Pages

Saturday, 14 August 2021

A "killer tobacco plant" is one of seven new species named by scientists at Kew Gardens.

Nicotiana Insecticida has sticky glands covering all its surfaces which regularly snares and kills small insects such as gnats and flies.

It is the first time a wild tobacco species has been reported to kill insects.

The plant's seeds were collected in Western Australia and cultivated in the greenhouses at Kew Gardens.