Description
Nicotiana Langsdorffii | Langsdorff’s Tobacco
There are over 65 species of Tobacco that hail from Australia, North America, and tropical South America. They are attractive plants with beautiful flowers and appealing foliage. All of them have tubular or trumpet-shaped flowers that come in nearly every color and most often open during the evening and and nighttime hours, sometimes releasing a pleasant fragrance. They can be used as specimen or bedding plants, in borders, woodland gardens, in containers, or for planting in masses or even as a focal point.
Langsdorff’s tobacco is a 2-3 ft tall tobacco plant from the milder parts of Chile and Brazil. It is easily grown from seed in the garden, but plants started indoors 6-10 weeks before the last frost date will bloom earlier. Grows best in full sun to part shade in rich, well-drained soil. It can be a perennial in mild climates (zones 10-11), but is generally grown as an annual.
Like most Nicotianas, this species has broad, deep-green leaves with a sticky surface. The light green-yellow flowers are delicate and smaller than most flowering tobacco varieties. The nodding bell-like flowers are fascinating, primarily for their unusual green-apple color and bright blue pollen that’s hiding inside. Makes a subtle statement in the garden and looks best in small groups of three or as individuals sprinkled in among other plants for a cottage garden look. Visited and pollinated by hummingbirds.
Royal Horticultural Society Award of Garden Merit winner.
Type: Annual
Sun exposure: Part shade to full sun
Mature height: 2-3 ft
Mature width: 12-24 inches
Hardiness zones: 10-11
Please note: All parts of the plant are poisonous if ingested. All tobaccos should be considered poisonous to consume (smoking brings its own risks); some are extremely poisonous and have caused fatalities. Poisoning through intentional or accidental misuse of nicotine and products containing it is a relatively common occurrence. Related species may contain other toxic alkaloids, chemically similar to nicotine, so it is for this reason we suggest that you enjoy Nicotiana Langsdorffii and other ornamental species of tobacco for their flowers only. Do NOT smoke these leaves.