PROJECT REPORT ON DATURA

Submitted to: Mr. Neeraj Choudhary

Submitted by: Mr. Rahul Behal

P.C.T.E INSTITUTE OF PHARMACY

Datura
This article is about the plant genus. For the Italian dance group, see Datura (band). For the former town in California, see Datura, California. For The Tori Amos song, see Datura (song). Datura

Datura is a genus of nine species of vespertine flowering plants belonging to the family Solanaceae. Its precise and natural distribution is uncertain, owing to its extensive cultivation and naturalization throughout the temperate and tropical regions of the globe. Its distribution within the Americas, however, is most likely restricted to the United States and Mexico, where the highest species diversity occurs. Some South American plants formerly thought of as Daturas are now treated as belonging to the distinct genus Brugmansia (Brugmansia differs from Datura in that it is woody, making shrubs or small trees, and in that it has pendulous flowers, rather than erect ones). Other related genera include Hyoscyamus and Atropa.

Description
Datura are herbaceous, leafy annuals and short-lived perennials which can reach up to 2 meters in height. The leaves are alternate, 1020 cm long and 518 cm broad, with a lobed or toothed margin. The flowers are erect or spreading (not pendulous like those of the closely allied Brugmansia), trumpet-shaped, 520 cm long and 412 cm broad at the mouth; colors vary from white to yellow, pink, and pale purple. The fruit is a spiny capsule 410 cm long and 26 cm broad, splitting open when ripe to release the numerous seeds. The seeds disperse freely over pastures, fields and even wasteland locations.

Datura belongs to the classic "witches' weeds," along with deadly nightshade, henbane, and mandrake. Most parts of the plants contain toxic hallucinogens, and datura has a long history of use for causing delirious states and death. It was well known as an essential ingredient of love potions and witches' brews. The word datura comes from the Hindi dhatr ("thorn apple"); record of this name dates back to 1662 (OED). Nathaniel Hawthorne refers to one type in The Scarlet Letter as apple-Peru. In Mexico its common name is toloache. The larvae of some Lepidoptera (butterfly and moth) species, including Hypercompe indecisa, eat some datura species.

Species and cultivars

It is difficult to classify a datura as to its species, and it often happens that descriptions of new species are accepted prematurely. Later it is found that these "new species" are simply varieties that have evolved due to conditions at a specific location. They usually disappear in a few years. Contributing to the confusion are the facts that various species such as D. wrightii and D. inoxia are very similar in appearance, and that the variation within a species can be extreme. For example, Datura have the property of being able to change size of plant, size of leaf, and size of flowers, all depending on location. The same species, when growing in a half-shady damp location can develop into a flowering bush half as tall as a person, but when growing in a very dry location will only grow into a thin little plant just higher than the ankles, with tiny flowers and a few miniature leaves. Today, experts classify only nine species of Datura:

Datura ceratocaula Jacq. Datura discolor Bernh. Desert Thorn-apple Datura ferox L. Long Spined Thorn-apple Datura inoxia Mill. Thorn-apple, Downy Thorn-apple, Indian-apple, Moonflower, Sacred Datura, Toloatzin, Toloache Datura leichhardtii F.Muell. ex Benth. (syn. D. pruinosa) Leichhardt's Datura

Datura metel L. Devil's trumpet Datura quercifolia Kunth Oak-leaf Thorn-apple Datura stramonium L. (syn. D. inermis) Jimsonweed, Thorn-apple Datura wrightii Regel Sacred Datura, Sacred Thorn-apple

American Brugmansia & Datura Society, Inc. (ABADS), is designated in the 2004 edition of the International Code of Nomenclature for Cultivated Plants as the official International Cultivar Registration Authority for Datura. This role was delegated to ABADS by the International Society for Horticultural Science in 2002.

Cultivation

Fruit

D. inoxia with ripe, split-open fruit Datura are usually planted annually from the seed produced in the spiny pods, but with care, plants can be overwintered. Most species are suited to being planted outside or in containers. As a rule, they need warm, sunny places and soil that will keep their roots dry. When grown

outdoors in good locations, the plants tend to reseed themselves and may become invasive. In containers, they should have porous, aerated potting soil with adequate drainage. The plants are susceptible to fungi in the root area, so organic enrichers such as compost and manure should be avoided.

