|
 The
large shrubs or small trees of this genus are grown for their very
large, fragrant, pendent trumpet flowers.
They are still often found under the name Datura, but the true
daturas are short lived, herbaceous plants with smaller, more
upright flowers and capsular fruits that are usually prickly (brugmansias
have fleshy, unarmed fruit that may be very long and narrow).
Five or more species are currently attributed to Brugmansia, most
originating in the Andes of northern South America, though even
there they seem always to be associated with human habitation.
They are evergreen or semi-evergreen and their leaves are large and
soft, rather like tobacco leaves but smaller, and all parts of the
plant are narcotic and poisonous.
Cultivation: The plants prefer a warm to hot climate, a sunny
sheltered site and a light, fertile, well-drained soil.
Best grown as small trees, they can be shaped when young to obtain a
single trunk or can be kept trimmed as dense, rounded shrubs.
Keep well watered during the growing season.
Propagate from tip cuttings.
Whitefly and red spider mite can cause problems, as can snails. |
