unusually beautiful and unpretentious plant in your garden?

When growing datura from seeds at home, you have to take into account their feature: a dense leathery shell. Protecting embryos from drying out, cold and other adverse effects external environment, the upper covers at the same time prevent germination. But flower growers have long learned to cope with the problem and successfully grow beautiful plant both in the garden and in indoor conditions.

Datura or Datura refers to very poisonous plants... Everything is toxic: seeds, green fruits, and a stem with leaves. In case of poisoning, the pupils dilate, the pulse quickens, thirst and headache arise. Symptoms increase up to coma. It is necessary to grow datura in a personal plot or in a room with caution, especially if there are children in the family.

Cultivated species and varieties of dope have large flowers with white, purple, orange or yellow color. Some of them emit a pleasant but very strong aroma. Since the plant blooms in the evening and at night, it is not recommended to put it in the bedroom.

Despite their dangerous properties, dope have taken root among flower growers and are successfully used for indoor and outdoor gardening. Beautiful, huge (up to 20 cm long and 10-15 cm in diameter), tubular flowers gave rise to the name of the datura "pipes of the archangels."

There are many varieties of datura with simple and double flowers. Among the most common:

• plants with purple corollas covered with white spots (cv. Flore Pleno);
• with snow-white ones (Troubadour, Sorcerer don Juan);
• variety series Ballerina with different colors of flowers without pronounced sharp tips.

Recently on Russian markets Terry varieties also appeared: Golden Queen, Ballerina purple, Fastuosa, etc.

Sowing seeds

Datura seeds remain suitable for sowing for a very long time: they germinate even after 10 years of storage. By purchasing seed in a store, a grower practically cannot buy old and unsuitable seeds for sowing there. But before sowing, you still need to sort out non-viable, puny grains from high-quality ones, which will give strong shoots.

For this purpose, the seeds are subjected to flotation. Pour the contents of the sachet into a small but deep container (plastic cup) and pour warm water... Unsuitable seed floats to the top, as the grains are underdeveloped and therefore light. The same will happen if they are not ripe and dried up during storage: high-quality seeds will sink to the bottom.

After removing the shriveled grains and most of the water, leave the seed to swell for 48 hours. There should not be too much water. Its layer should be approximately equal to the size of the grains, and if it has time to evaporate, then the liquid can always be added.

Like all nightshades, datura at an early age is susceptible to fungal diseases (black leg). To prevent this, it is best to soak swollen seeds in a dark pink solution of potassium permanganate for 30-40 minutes before sowing. It is advisable to ignite the substrate in advance or spill it with boiling water with the addition of potassium permanganate (dark pink solution).

Preparing the potting mix

The soil for datura when grown from seeds should be loose, easily permeable to water and air. You can use a store-bought mix for pepper, eggplant, or tomato seedlings. If there is nowhere to buy this, then with self-creation the substrate must be taken in 1 part of sand (fine, washed from clay inclusions), garden soil and last year's humus. It is very good if sawdust was part of the rotted organic matter, as this additionally loosens the soil. If the soil in the garden is heavy, then add ground eggshell or chalk (about 1 tablespoon per 1 kg of mixture) to the finished substrate.

Treat the prepared soil with boiling water with a solution of potassium permanganate, as indicated above. For sowing, it is better to take a deep container. Datura root system is powerful and develops very quickly. After germination, the seedlings will need a lot of land.

Spread the prepared seeds on the surface of highly moistened soil. Cover with a layer of dry soil 0.5-1 cm thick. Powder generously with sifted wood ash on top. Before the first watering, this measure will protect young seedlings from fungi if they somehow get into the container.

Cover the box with the sown seeds with glass or foil and put in a warm place (+ 30 ° C). Germination is very slow and lasts 2-3 weeks. Some shoots may appear even after this period. As soon as the first shoots hatch, you need to open the box so that the humidity inside it becomes equal to room humidity. After a day, the glass or film must be removed completely.

Young shoots need good watering. It is better to moisten the soil from the pallet so that the topsoil gets wet as little as possible. Fungi grow very quickly on damp ground, which can destroy datura sprouts. With the method of irrigation from below, water must be poured into a pan and left for 5-6 hours. After that, everything that has not been absorbed must be drained.

The difficulty of such irrigation is to control soil moisture. You can determine the time when the plants will need moisture by digging the soil to a depth of 1-1.5 cm. At this level, it should be constantly wet.

Pick and transfer

When 1-3 true leaves appear at the shoots of Datura, they must be dived into separate containers at least 7 cm in diameter. When transplanting, you need to deepen the stem to the cotyledons. It will be necessary to transplant terry datura when grown from seeds when the container is filled with its roots. Therefore, it is better to take transparent containers for seedlings.

At the next transshipment, the plants must be carefully removed from the pot, without destroying the earthen lump. In a container where Datura will grow continuously, a drainage layer about 10 cm thick should be provided. It can be made from large pebbles or rubble, fragments of brick or glass, ceramics and other similar materials.

A layer of fertile soil should be poured over the drainage. The surface of the earthen clod at the bush, set on the soil, should be about 5 cm below the edge of the pot. Cover the gap between the container wall and the earthen clod with the substrate, as well as part of the stem. The level of the new soil in the container should be 1.5-2 cm below its edge. In a similar way, indoor datura will need to be replanted as the soil is filled with roots. Moreover, each time the container must have larger diameter(8-10 cm).

