AN EYE ON NATURE

What can you tell me about a plant just appeared in my son's front lawn which we have identified as a thornapple? He dug a patch and sowed runner-beans and sweet peas right in front of the house, where the grass had been probably undisturbed for many years. There are a great many of them and we learn that they are poisonous. There are animals and small children in the place so we would like to know which parts are poisonous and how does it come to be here.

Rosamund Sterling, Coolbawn, Nenagh, Co Tipperary

Thornapple, Datura stramonium, belongs to the nightshade family and the whole plant is poisonous. When the ground was cultivated, seeds that had lain dormant for who knows how long germinated. At some time in the past, there must have been thornapple growing there. While the flowers and fruit are attractive, the plant gives off a fetid smell when bruised. As there are children around I would suggest that you get rid of it.