Toxicity
All Datura plants contain tropane alkaloids such as scopolamine, hyoscyamine, and atropine, primarily in their seeds and flowers. Because of the presence of these substances, Datura has been used for centuries in some cultures as a poison and hallucinogen. There can be a 5:1 toxin variation across plants, and a given plant's toxicity depends on its age, where it is growing, and the local weather conditions. This variation makes Datura exceptionally hazardous as a drug. In traditional cultures, a great deal of experience with and detailed knowledge of Datura was critical in order to minimize harm. Many tragic incidents result from modern recreational users ingesting Datura. For example, in the 1990s and 2000s, the United States media contained stories of adolescents and young adults dying or becoming seriously ill from intentionally ingesting Datura. There are also several reports in the medical literature of deaths from Datura stramonium and Datura ferox intoxication. Children are especially vulnerable to atropine poisoning, and their prognosis is likely to be fatal.[9][10] In some parts of Europe and India, Datura has been a popular poison for suicide and murder. From 19501965, the State Chemical Laboratories in Agra, India investigated 2,778 deaths that were caused by ingesting Datura. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported accidental poisoning resulting in hospitalization for a family of six who inadvertently ingested Datura used as an ingredient in stew. In some places it is prohibited to buy, sell or cultivate Datura plants.

Effects of ingestion

Due to the potent combination of anticholinergic substances it contains, Datura intoxication typically produces effects similar to that of an anticholinergic delirium (as contrasted to hallucination): a complete inability to differentiate reality from fantasy; hyperthermia; tachycardia; bizarre, and possibly violent behavior; and severe mydriasis with resultant painful photophobia that can last several days. Pronounced amnesia is another commonly reported effect. No other psychoactive substance has received as many severely negative experience reports as has Datura. The overwhelming majority of those who describe their use of Datura find their experiences extremely unpleasant both mentally and physically and often physically dangerous.

Treatment
Due to their agitated behavior and confused mental state, victims of Datura poisoning are typically hospitalized. Gastric lavage (stomach pumping) and the administration of activated charcoal can be used to reduce the stomach's absorption of the ingested material. The drug physostigmine is used to reverse the effect of the poisons. Benzodiazepines can be given to curb the patient's agitation, and supportive care with oxygen, hydration, and symptomatic treatment is often provided. Observation of the patient is indicated until the symptoms resolve, usually from 2436 hours after ingestion of the Datura.

Datura bernhardii
Datura bernhardii is a species of the Datura genus. They are sometimes grown as an ornamental plant. All parts of the plant including the fruit are poisonous if eaten. Contemporary experts classify this plant not as a separate species, but as a variety: Datura stramonium var tatula f. bernhardii.

Datura discolor

Datura discolor Scientific classification Kingdom: Plantae (unranked): Angiosperms (unranked): Eudicots (unranked): Asterids Order: Family: Genus: Species: Solanales Solanaceae Datura D. discolor

Binomial name Datura discolor

Bernh.

Datura discolor, also called the desert thorn-apple, is an herbaceous annual plant native to the Sonoran Desert of western North America, where it grows in sandy soils and washes. All parts of the plant contain a mix of alkaloids that are potentially lethal when enough is ingested. Deaths from careless recreational use of Daturas and related plants are frequently reported.

Description
The species was first described in 1833. The term discolor, meaning "various colors," refers to its upward-growing trumpet-shaped flowers, which are white in the bell, and pale to dark violet from the narrow part of the bell to the base. The plant itself is an upright or low-lying shrub that can grow to 4 feet tall. Its foliage is light green, and its stalks have conspicuous purple stripes. The ovate-shaped leaves can be whole or toothed.. Datura discolor has the largest flowers (up to 6 in. in diameter) of any Datura species, which makes it attractive for garden cultivation. The flowers open for only one night and wither the following day. Its seed capsule is thorny like most other Daturas, and can be up to 3 in. long and 2 in. in diameter. The species' natural distribution area stretches from Mexico to the

Southwestern U.S. and the Caribbean Islands. It is a sun-loving plant which does well underneath overhanging eaves that can protect its flowers from damage by rainfall.