If the dope grows in street flowerpot or in the open field, then the transplant is carried out only at the time of the removal of the seedlings from the house. Plant care consists in timely watering.

Flowering time

Datura blooms in the same summer. The flowering period depends on the growing conditions, but it usually happens in late June - early July. The first datura flower appears at the fork in the stem, like bell peppers or chili. It is not necessary to remove it, but it is best to pull the fruit off.

The growth and maturation of the first fruit greatly delay the appearance of the next flowers (up to 7-10 days). After its elimination, flowering continues, increasing as the bush grows and branches. Fruits, which are tied at 2-3 forks, can be left on seeds if desired. They will have time to mature even in the middle zone of Russia and Siberia. To prevent the seeds from spilling out on their own, the prickly fruits need to be tied with gauze. When their shell is completely dry, the fruits can be removed. Usually by this time they begin to crack, exposing the seeds.

Datura will not be able to spend the winter outdoors. If a florist wants to grow it for several years in a row, with the onset of autumn, before the first frost, the bush must be dug up and transferred to a container. suitable size... In a room with a temperature of about + 12 ° C, the plant will shed its leaves and overwinter. From time to time, dope needs to be watered, not allowing the soil to dry out too much.

Indoor dates do not bloom in winter. They can shed their leaves, causing concern to their owners. But if the branches of the bush remain alive and do not dry out, then there should be no reason for alarm: the plant simply fell into a dormant period. In order for it to bloom well for the next season, it must be moved to a cool place until spring. Around the beginning of March, Datura will come to life again.

Datura flowers bring a tropical touch to any garden. Their long funnels open at dusk and fill the air. And although each flower lives only one night, from August until frost the dope blooms very profusely.

Do not forget that, like some others, dope is deadly poisonous. All parts of the plant contain toxins scopolamine, atropine and hyoscyamine. Datura intoxication, that is, it has hallucinogenic properties. Some of its types are used in pharmacology and homeopathy.

Decorative qualities

The loose bush grows in breadth rather than in height. Shoots can reach a length of one and a half meters. They are covered with large bluish-green leaves. If you grind a leaf, it emits a rather unusual smell, which cannot be called pleasant or repulsive. Young plants look like - this, by the way, is one of the closest relatives of Datura.

The first vigorous shoot bifurcates when it reaches a height of about 30 cm to give way to a conical bud, which, opening, reveals a tightly coiled nascent flower. It gradually increases to a length of 20-25 cm and, finally, at dusk it unfolds (right in front of a patient enough observer) into a huge single funnel 15-20 cm in diameter.Its colors vary from pure white to white with lavender, cream and yellow tones. They say that varieties with red shades have appeared.

Many varieties of flowers give off an intense scent-like scent. The flower lives one night (slightly capturing the cool morning of the coming day), and by noon it turns into a hanging "rag". At the same time, flowers cut in full disclosure, but not yet pollinated, can stand in a vase of water for two or even three days. After the first flower, you will have to wait a week or two for the next. They are more likely, like twins, to appear at the second-order branch nodes. By August, there will be so many of these branches (and with them buds) that a few open flowers will become a nightly phenomenon.

Kinds

Datura metel often appears in catalogs as a collective name for everyone, which misleads inexperienced gardeners. First of all, we will learn to distinguish between brugmans and dope on one true sign. In the former, the flowers always look down, in the latter, up. Datura stramonium (Datura stramonium) - a weed in the southern states of the USA, Mexico, Mediterranean and other warm countries. It differs from Indian Datura in a smaller flower (5-13 cm long) and sharp-needle seed pods. Due to its less decorative effect, it is usually not grown in gardens. Most often with Indian dope (Datura metel) confused Datura meteloides ... Not surprisingly, the “-oides” suffix means “very similar” in Latin. The difference is only more pronounced in the lavender shade of the edges of the funnel of the latter. And the dope meteloides itself, in turn, is often confused with dope Indian , or harmless (Datura inoxia) and its two subspecies. In general, everything is complicated with the classification. One thing is for sure: plants with beautiful fragrant flowers will grow from the dope seeds offered in stores.

Varieties

Very popular variety series Ballerina with dense flowers, often with a purple funnel. The most common hybrids in this series:

"Ballerina White" - pure white semi-double grade;

"Ballerina Purple" - with semi-double purple flowers, the edges of the funnel are white;

"Ballerina Yellow" - with yellow flowers.

Often on sale you can find a mixture of hybrids called "Ballerina Tutu" ("Ballerina Tutu") .

Sowing

The seeds can be of various shapes. 10-11 weeks before the last spring frosts (in the Moscow region in mid - late March) they are sown for seedlings in boxes with steamed soil and a little sprinkled with sifted earth. In general, almost at the same time as the seeds and. Crops are kept at a temperature of about 15 degrees, shoots appear within two weeks. seedlings are grown in a well-lit place. By the time they are planted in the garden, the seedlings should have reached 15 cm in height. When transplanting into open ground, you must try not to damage the roots. During the season, Datura is fed several times with granulated complex fertilizer (the same as for vegetables).

In design

Datura spreads rather than grows in height, sagging under its own weight. This loose, spreading plant with flowers soaring above the ground can be used in flower beds, covering the "holes" left after the oriental poppy or other early flowering perennials have faded, from which nothing remains in July. You can raise the dope almost to eye level (to make it easier to see the flowers) by building an unpretentious support for it from three or four long branches. With such a support, it can be grown on the veranda or in those parts of the garden where it is most often.

Watering, feeding with granular complex fertilizer.