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{{Taxobox
| color = lightgreen
| name = ''Datura inoxia''
| image = Datura innoxia flower 02.jpg
| image_width = 240px
| regnum = [[Plant]]ae
| phylum = [[Flowering plant|Magnoliophyta]]
| classis = [[Magnoliopsida]]
| ordo = [[Solanales]]
| familia = [[Solanaceae]]
| genus = ''[[Datura]]''
| species = '''''D. inoxia'''''
| binomial = ''Datura inoxia''
| binomial_authority = [[Philip Miller|Mill.]]
}}
'''''Datura inoxia''''' ('''angel's-trumpet''', '''thorn-apple''', '''downy thorn-apple''', '''Indian-apple''', '''[[moonflower]]''', '''sacred datura''', or '''toloache''') is a species in the family [[Solanaceae]]. It is native to the [[Americas]], and [[Introduced species|introduced]] in [[Africa]], [[Asia]], [[Australia]] and [[Europe]]. The scientific name is often cited as ''D. innoxia''.

[[Image:Datura innoxia fruit split open.jpg|thumb|left|200px|''D. inoxia'' with ripe, split-open fruit]]
It is an [[annual plant|annual]] [[shrub]]by plant that typically reaches a height of 0.6 to 1.5 [[metre]]s. Its [[Plant stem|stems]] and [[leaf|leaves]] are covered with short and soft [[gray]]ish hairs, giving the whole plant a grayish appearance. It has [[Leaf shape|elliptic]] [[Leaf#Margins_(edge)|entire-edged]] leaves with [[Leaf#Venation (arrangement of the veins)|pinnate venation]]. All parts of the plant emit a foul odor when crushed or bruised.

The flowers are [[white]], [[trumpet]]-shaped, 12–19 [[metre|cm]] long. They first grow upright, and later incline downward. It flowers from early summer until late fall.

The fruit is an [[Oval (geometry)|egg-shaped]] spiny [[capsule (fruit)|capsule]], about 5 cm in diameter. It splits open when ripe, dispersing the seeds. Another means of [[Biological dispersal|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 [[seed hibernation|hibernation]] capabilities, and can last for years in the soil. The seeds, as well as the entirety of this plant, are also [[hallucinogenic]], but have a high probability of [[overdose]].

==Cultivation and Uses==
''Datura inoxia'', like other ''Datura'' species, contains the highly toxic [[alkaloid]]s [[atropine]], [[hyoscine]] (scopolamine), and [[hyoscyamine]]. Despite their high toxicity, at suitable doses these substances have beneficial medicinal effects, which were recognized in [[folk medicine]] throughout the world, and later on in [[medicine|scientific medicine]]. Datura plants are highly toxic, and if ingested, can cause hallucinations, strange behaviors, and even seizures.

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 [[biological life cycle| life cycle]] to that of [[Gossypium|cotton]], it is a pest in cotton fields. It is also a potential [[seed contamination|seed contaminant]].

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.

==References and external links==
* A. Alon, ed. in chief, Plants and Animals of the Land of Israel, Vol. 11: Flowering Plants B., p. 92; ed. M. Raviv and D. Heler; Ministry of Defence Publications and the Society for Protection of Nature (in [[Hebrew (language)|Hebrew]]), 1983.
* [http://www.ars-grin.gov/cgi-bin/npgs/html/taxon.pl?13311 Germplasm Resources Information Network: ''Datura inoxia'' Mill.]
* [http://plants.usda.gov/java/profile?symbol=DAIN5 USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service: ''Datura innoxia'' Miller]

[[Category:Datura]]
[[Category:Poisonous plants]]
[[Category:Deliriants]]
[[Category:Herbal and fungal hallucinogens]]

Datura inoxia - Revision history

MediaWiki default at 09:13, 16 May 2007