Toxicity
All parts of Datura plants contain dangerous levels of poison and may be fatal if ingested by humans or other animals, including livestock and pets. In some places it is prohibited to buy, sell or cultivate Datura plants.

Datura ferox
Datura ferox

Scientific classification Kingdom: (unranked): (unranked): (unranked): Order: Family: Genus: Species: Binomial name Datura ferox Plantae Angiosperms Eudicots Asterids Solanales Solanaceae Datura D. ferox

Datura ferox, commonly known as Long Spined Thorn Apple or Fierce Thornapple, is a species of Datura. Like all such species, every part of the plant contains deadly toxins that can kill animals or humans that ingest it. Its fruit, red-brown when ripe, has unusually long thorns or spikes. The species was first described in 1756 by Linnaeus. Ferox means "strongly fortified," referring to the fearsome-looking spines on the seed pod. It probably originated in southeastern China. Today it is found in all the warm parts of the earth, where it is regarded as a dangerous pasture weed. Datura ferox is an upright shrub 1 to 3 feet high. Its thick stalks often have a red-violet color at the base. All the young shoots are noticeably hairy. The most conspicuous part of the plant is its very wide undulate, irregularly-toothed leaves, which are covered with soft, downy hairs. The yellowish white flowers are funnel-shaped and inconspicuous, and usually do not open completely.

Toxicity
All parts of Datura plants contain dangerous levels of tropane alkyloids (highly poisonous) and may be fatal if ingested by humans or other animals, including livestock and pets. In some places it is prohibited to buy, sell or cultivate Datura plants.

Datura inoxia
Datura inoxia

Scientific classification Kingdom: (unranked): (unranked): (unranked): Order: Family: Genus: Species: Plantae Angiosperms Eudicots Asterids Solanales Solanaceae Datura D. inoxia

Flower in Hyderabad, India.

Datura inoxia (thorn-apple, downy thorn-apple, Indian-apple, moonflower, sacred datura, nacazcul, toloatzin, tolguache or toloache) is a species in the family Solanaceae. It is native to Central and South America, and introduced in Africa, Asia, Australia and Europe. The scientific name is often cited as D. innoxia. The plant was first described in 1768 by English botanist Philip Miller, who spelled it D. inoxia. The name Datura meteloides was for some time erroneously applied to some members of the species, but that name has now been abandoned.

Description

D. inoxia with ripe, split-open fruit Datura inoxia is an annual shrubby plant that typically reaches a height of 0.6 to 1.5 metres. Its stems and leaves are covered with short and soft grayish hairs, giving the whole plant a grayish appearance. It has elliptic entire-edged leaves with pinnate venation. All parts of the plant emit a foul odor similar to rancid peanut butter when crushed or bruised, although most people find the fragrance of the flowers to be quite pleasant when they bloom at night. The flowers are white, trumpet-shaped, 1219 cm (4.75-7.5 in) long. They first grow upright, and later incline downward. It flowers from early summer until late fall. The fruit is an egg-shaped spiny capsule, about 5 cm in diameter. It splits open when ripe, dispersing the seeds. Another means of dispersal is by the fruit spines getting caught in the fur of animals, who then carry the fruit far from the mother plant. The seeds have hibernation

capabilities, and can last for years in the soil. The seeds, as well as the entirety of this plant, act as deliriants, but have a high probability of overdose.

Religious Aspects
This flower is sacred to the Hindu God, Shiva, he was fascinated with its poisonous aspects and so it is kept in many Indian temples, for the passion the god has for the Datura inoxia.

Toxicity
All parts of Datura plants contain dangerous levels of poison and may be fatal if ingested by humans and other animals, including livestock and pets. In some places it is prohibited to buy, sell or cultivate Datura plants.

