This flower at the entrance to our house (this one is a Brugmansia versicolor typically from Ecuador or the Andes, is an exotic, small tropical tree in the family Solanaceae, commonly called Angel’s Trumpet.
They can get up to 30 feet tall, and this one was getting there until recently, when our new gardener cut it all the way to the ground (aaaggghhh!). I’ve chopped up the bits and stuck them back in the ground. I’m happy to report that they are all growing.
They can get up to 30 feet tall, and this one was getting there until recently, when our new gardener cut it all the way to the ground (aaaggghhh!). I’ve chopped up the bits and stuck them back in the ground. I’m happy to report that they are all growing. Next year we’ll have a wall of them!
The shamans of Ecuador say that this flower should be growing at the entrance of one’s home. I suspect that’s due to the intoxicating scents something like the hyacinth, jasmine and gardenia. The fragrance is simply incredible especially on warm summer evenings and early in the morning when I go our to exercise.
The shamans also use this plant to create medicine, because they contain the tropane alkaloids atropine and scopolamine in the flower, leaves and seed.
Beware though. According to www.webmd.com “despite serious safety concerns, people use angel’s trumpet as a recreational drug to induce hallucinations and euphoria.”
There are many warnings on the internet that eating or drinking tea from the Angel’s Trumpet can send you straight to the hospital. Eating the flower can give you scary hallucinations or even induce a dangerous, zombie-like state. It’s even advised to wash your hands if you have worked with the flower as its oils could have an effect.
Gary
