Plant Name
Scientific Name: Nicotiana obtusifolia
Synonym: Nicotiana trigonophylla
Common Name: Desert Tobacco
Plant Characteristics
Duration: Annual, Biennial, Perennial
Growth Habit: Subshrub, Herb/Forb
Arizona Native Status: Native
Habitat: Desert, Upland
Flower Color: Cream to greenish white
Flowering Season: Spring, Summer, Fall
Height: Up to 3 feet (91 cm) tall
Description: The flowers are tubular, 1 inch (2.5 cm) long, and have 5 short lobes. The lower leaves are large, oval to egg-shaped, and short-petioled, while the upper leaves are smaller, narrower, and clasp the stems. The stems and leaves are green, hairy, and sticky.
Special Characteristics
Poisonous – All parts of the plants are highly poisonous and contain the toxic pyridine alkaloids nicotine and anabasine.
Classification
Kingdom: Plantae – Plants
Subkingdom: Tracheobionta – Vascular plants
Superdivision: Spermatophyta – Seed plants
Division: Magnoliophyta – Flowering plants
Class: Magnoliopsida – Dicotyledons
Subclass: Asteridae
Order: Solanales
Family: Solanaceae – Potato family
Genus: Nicotiana L. – tobacco
Species: Nicotiana obtusifolia M. Martens & Galeotti – desert tobacco
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