Cultivation and uses

When cultivated, the plant is usually grown from seed, but its perennial rhizomes can be kept from freezing and planted in the spring of the following year. Datura inoxia, like other Datura species, contains the highly toxic alkaloids atropine, hyoscine (scopolamine), and hyoscyamine. According to Hernndez, the Aztecs called the plant toloatzin, and used it long before the Spanish conquest of Mexico for many therapeutic purposes, such as poultices for wounds where it acts as an anodyne. Although the Aztecs warned against madness and "various and vain imaginings", many native Americans have used the plant as an entheogen for hallucinations and rites of passage. The alkaloids of these plants are very similar to those of mandrake, deadly nightshade, and henbane, which are also highly poisonous plants used cautiously for effective pain relief in antiquity. Datura intoxication typically produces a complete inability to differentiate reality from fantasy (delirium, as contrasted to hallucination); hyperthermia; tachycardia; bizarre, and possibly violent behavior; and severe mydriasis with resultant painful photophobia that can last several days. Pronounced amnesia is another commonly reported effect. There can easily be a 5:1 variation in toxins from plant to plant, and a given plant's toxicity depends on its age, where it is growing, and local weather conditions. These wide variations make Datura exceptionally hazardous to use as a drug. In traditional

cultures, users needed to have a great deal of experience and detailed plant knowledge so that no harm resulted from using it. Such knowledge is not available in modern cultures, so many unfortunate incidents result from ingesting Datura. In the 1990s and 2000s, the United States media contained stories of adolescents and young adults dying or becoming seriously ill from intentionally ingesting Datura. It has also been planted throughout the world as an ornamental plant for its attractive large leaves, large white flowers, and distinctive thorny fruit. However, the plant is now considered an invasive species in several locations. For example, because of the similarity of its life cycle to that of cotton, it is a pest in cotton fields. It is also a potential seed contaminant.

Similar species
Datura inoxia is quite similar to Datura metel, to the point of being confused with it in early scientific literature. D. metel is a closely related Old World plant for which similar effects were described by Avicenna in eleventh century Persia. The closely related Datura stramonium differs in having smaller flowers and tooth-edged leaves, and Datura wrightii in having wider, 5-toothed (instead of 10-toothed) flowers.

Datura kymatocarpa
Datura kymatocarpa is a species of Datura. It is native to Mexico and is an annual plant.Contemporary experts classify this plant not as a separate species, but as a variety of Datura discolor.

Datura lanosa
Datura lanosa is a species of Datura. Some contemporary botanists classify this plant not as a separate species, but as a variety of Datura wrightii or Datura inoxia. This Datura is a small shrub, producing turimpid shaped flowers. The fruit is small, with thorns carrying many seeds.

Cultivation
Datura lanosa is grown in yards or gardens as an ornamental plant and is native to Mexico.

Datura metel
Datura metel

'Fastuosa'

Scientific classification Kingdom: (unranked): (unranked): (unranked): Plantae Angiosperms Eudicots Asterids

Order: Family: Genus: Species: Binomial name Datura metel

Solanales Solanaceae Datura D. metel

Datura metel is a shrub-like perennial herb, commonly known as angel's trumpet, devil's trumpet, and metel. Datura metel grows in the wild in all the warmer parts of the world, and is cultivated worldwide for its chemical and ornamental properties. It was first described by Linnaeus in 1753, but no botanically correct illustrations or descriptions were made until after the New World was settled. It is not possible to be sure about its original home. The plant is an annual herb growing up to 3 ft. high. It is slightly furry, with dark violet shoots and oval to broad oval leaves that are often dark violet as well. The pleasantly-scented 6-8 in. flowers are immensely varied, and can be single or double. Colors range from white to cream, yellow, red, and violet. The seed capsule is covered with numerous conical humps and a few spines. It is similar to D. inoxia, but D. metel has almost glabrous leaves and fruits that are knobby, not spiny. D. inoxia is pilose all over and has a spiny fruit.

Medicinal use
D. metel is one of the 50 fundamental herbs used in traditional Chinese medicine. However, the ingestion of D. metel in any form is dangerous and should be treated with extreme caution.

Toxicity
All parts of Datura plants contain dangerous levels of tropane alkaloids (highly poisonous) and may be fatal if ingested by humans or other animals, including livestock and pets. In some places, it is prohibited to buy, sell or cultivate Datura plants.

Datura metel may be toxic if ingested in a tiny quantity, symptomatically expressed as flushed skin, headaches, hallucinations, and possibly convulsions or even a coma. The principal toxic elements are tropane alkaloids. Accidentally (or intentionally) ingesting even a single leaf could lead to severe side effects.

