Is the beautiful datura poisonous, and can it still be grown?

Datura is a plant, and the flowers it produces are extremely beautiful. It is also called drunk-heart flower or Yangjinhua. When it blooms, its flowers look like little upside-down trumpets, and they come in a great many colors, commonly white, yellow, purple, red, and so on. In the West this flower has been given an air of mystery that makes people afraid to go near it. In recent years, we often see news of poisoning from accidentally eating datura, so is this flower actually poisonous? Can it be grown? Let us take a look together.

1. Is datura poisonous?

1. Poisonous parts of datura: Datura is a plant in which the whole plant is poisonous. Its flowers, stems, leaves, roots and fruits all contain toxins, but the amounts differ, and among them the seeds are the most toxic. But some people ask, then why can datura still be used as a medicine to treat diseases? Because extracts of datura flowers can be used for anesthesia and are of great use in medicine, they must be used under a doctor's prescription and control, rather than being used whenever one wishes, because the state restricts the sale of this type of drug.

2. Toxic substances in datura: Datura contains a substance called “scopolamine”, which suppresses the secretion of human sweat glands and relaxes muscles, among other effects.

3. Symptoms of accidental ingestion: If you accidentally eat datura, symptoms such as dry mouth and tongue, difficulty swallowing, rapid heartbeat, fever and reddening of the skin may appear, and in severe cases there may be convulsions, coma, shock and even death. Long-term inhalation of the smell of datura can also cause hallucinations and a dizzy, foggy head.

2. Can datura flowers be grown?

Datura cannot be grown privately on a large scale; it may only be grown and sold with the approval of the relevant authorities, otherwise it violates the law. At the same time, datura should not be planted in courtyards or kept indoors in pots, because whether it is long-term inhalation of its smell or accidental contact or ingestion, it is harmful to the human body, and it is best not to take the risk. Although it cannot be grown, we can still learn about growing methods to increase our knowledge.

1. Soil requirements

Datura is highly adaptable and has no great demands regarding soil; generally, fairly fertile garden soil is enough for it to grow quite well.

At the same time, give it plenty of base fertilizer, so that its branches are lush and its flowers beautiful.

2. Temperature requirements

In a fairly warm environment, datura grows well. Even in high-temperature weather, unlike other flowers it does not enter a dormant period, but keeps growing upward. In winter, as long as the temperature is not below 0°C, it grows slowly but still grows.

3. Light conditions

If you want datura's flowers to be vivid, the plant to be strong and the leaves to be emerald green, you must give it plenty of sunlight, not diffused light but full sun. Only in the hot summer, remember not to let it bake in the midday sun, so as to avoid wilting and yellowing of the leaves; spray water appropriately to cool it down and increase air humidity.

4. Water and fertilizer

If datura is growing normally in every way, then do not apply too much additional fertilizer; if the leaves are small, the plant is slender, it does not flower, or the flowers are small, then appropriate additional fertilizer is needed.

As for watering, just keep the potting soil moist, so as to avoid waterlogging that damages the roots and causes severe yellowing of the leaves and the death of the whole plant. At the same time, excessive humidity easily breeds pests, so keep it well ventilated.

In addition, datura must also be protected against pests and diseases. In the hot summer, prevent root rot, black spot and so on; as for pests, mainly prevent aphids, red spider mites and so on. Once disease appears, control it promptly so as not to affect healthy plants.