Meet my favorite species.

Datura is not something you'll harvest and eat from your backyard. It can be fatally poisonous if ingested -- or maybe you'd catch a break and only go through psychosis. The alkaloid compounds that make this genus so dangerous are used (by people who know better) in initiation rites and shamanic practices in many indigenous socieities. Datura is simply very powerful. It's something that I and other people just sense when we encounter the plant. On a more mundane level, the scent of the flowers can be intoxicating.

Even though Datura has gained favor in American gardens, I don't see the plant growing wild very often, so I like to spread it where I can.

I've collected seed from several species, including a couple that grew wild in Asia. I have several test plantings in starter pots right now. There are also many seeds going through the last stage of cold stratification in the treeline behind the house. From these various sowings, I plan to amass a supply of seed to sell to other gardeners.

That's a suitable aspiration for this, the first day of spring.