08/23/09

A Day in the Life of Datura

I have posted previously about Sacred Datura (“Jimson Weed,” “Georgia O’Keefe’s Flower”). Over the last day I had the opportunity to photograph a bud just as it was barely opening at 4:23 pm yesterday (yes, that dirty yellow-green color is typical at that stage, believe it or not!), as it was beginning to unfurl at 7:28 pm last evening (already white by then), and in its full glory at 7:57 am today. It is already wilting. A short, interesting, and spectacular life.

datura bud
datura bud
datura bud beginning to unfurl
datura bud beginning to unfurl
fully open datura
fully open datura
07/31/09

Flowers of the Sacred Datura

sacred datura
sacred datura

Many beautiful flowers grow wild in the Desert Southwest. Sacred Datura (“Jimson Weed,” “Georgia O’Keefe’s Flower”) is one. You may see it along the roadsides throughout New Mexico.
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