Flora of North America species comparison

The green links below add additional plants to the comparison table. Blue links lead to other Web sites.
enable glossary links

Datura quercifolia

Datura discolor

Chinese thorn-apple, oak-leaf jimsonweed or thorn-apple

desert thorn-apple, small datura
Habit Herbs annual, to 8 dm. Herbs annual or short-lived perennial, to 10 dm.
Stems

hairy, sometimes villous.

usually hairy, sometimes glabrous.
Leaf

blades elliptic to narrowly ovate, to 16 × 10 cm, margins usually pinnately lobed, sometimes sinuate-dentate, abaxial surface hairy, adaxial surface glabrescent.

blades ovate, to 18 × 16 cm, margins entire or dentate, abaxial surface hairy, adaxial surface glabrous.
Flowers

calyx hairy along veins, tube cylindric, 5-toothed;

corolla whitish to purple, trumpet-shaped, 4–8 cm, acuminate lobes alternating with sinuses.

calyx hairy along veins, tube cylindric, 5-toothed;

corolla white throat with purple ring, trumpet-shaped, 8–15 cm, acuminate lobes alternating with larger lobules.
Capsules

erect, dehiscent by 4 valves, pericarp dry, glabrous or hairy, with prickles unequal, proximals shorter than distals;

calyx remnant not accrescent.

pendent, regularly dehiscing by 4 valves, pericarp dry, hairy, with prickles to 3.2 cm;

calyx remnant accrescent (sometimes reflexed).
Seeds

black, 3–5 mm, convex marginal ridge absent, testa rugose;

caruncle absent.

black, 3–4.5 mm, convex marginal ridge absent, testa rugose;

caruncle present.
2n

= 24.

= 24.

Datura quercifolia

Datura discolor
Phenology Flowering Jul–Oct. Flowering Mar–Oct.
Habitat Gardens, cultivated fields, irriga­tion ditches, margins of roads and trails, waste places in various types of vegetation. Streamsides, irrigation ditches, road and trail margins, waste places, desert shrublands, grasslands, pinyon-juniper-oak woodlands.
Elevation 0–2200 m. (0–7200 ft.) 0–600(–1800) m. (0–2000(–5900) ft.)
Distribution
from FNA
AR; AZ; CA; GA; KS; LA; MA; MD; NC; NM; OK; OR; PA; SC; TX; Mexico
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
AZ; CA; Mexico; Central America [Introduced nearly worldwide]
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Datura quercifolia is native to the Chihuahuan Desert, where it hybridizes occasionally with introduced D. stramonium. In the flora area, it is native to Texas and possibly New Mexico. Its geographic range is expanding especially in agricultural habitats. Although recently documented in central California (former orange orchard in Riverside; 1984, 1996), it has not expanded its range in that state.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Outside of its typical flowering period, Datura discolor flowers sporadically after rains.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Source FNA vol. 14. FNA vol. 14.
Parent taxa Solanaceae > Datura Solanaceae > Datura
Sibling taxa
D. ceratocaula, D. discolor, D. ferox, D. innoxia, D. metel, D. stramonium, D. wrightii
D. ceratocaula, D. ferox, D. innoxia, D. metel, D. quercifolia, D. stramonium, D. wrightii
Synonyms D. thomasii
Name authority Kunth in A. von Humboldt et al.: Nov. Gen. Sp., 3(fol.): 6; 3(qto.): 7. (1818) Bernhardi: Neues J. Pharm. Aerzte 26: 149. (1833): Linnaea 8: Litt. Ber. 138. (1833)
Web links 
Unless otherwise noted, all data comes from the online version of the Flora of North America, who have made most of their content available via a Creative Commons license (CC BY 4.0).



Type/paste one or more Latin names into the boxes above; matching taxa will show up below the box as you type. You can use the up/down arrow keys to move through the list.

(If the plant you're looking for doesn't show up in the auto-complete list, that means it either isn't described in Flora of North America yet, or it's listed under a synonym. And please note that Flora of North America is still missing several plant families, including Fabaceae, Apiaceae, Boraginaceae, and Polemoniaceae.)

Choose a data source: Flora of North America, OregonFlora

The species comparison tool is brought to you by:
Northwest Wildflowers