Black daturas (Datura metel 'Fastuosa')

A cultivar of D. metel with a polished-looking ebony-black stem exists as a garden plant. Its flowers normally have a double or triple corolla, each corolla having a deep purple exterior and white or off-white interior. The plant is already reported to have become naturalised in Israel (see illustration). The black cultivar might become a common roadside dweller, like its whiteflowered ancestor. It is known under several cultivar names such as 'Black', 'Blackcurrant Swirl', 'Cornucopaea', 'Double Blackcurrant Swirl', 'Double Purple', and 'Purple Hindu'. It has also received many scientific names which should not be used for a cultivar:

Datura hummatu var. fastuosa (L.) Bernh. Datura fastuosa L. Datura metel f. fastuosa (L.) Danert Datura metel var. fastuosa (L.) Saff. Stramonium fastuosum (L.) Moench

Datura reburra
Datura reburra is a species of Datura. It is an annual shrub that is grown as an ornamental plant. Contemporary experts classify this plant not as a separate species, but as a variety of Datura discolor.

Brugmansia suaveolens
Brugmansia suaveolens

Scientific classification Kingdom: (unranked): (unranked): (unranked): Order: Family: Genus: Species: Plantae Angiosperms Eudicots Asterids Solanales Solanaceae Brugmansia B. suaveolens

Brugmansia suaveolens (syn. Datura suaveolens) is a shrub with large flowers. Its common names include angel's tears, maikoa, and white angel's trumpet. The flowers and the seeds are traditionally used in Rio Grande, southern Brazil, mixed in water and ingested for its analgesic-like effect. Flower extracts have shown pain killing

(antinociceptive) activity in mice. This antinociceptive activity may be related in part to benzodiazepine receptors.

Description
Brugmansia suaveolens is a semi-woody shrub or small tree that gets 6-15 ft (1.8-4.6 m) tall, usually with a many-branched single trunk. The leaves are generally oval in shape, up to 10 in (25.4 cm) long and 6 in (15.2 cm) wide, and even larger when grown in the shade. The overall plant has a coarse texture but the flowers are remarkably beautiful. They are sweetly fragrant, about 12 in (30.5 cm) long and shaped like trumpets. The corolla has five points that are slightly recurved. The flowers are usually white but may be yellow or pink and are pendulous, hanging almost straight down. The cultivar, 'Plena' (which may or may not be this species) has double flowers: a trumpet within a trumpet. B. X insignis is a second generation hybrid created by backcrossing B. suaveolens with a B. suaveolens - B. versicolor hybrid. It has huge, sometimes sixpointed, bell-shaped flowers to 15 in (38.1 cm) long. These may be yellow, orange, white, pink or multi-colored and are more prone to hang straight down. This popular hybrid blooms yearround and often is offered incorrectly as B. suaveolens. There are several other presumed hybrids, including 'Dr. Seuss', 'Frosty Pink' and 'Charles Grimaldi' whose parentages may include B. suaveolens, but this is not certain.

Location
This angel trumpet occurs naturally in SE Brazil. It is widely grown as an ornamental everywhere it is hardy and has escaped cultivation and established in residential areas throughout much of South and Central America, Mexico, and even in parts of south-central Florida.

Culture
Light: Brugmansia suaveolens does best in full sun. In partially shaded situations it may grow vigorously but flower sparingly or not at all. Moisture: Angel trumpet requires regular watering for best growth and flowering. It wilts terribly, but usually survives through droughts. Hardiness: USDA Zones 10 - 12. Brugmansia suaveolens is a small evergreen (although soft-wooded) tree. In zones 8B-9B, it dies to the ground in winter and resprouts in spring; under these conditions it

rarely exceeds 8 ft (2.4 m) in height. Plants that are repeatedly killed to the ground winter after winter often weaken and die in a few years. Propagation: Brugmansias usually are propagated from seed. They also may be started from semi-ripe heeled cuttings taken in summer and rooted with bottom heat. A heeled cutting is one that includes a small piece of the older stem still attached to the tip cutting.

