Belladonna
From Traditional Witchcraft Wiki Project
Belladonna or Deadly nightshade (Atropa belladonna) is a well-known perennial shrub, with leaves and berries that are highly toxic. It is in the nightshade family (Solanaceae), which it shares with potatoes, tomatoes, eggplants, jimsonweed, tobacco, and chili peppers.
The Belladonna is native to Europe, North Africa, and Western Asia, and has become naturalized in parts of North America. It is not nearly as common in the wild as many field guides would suggest. This is because it is readily attacked by mint flea beetles Longitarsus waterhousei and has a low tolerance for direct sunlight. In areas where it has become naturalized it can often be found in shady, moist areas with a limestone-rich soil.
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Description
The Belladonna has dull green leaves and bell-shaped flowers that are an unremarkable shade of brownish purple and have a slightly sweet fragrance. They yield black, shiny berries measuring approximately 1 cm in diameter. The berries are sweet, but most of their alkaloids are in the seed. It is an herbaceous shrub, and can grow to be approximately one metre tall. The leaves have an oily, "poison ivy"-like feel and can cause vesicular pustular eruptions if handled carelessly. Animals that are normally vegetarians, such as rabbits, birds and deer, usually can eat the plant without suffering harmful effects, but those who can digest meat, such as dogs, cats, and humans, are affected. Most animals, however, will not eat this plant because it gives off somewhat unpleasant smell as warning of its poisonousness. Many reports suggest that people have been poisoned by eating animals which have previously eaten Belladonna, though this has not been verified.
Belladonna is not common as a garden plant, and is considered a weed in some areas. It is not a very hardy perennial and is sensitive to being transplanted, although it will come back from root pieces left in the ground. Roots tend to grow horizontally and become quite large after even only one season. The roots concentrate a lot of alkaloids, so wear gloves when handling them.
Belladonna seed germination is often difficult due to the presence of germination inhibitors. One germination method requires several weeks in warm, moist, absolutely sterile soil to trigger germination, which is usually staggered and aggravating to those used to annuals, when tend to germinate en masse. Another method takes advantage of modern refrigeration to imitate snowmelt: soak the seeds in cold water changed for fresh every day for two weeks, storing the bottle with the seeds in the fridge. This helps wash out germination inhibitors, greatly hastening germination when the seeds are removed from the water and sown either in planting medium or in paper towels that have been wet and wrung out. If using the latter, sprinkle (or just pour out) the soaked seeds on the towel, fold into eighths, gently press between your hands, and put into a thin plastic bag, only folding the end closed rather than sealing it. Leave at room temperature out of direct light and check daily for germination. Germinated seeds can be carefully shifted to soil; pick them up by the seed end, not the root. Poke a hole in the soil with a pencil tip, insert the root end, and gently firm over. Or you can simply tear the paper towel into scraps and gently firm the pieces, seeds up, on moist planting medium. Seeds will grow through the towel.
Toxicity
Belladonna is one of the most toxic plants found in the Western hemisphere. Children have been poisoned by eating as few as three berries. Ingestion of a leaf of the Belladonna can be fatal to an adult. The root of the plant is generally the most toxic part, though this can vary from one specimen to another. Generally, as with most plants, the most toxic part of the plant is that which is most at risk at any moment. So for instance, in fall, when the aerial parts of the plant have died back, the root is most toxic, but in summer, when berries are forming, the seeds are most toxic. Highest toxicity moves up through the plant from spring till fall, then falls back to the root after frost.
All parts of the plant contain tropane alkaloids. The berries pose the greatest danger to children because they look attractive and have a somewhat sweet taste. Symptoms of belladonna poisoning are the same as those for atropine (the best-known of the tropane alkaloids), and include dilated pupils, tachycardia, hallucinations, blurred vision, loss of balance, a feeling of flight, staggering, a sense of suffocation, paleness followed by a red rash, flushing, husky voice, extremely dry throat, constipation, urinary retention, and confusion. The skin can completely dry out and slough off. Fatal cases have a rapid pulse that turns feeble. The antidote is physostigmine or pilocarpine, the same as for atropine.
The reason for most of these symptoms is atropine's effect on the parasympathetic nervous system. Atropine competitively inhibits the action of acetylcholine (ACh) at the acetylcholine receptor in the nerve synapse, thereby preventing the parasympathetic nervous system from sending out electrical nerve impulses. Since the parasympathetic nervous system regulates non-volitional/subconscious activities (such as sweating, breathing, and heart rate) when it is prevented from sending out signals, the heartbeat and breathing become extremely irregular.
The Belladonna is toxic to many domestic animals and livestock; Belladonna poisoning can lead to colic, depression, weakness, and lack of coordination in horses, with fatalities reported even for small amounts from 1 to 10 pounds (0.5 to 5 kg).
Belladonna And Folklore
Belladonna is sometimes claimed as a cure for lycanthropy.
