"Sacha" wrote
We've had a few queries here from people puzzled by this strange plant
suddenly appearing apparently from nowhere. An article in today's Mail
on
Sunday says the theory is that it's in birdseeds and that the warmer
summers
and milder winters we've been having have led to its proliferation in this
country. The article also stresses its poisonous and hallucinogenic
properties. I found this rather interesting, if scary, piece about it:
"Thornapple or Datura stramomium is also known as Jimson weed
(a corruption of Jamestown weed), stinkweed and mad apple. It
has a foul smell and usually found wild in wasteland. It belongs to
the nightshade (solanaceae) family and like all its members is
extremely poisonous and can cause death. The troops of Marc
Antony ate this plant when retreating from Parthia in 38AD leading
to delirium, stupor and death. The name Jamestown weed came
from the fact that it was in Jamestown County of Virginia that the
plant was first found in North America. Daturine an alkaloid
extracted from this plant is a combination of hyoscyamine and
atropine. The extract cause mydriasis and cycloplegia. Smoking
of the leaves can relieve asthma because of its anticholinergic
effect."
http://www.mrcophth.com/plants/thornapple.html

From our experience it's not the only weed that can be smoked that comes in
bird seed. This year I've let it grow and it's flowered :-)

--
Regards
Bob H
17mls W. of London.UK