Datura stramonium
This article is about the hallucinogenic "loco weed". For the plant toxic to livestock, see Locoweed. Thorn apple / Jimson weed

Scientific classification Kingdom: (unranked): (unranked): (unranked): Order: Family: Genus: Plantae Angiosperms Eudicots Asterids Solanales Solanaceae Datura

Species:

D. stramonium

Datura stramonium, known by the common names jimson weed, devil's trumpet, devil's weed, thorn apple, tolguacha, Jamestown weed, stinkweed, locoweed, datura, pricklyburr, devil's cucumber, Hell's Bells, moonflower and, in South Africa, malpitte and mad seeds, is a common weed in the Solanaceae (nightshade) family. It is an erect annual herb forming a bush up to 35 ft (11.5 m) tall. The leaves are soft, irregularly undulate, and toothed. The fragrant flowers are trumpet-shaped, white to creamy or violet, and 2.5 to 3.5 in. long. They rarely open completely. The egg-shaped seed capsule is walnut-sized and either covered with spines or bald. At maturity it splits into four chambers, each with dozens of small black seeds. Parts of the plant, especially the seeds and leaves, are sometimes used as a hallucinogen. Due to the elevated risk of overdose in uninformed users, many hospitalizations, and some deaths, are reported from this use. The genus name is derived from dhatura, an ancient Hindu word for a plant. Stramonium is originally from Greek, strychnos "nightshade" and maniakos "mad".

Distribution
The native range of Datura stramonium is unclear. It was scientifically described and named by Swedish botanist Carl Linnaeus in 1753, although it was earlier described by many herbalists such as Nicholas Culpeper. Today, it grows wild in all the world's warm and moderate regions, where it is found along roadsides and in dung heaps. In Europe, it is found as a weed on wastelands and in garbage dumps. The seed is thought to be carried by birds and spread in their droppings. It can lie dormant underground for years and germinate when the soil is disturbed. People who discover it growing in their gardens, and are worried about its toxicity, have been advised to dig it up or have it otherwise removed.

Toxicity

Blooming Datura All parts of Datura plants contain dangerous levels of poison and may be fatal if ingested by humans or other animals, including livestock and pets. In some places it is prohibited to buy, sell or cultivate Datura plants. The active ingredients are the tropane alkaloids atropine, hyoscyamine and scopolamine which are classified as deliriants, or anticholinergics. Due to the elevated risk of overdose in uninformed users, many hospitalizations, and some deaths, are reported from recreational use. Datura intoxication typically produces a complete inability to differentiate reality from fantasy (delirium, as contrasted to hallucination); hyperthermia; tachycardia; bizarre, and possibly violent behavior; and severe mydriasis with resultant painful photophobia that can last several days. Pronounced amnesia is another commonly reported effect. The antidote of choice for overdose or poisoning is physostigmine. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported accidental poisoning resulting in hospitalization for a family of six who inadvertently ingested Jimsonweed used as an ingredient in stew.

History
Datura stramonium was used as a mystical sacrament in both possible places of origin, North America and South Asia. In Hinduism, Lord Shiva was known to smoke Cannabis and Datura. People still provide the small green fruit of Datura during festivals and special days as offerings

in Shiva temples. Although lay devotees smoke Cannabis as a devotional practice during religious festivals like Shivaratri (the Night of Shiva), they do not smoke Datura, whose effects can be unpredictable and sometimes fatal. Native Americans in North America, such as the Algonquin and Luiseo have used this plant in sacred ceremonies. In the United States the plant is called jimson weed, or more rarely Jamestown weed; it got this name from the town of Jamestown, Virginia, where British soldiers were drugged with it while attempting to suppress Bacon's Rebellion. They spent eleven days generally appearing to have gone insane: The James-Town Weed (which resembles the Thorny Apple of Peru, and I take to be the plant so call'd) is supposed to be one of the greatest coolers in the world. This being an early plant, was gather'd very young for a boil'd salad, by some of the soldiers sent thither to quell the rebellion of Bacon (1676); and some of them ate plentifully of it, the effect of which was a very pleasant comedy, for they turned natural fools upon it for several days: one would blow up a feather in the air; another would dart straws at it with much fury; and another, stark naked, was sitting up in a corner like a monkey, grinning and making mows [grimaces] at them; a fourth would fondly kiss and paw his companions, and sneer in their faces with a countenance more antic than any in a Dutch droll. In this frantic condition they were confined, lest they should, in their folly, destroy themselves though it was observed that all their actions were full of innocence and good nature. Indeed, they were not very cleanly; for they would have wallowed in their own excrements, if they had not been prevented. A thousand such simple tricks they played, and after eleven days returned themselves again, not remembering anything that had passed. The History and Present State of Virginia, 1705

Identification with fictional plant

The plant achieved some notoriety in the U.K. during the silly season of 2009 when stories in news media identified a specimen found growing in a Suffolk garden with Devil's Snare, an entirely fictional plant from J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter series. The plant is also the real world basis for the fictional plant "Devil Grass" in Stephen King's The Dark Tower series, a drug which variably brings sweet dreams; or nightmares, and possibly death.

