Pat in Texas has correctly identified the Weed in my Name that Weed contest!!!

And she has scared the living daylights outta me!!! That thing is nasty and poisonous and BAD BAD BAD!!! OH MY!

Look what it says about it from the Wikipedia!!! OH MY GOSH! I need to pick that thing! With gloves or something. I’m glad I didn’t just yank the thing up and put it in my compost pile!!! YIKES!

Datura stramonium
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
This article is about the hallucinogenic “loco weed”. For the plant toxic to livestock, see Locoweed.

Thorn apple / Jimson weed

Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
(unranked): Angiosperms
(unranked): Eudicots
(unranked): Asterids
Order: Solanales
Family: Solanaceae
Genus: Datura
Species: D. stramonium
Binomial name
Datura stramonium

Datura stramonium, known by the common names jimson weed, angel’s trumpet, devil’s weed, thorn apple, tolguacha, Jamestown weed, stinkweed, datura, moonflower[1], Devil’s Snare, and, in South Africa, malpitte and mad seeds[2] is, along with Datura metel (zombie cucumber), a common weed in the Solanaceae (the nightshade family). It contains tropane alkaloids that are sometimes used as a hallucinogen. The active ingredients are atropine, hyoscyamine and scopolamine which are classified as deliriants, or anticholinergics. Due to the elevated risk of overdose in uninformed users, many hospitalizations, and some deaths, are reported from recreational use.

Growth

Datura stramonium is an erect annual herb forming a bush up to 3–5 ft (1–1.5 m) tall[3]. The foliage and stems have a pungent smell that becomes stronger if any part of it is crushed or even touched.[citation needed] The leaves are soft, irregularly undulate, and toothed. The fragrant flowers are trumpet-shaped, white to creamy or violet, and 2.5 to 3.5 in. long. They rarely open completely. The egg-shaped seed capsule is walnut-sized and either covered with spines or bald. At maturity it splits into four chambers, each with dozens of small black seeds.

Distribution

The native range of Datura stramonium is unclear. It was scientifically described and named by Swedish botanist Carl Linnaeus in 1753, although it was earlier described by many herbalists such as Nicholas Culpeper.[4] It was mentioned earlier by the Arab physician Avicenna in 11th century Persia.[2] Today, it grows wild in all the world’s warm and moderate regions, where it is found along roadsides and in dung heaps.[5] In Europe, it is found as a weed on wastelands and in garbage dumps.[5] Also called Devil’s Snare, it became famous after being mentioned in the first of UK author J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter books, Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, where it is used as a deadly magical plant capable of strangling anyone who came in contact with it. The seed can live dormant underground for years and germinates when the soil is disturbed. People surprised to discover it growing in their home gardens are advised by organisations such as the Royal Horticultural Society to dig it up or have it otherwise removed.[6]
The genus name was derived from “dhatura”, a Hindu name itself derived from D’hustúra (an ancient Sanskrit word for Datura fastuosa, a related plant).[7] Stramonium is originally from Greek, strychnos (nightshade) and manikos (mad).[8]

All parts of Datura plants contain dangerous levels of poison and may be fatal if ingested by humans or animals, including livestock and pets. Some municipalities prohibit the purchase, sale, or cultivation of Datura plants.

Well, I know what I’m doing tomorrow!!!

Although…. that makes me wonder about Thornapple Valley meat products… they are named after locoweed? A deadly nightshade herb that can kill livestock? And humans? Eeeewwwww….

Weird.

I wonder where that little devil came from! I’ve never seen such a thing in my life! Must have come from my dirt purchases or the compost that I bought from Lowes… hmmmmm….. all the more reason to make your own compost, eh?

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