Brunfelsia

The genus was described by French botanist and churchman Charles Plumier ex L. and published in Species Plantarum 1: 191 in the year 1753. The type species is Brunfelsia americana.

Shrubs or small trees, without thorns. Leaves simple, entire and petiolate (stalked). Inflorescences in subterminal fascicles or flowers borne singly in leaf axils, often showy and sometimes also night-scented, zygomorphic; calyx campanulate, 5-lobed to approximately half its length; corolla hypocrateriform (having salver-shaped limb above narrow tube), 5-lobed; stamens 4, anthers oblong or elliptical, included and dehiscing longitudinally; ovary bilocular. Fruit a corky berry.Gentry, J. J. L. & P. C. Standley. 1974. Solanaceae. In Gentry, Jr., J. L. & P. C. Standley (eds.), Flora of Guatemala - Part X, Numbers 1 and 2. Fieldiana, Bot. 24(10/1–2): 1–151.

Species in cultivation include Brunfelsia americana and Brunfelsia pauciflora. Brunfelsia australis is being actively promoted by growers for its tricolored blooms and drought resistance. As its specific name suggests, B. australis is the Brunfelsia species with the most southerly distribution, the plant occurring as far south as the Argentinian province of Buenos Aires.Kew Plants of the World Online https://powo.science.kew.org/taxon/urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:37517-2 Retrieved at 15.42 on 25/8/20.

Like many other species belonging to the Solanaceae, some (possibly all) members of this genus contain toxic and medicinal alkaloids. These are known to be poisonous to domestic animals such as cats, dogs, and horses due to their brunfelsamidine content.[http://www.aspca.org/pet-care/animal-poison-control/toxic-and-non-toxic-plants/brunfelsia Brunfelsia.] Toxic and Nontoxic Plants. American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA). Toxicity in dogs manifests with strychnine-like gastrointestinal, neurological and cardiac symptoms.{{cite journal |last=Clipsham |first=R. |year=2012 |title=Brunfelsia australis (yesterday, today, and tomorrow tree) and Solanum poisoning in a dog |journal=J Am Anim Hosp Assoc |volume=48 |issue=2 |pages=139–44 |doi=10.5326/JAAHA-MS-5725 |pmid=22267167 |url=http://www.jaaha.org/doi/abs/10.5326/JAAHA-MS-5725}}

The roots of certain Brunfelsia species have been designated as containing compounds hazardous to human health according to a compendium published in 2012 by the European Food Safety Authority. These compounds include indole alkaloids of the β-carboline group such as harmine, tetrahydroharmine, harmaline, manacine, manaceine, and also derivatives of N,N-dimethyltryptamine and amidines such as pyrrole 3-carboximidamide.Idárraga-Piedrahíta, A., R. D. C. Ortiz, R. Callejas Posada & M. Merello. (eds.) 2011. Fl. Antioquia: Cat. 2: 9–939. University of Antioquia, Medellín, Colombia.

According to early accounts in the literature, symptoms of poisoning by the medicinal species B. grandiflora include dizziness, exhaustion, nausea, hypersalivation, muscle weakness, lethargy, facial nerve paralysis, mouth pains, swollen tongue, numbness in the extremities, paraesthesias (including tingling and feelings of unbearable coldness) tremors, and blurred vision. At higher dose, there are reports of delirium, sustained mental confusion, and possible blindness. Modern reports have compared the experience to the effects of an overdose of nicotine upon non-smokers.http://entheology.com/plants/brunfelsia-grandiflora-brunfelsia/ Retrieved at 9.52 on 26/8/20.

Species include:[http://www.ars-grin.gov/cgi-bin/npgs/html/splist.pl?1748 Species Records of Brunfelsia.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090120094648/http://www.ars-grin.gov/cgi-bin/npgs/html/splist.pl?1748 |date=2009-01-20 }} Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN).

• Brunfelsia americana – American brunfelsia, lady-of-the-night
• Brunfelsia australis – Jasmine of Paraguay
• Brunfelsia chiricaspi – chiricaspi
• Brunfelsia densifolia – Serpentine Hill raintree
• Brunfelsia grandiflora – largeflower brunfelsia, chiricsanango
• Brunfelsia jamaicensis
• Brunfelsia lactea – vega blanca
• Brunfelsia latifolia
• Brunfelsia membranacea
• Brunfelsia nitida – Cuban raintree
• Brunfelsia pauciflora
• Brunfelsia plowmaniana
• Brunfelsia portoricensis – Puerto Rican raintree
• Brunfelsia splendida
• Brunfelsia uniflora – manacá

Except for ornamental purposes, growing, selling or possessing Brunfelsia spp. is prohibited by Louisiana State Act 159.

File:Brunfelsia americana1C2000.jpg|Brunfelsia americana

File:Starr 060325-6728 Brunfelsia australis.jpg|Brunfelsia australis : age-related colour-change of flower.

File:Starr 070830-8232 Brunfelsia australis.jpg|Brunfelsia australis : ripening coriaceous berry, showing accrescent calyx.

File:Brunfelsia uniflora.jpg|Brunfelsia uniflora : mid-shot of plant in flower.

File:Brunfelsia undulata1MTFL.jpg|Brunfelsia undulata : foliage and attractive flowers with long corolla tubes and characteristic undulate corolla lobe margins.

File:Brunfelsia grandiflora 1.jpg|Brunfelsia grandiflora : flowering branch seen in profile, showing buds and single bloom.

File:Brunfelsia plowmaniana type specimen.jpg|Brunfelsia plowmaniana : type specimen of Brunfelsia species named in honour of Brunfelsia expert the late Dr. Timothy Plowman.

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• {{cite book |last=Plowman |first=T. C. |chapter=The genus Brunfelsia: a conspectus of the taxonomy and biogeography |editor-last=Hawkes |editor-first=J. G. |display-editors=etal|title=The Biology and Taxonomy of the Solanaceae |publisher=Academic Press |year=1979 |pages=475–91}}
• {{cite journal |last=Plowman |first=T. C. |year=1998 |title=A revision of the South American species of Brunfelsia (Solanaceae) |journal=Fieldiana Botany |volume=39 |pages=1–135}}

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Category:Solanaceae genera