Looks like Nicotiana glauce (tree tobacco) a plant from South America that has naturalized in the state. It is often found growing in disturbed dirt, road cuts etc. The flowers are yellow and not unattractive, but basically it is a weedy shrub that most yank.

Wow! A few years ago, thinking we had Amaranth growing in our yard, I sauteed some with garlic and butter. So tasty!! And then, we started seeing double and we had trouble walking. It got worse, so an ambulance took us to Emergency where I gave them one leaf and in the morning we felt much better and were told we had ingested Indian Tobacco. Probably the same thing. Evidently you can smoke it, but can't eat it! We were told Indian tribes who settled here long before us smoked it. So it's not going to bloom or seed. Thanks for the ID!!

No, not the same plant. Common names can be tricky, because some are used for multiple species. But Indian tobacco is usually used in reference to a Lobelia species, I believe. There were quite a few plants that are reported to have been smoked by native tribes.

That is scary about your emergency room trip. It always amazes me when people are willing to just eat things they do not know anything about. I've lost count how many identifications have been asked for where the questioner describes how the berries tasted. And I have talked to more than a few people that have eaten things that might have killed them if they had not gotten prompt medical attention.

Nicotiana glauca certainly does bloom and set seed. If you think about it, how could it appear in your garden if it didn't? It's an invasive species in many places. Check your area.

If I remember correctly, some or all is toxic.

It's going to be yanked this weekend. Thanks for the ID and comments!

The plant is used for a variety of medicinal purposes and smoked by Native American groups.[1] The Cahuilla people used leaves interchangeably with other tobacco species in hunting rituals and as a poultice to treat swellings, bruises, cuts, wounds, boils, sores, inflamed throat, and swollen glands. It contains the toxic alkaloid anabasine and ingestion of the leaves can be fatal.[2] It is being investigated for use as a biofuel.[3]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nicotiana_glauca

Wow! The Cahuilla tribe lived here long ago. They have a Casino a few miles from here now. Thanks for all the information. It's still going to be destroyed this weekend.

It is an Indian tobacco so the common names can be misconstrued and misused. Would Lobelia inflata ever send anyone to the hospital? I know people use it to make themselves hurl.

Susan, your plant isn't native to N America, so it's unlikely the local people would have been using this particular species, unless it invaded long ago. Here's some in depth info. from a reputable source. https://www.cabi.org/isc/datasheet/36324#tosummaryOfInvasiveness

The local peoples have been using it a long time. Hopi and other tribes use it. The natives here were quick to find uses for all the European introductions. If they only knew back then what we know now.... I heard about a guy sauteing Asclepias syriaca in garlic and butter and telling his family it was asparagus, and they believed him. And they were fine and didn't get sick. Young, tender shoots. that's why.

Floral, do you know the approximate date that Nicotiana glaucoma was introduced to North America?

For bay areans,I've seen it wild in Niles Canyon where it gets much water with its deep roots...the stream runs near it.

Funny very near in Fremont is an oasis of Mexican fan palms,Acacia tree's,Pampas grass,and other non natives I've forgotten with Oaks and Sycamores.

A naturalized nirvana as underground water..like inches below the surface keeps it all lush in summer.

No, Jay, I don't. I'm sure the internet can tell you.

According to cabi: "N. glauca was introduced to the USA in the early 1800s as a landscape ornamental (DiTomaso et al., 2013)."

Answer here https://www.cabi.org/isc/datasheet/36324#tohistoryOfIntroductionAndSpread

Thank you gardengal and floral.