Gallery

D. stramonium var. tatula, flower

D. stramonium var. tatula

D. stramonium var. tatula, flower (front)

D. stramonium var. tatula, flower (side)

D. stramonium leaves

D. stramonium var. tatula, fruit

D. stramonium seed

Datura wrightii
Sacred Datura

Sacred Datura in bloom

Scientific classification Kingdom: (unranked): (unranked): (unranked): Order: Family: Genus: Species: Plantae Angiosperms Eudicots Asterids Solanales Solanaceae Datura D. wrightii

Datura wrightii or Sacred Datura is the name of a poisonous perennial plant and ornamental flower of southwestern North America. It is sometimes used as a hallucinogen. Datura wrightii is classified as a deliriant and an anticholinergic. It is a vigorous herbaceous perennial that grows 30 cm to 1.5 m tall and wide. The leaves are broad and rounded at the base, tapering to a point, often with wavy margins. The flowers are the most striking feature, being sweetly fragrant white trumpets up to 20 cm (8 inches) long, often tinted purple, especially at the margin. There are five narrow points spaced symmetrically around

the rim. It can bloom from April to October. In clear weather, flowers open at nearly full dark and wither a few hours after sunrise the following morning; in cloudy weather, they may open earlier and last longer. The seeds are borne in a spiny, globular capsule 3 to 4 cm in diameter, which opens when fully ripe. Datura wrightii is found in northern Mexico and the adjoining U. S. states, as far north as southern Utah, in open land with well-drained soils. It is also commonly planted as an ornamental, especially in xeriscapes. The name commemorates the botanist Charles Wright.

Other names

Seed pods In the U.S. it is sometimes called (Western) Jimsonweed because of its resemblance to Datura stramonium. Anglophone settlers in California often called it "Indian whiskey" because of its ritual intoxicating use by many tribes; the name "sacred datura" has the same origin. Other common names include "Indian apple" and "nightshade" (not to be confused with Solanum). The Tongva call it manit and the Chumash momoy. Mexicans call this and similar species tolguacha or toloache. The scientific name has frequently been given as Datura meteloides Dunal, but this name is actually a synonym of D. inoxia Mill., a Mexican plant with a narrower flower having 10 rather than 5 "teeth" at the rim.

Toxicity
All parts of Datura plants contain dangerous levels of poison and may be fatal if ingested by humans or other animals, including livestock and pets. In some places it is prohibited to buy, sell or cultivate Datura plants.

Uses
Religious
Datura wrightii is sacred to some native Americans and has been used in ceremonies and rites of passage by Chumash, Tongva, and others. Among the Chumash, when a boy was 8 years old, his mother gave him a preparation of momoy to drink. This was supposed to be a spiritual challenge to the boy to help him develop the spiritual wellbeing that is required to become a man. Not all of the boys survived. They believed momoy was a spiritual plant that helps with spiritual wellbeing among adults also. For instance, during a frightening situation, such as when seeing a coyote walk like a man, a leaf of momoy was sucked to help keep the soul in the body. The plant was also used to tell the future, especially when gambling.

Recreational
Datura wrightii can also be used to induce a recreational hallucination. The plant can induce auditory and visual hallucinations similar to those of Datura stramonium. However, the hallucinations are sometimes fatal due to panic that overcomes the person. Scopolamine in the plant takes away a person's vision. As the person panics and attempts to run to safety, the person cannot see, frequently becomes involved in an accident and ends up in the hospital. Scopolamine induces respiratory depression at hallucinogenic doses. The combination of anesthesia (in the hospital) and Datura is usually fatal due to combined respiratory depression. Seizures and fevers as high as 43 C (110F) have been reported.

References
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