Subject: datura pests

From: Geoff Winckles <[email-masked]>
Date: 30 May 1995 20:54:38 GMT

I have a DATURA (Solanaceae ) being eaten by something, nibbled leaves,but not snails or slugs. Can anyone suggest possible pests and remendy?

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From: [email-masked] (Carol Brandt)
Date: 31 May 1995 20:34:05 GMT

I know that Datura is host to the larva (caterpiller) of the hawk moth.
These larvae are large and should be obvious on the plant. While the
larvae will denude the plant (eating whole leaves and leaving only the
midrib), rarely does it outrightly kill the plant. Often there is a
flush of new growth after an infestation.  The hawk moths are important
pollinator of flowers that open at dusk.  The moths are the size of
small hummingbirds and have tongues longer than their bodies.  They are
amazing creatures!

If this is your only Datura, you can use a bacillus thuringerensis
(sp.?) known commonly as BT. The larva ingests the bacillus and dies
within hours. It comes in powder and liquid forms and is not harmful to
human (considered an organic solution).

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From: [email-masked] ("John M. Brown")
Date: 31 May 1995 08:01:03 -0700

Well, I also had a problem with something eating my Datura that was 
planted in my front flower bed.  Day after day I found leaves and flowers 
damaged by an unknown pest.  Then one morning, with a mug of tea in hand, 
I was admiring my flowers.  A glance to the ground and I found signs of 
the intruders.  I followed the crushed plants on the garden floor, and 
there, just beneath the Datura, were two red sneakers.  Unbelievable!  
The neighborhood kids were sampling my plants to make a tea from.  I 
wasn't surprised when I later found my daughter Nancy, talking to 
invisible friends.  Needless to say, the plant became and extinct species 
around my place.