Projo Garden Blog

My new 'white ballerina' moonflower was given to me as a small plant about 3 weeks ago. I transplanted it to my sidewalk garden by the curbside and front walk the very same day. Two buds appeared a few days later. Last weekend I saw one bud starting to open up. The blooming progress was just remarkable, with a tinge of purple on the edge of the fused petals.

The next morning the flower was fully opened and became all white. (Yes, the moonflower must have opened sometime in the night). It attracted many small flies. The bloom only lasted 2 days, and is now replaced by the second bloom.

I made the trip to Carpenter's Farm in Wakefield last Sunday and purchased several smaller daturas - each has 2 or 3 buds. This group of daturas, called 'white ballerina,' looks more like the angel's trumpet (brugmansia) I had last year, with a pendulous appearance, and a lovely fragrance. Some even have the yellow tinge to the petals, similar to brugmansia flowers.

Both datura and brugmansia belong in the Solanaceae family which "contains a number of important agricultural plants as well as many toxic plants. The name of the family comes from the Latin word Solanum = nightshade, according to Wikipedia.

7.16.09

Datura prefers full sun and well-drained, evenly moist soil.

 Tags  Moonflower

Comments

joyce187 said:

Datura - very toxic plants.

Link | July 18, 2009 11:58 AM
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pat said:

There's a lot of interesting discussion on the toxicity of datura. at

http://forums2.gardenweb.com/forums/load/annuals/msg0609264415489.html

Link | July 19, 2009 3:04 PM
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penny elias said:

you have been so busy with the gorgeous flowers blooming in your yard. Such a beautiful assortment for the eyes to enjoy. Loved this blog

Link | July 28, 2009 9:39 AM
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pat said:

Thank you very much, Penny.

Yes, I've been busy with weeding and getting rid of " a field of rose campion " plus moving the sprinkles around since the weather has been very hot in the last few days.

The datura has new buds and I can't wait to see more blooms. I don't think anyone would eat any part of the toxic datura. Most people are afraid to try anything including the ones that are known to be edible.

Link | July 28, 2009 10:51 AM
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