Atropa belladonna

European perennial whose glossy black berries and dull-green leaves contain a lethal cocktail of tropane alkaloids — long associated with witchcraft, flying ointments, and Atropos, the Greek Fate who cuts the thread of life.

Shade-tolerant perennial of calcareous woodland edges and old ruins across Europe, North Africa, and western Asia.

• Ingredient of medieval European 'flying ointments'
• Cosmetic use to dilate pupils (the source of the name belladonna — 'beautiful lady')

Profoundly toxic; the entheogenic and folkloric uses sit on a razor's edge with poisoning. Modern ethnobotany has largely retired it from active practice for safety reasons.