It is perennial in frost-free areas; otherwise, consider it an annual.  It forms large clumps with multiple stems, 1-3 feet around. The leaves are purple when they first shoot and then turn green.  The numerous purplish pink flowers are 1-3 inches long and 1 inch wide.  They bloom throughout spring and summer, especially after a rain, and open in the afternoon or on cloudy days.  Their musky scent attracts hawkmoths, which drink their nectar and pollinate the plant.  Bees also collect the pollen. This plant likes to grow in dry and rocky areas and at high elevations in the Southwest, where it is native.  Don't confuse this plant with the widely known Four O'Clock or Jalap; that plant causes violent vomiting if ingested. This plant has no known negative effects. Top

How to grow Desert Four O'Clocks: To break seed dormancy, put them in a small thermos filled with very hot water, and let them stay in there for 2 days.  Then rinse and sow. Seeds can take several weeks to sprout.  They like full sun and loose, dry, sandy soil--this is a good plant for xeriscaping.  They do not like to sit in water or to grow in clay.  If you live in an area with frost, consider them an annual or lift the roots in the fall like begonias.  This is a taprooted plant, which means it gets usually one long main root; the deeper the soil, the bigger roots you will get and the healthier plant you will have.  Harvest roots in the fall, when they are fattest, just after the first frost.  The roots are brittle and have to be dug up carefully by hand rather than pulled or forked up.  Wash them thoroughly and dry in the sun before storage.  First-year roots can weigh up to one pound each (!).  If you have luck growing this plant indoors, let me know. General growing info. Top

Mirabilis multiflora
Desert Four O'clock
10 seeds $4.00

Uses in Witchcraft & Magic:

Divination
Venus Herb

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