Contains 16 accepted taxa overall.
Characteristics
Classification
Citation
SOLANUM Linnaeus, Sp. Pl. 184. 1753.
-
TYPE: Solanum nigrum Linnaeus Lectotypified by Britton & A. Brown, Ill. Fl. N. U.S., ed. 2. 3: 164. 1913.
Species
| Scientific Name | Common Name | Herbarium Specimens | Status | Photos |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Solanum americanum | American Black Nightsahde | |||
| Solanum capsicoides | Soda Apple | |||
| Solanum carolinense var. carolinense | Horse-nettle, Ball-nettle | |||
| Solanum chenopodioides | ||||
| Solanum dimidiatum | Western Horsenettle | |||
| Solanum elaeagnifolium | Silverleaf Nightshade, White Horse-nettle | |||
| Solanum emulans | American Black Nightshade | |||
| Solanum lycopersicum | Tomato | |||
| Solanum nigrum | European Black Nightshade | |||
| Solanum perplexum | ||||
| Solanum pseudocapsicum | Jerusalem-cherry | |||
| Solanum pseudogracile | Dune Nightshade | |||
| Solanum rostratum | Buffalo-bur, Kansas-thistle | |||
| Solanum sarrachoides | Hairy Nightshade, Viscid Nightshade | |||
| Solanum sisymbriifolium | Sticky Nightshade | |||
| Solanum viarum | Tropical Soda Apple |
Identification Key
1. Leaf blade pinnately lobed throughout (sinuses at least ½ or more to midrib) or leaf compound
1. Leaf blade entire to shallowly lobed (sinus <½ way to midrib, rarely few basal lobes deeply lobed), or lobes few at the leaf base only
2
2. Mature plant with stiff prickles on stems or leaves (includes S. elaeagnifolium, S. torvum, which occasionally may appear to lack prickles)
2. Mature plant without prickles on stems or leaves, or these few, rare, and weak (includes S. americanum s.lat., S. bahamense, S. donianum, S. melongena, all of which rarely have prickles in Florida)
1. (Key A) Plant with stiff prickles on stems or leaves
2
1. Plant without prickles on stems or leaves
4
2. Stem with only stellate hairs
3
2. Stem with mostly simple, usually glandular hairs, sometimes a few stellate haris
4
3. Stellate hairs mostly with 4 lateral arms; corolla white to pale blue or violet, actinomorphic; anthers subequal; fruit yellow, greenish, or mottled, calyx slightly accrescent and only sparsely prickly at most; seeds yellow
3. Stellate hairs mostly with 6-10 lateral arms; corolla yellow, zygomorphic; anthers strongly unequal; fruit brown, accrescent calyx tighly adhering and densely prickly; seeds dark brown
4. Corolla violet or blue, zygomorphic; anthers strongly unequal; fruit brown, dry, accrescent calyx tighly covering with dense radiating prickles; seeds black to dark brown
4. Corolla white to pale blue, actinomorphic; anthers subequal; fruit red, fleshy, accrescent calyx loosely covering with spacious prickles; seeds yellowish
5. Woody vine, glabrate; inflorescence branched
5. Erect or lax herb, moderately to densely pubescent; inflorescence unbranched or rarely forked
6
6. Forming underground tubers; leaflets entire; anthers opening by terminal pores; corolla white, pink, to pale blue; fruit yellow; seed glabrous; potato
6. Without tubers; leaflets toothed, at least some; corolla yellow; anthers opening by longitudinal slits; fruit yellow, red, to dark purple; seed pubescent; tomato
7
7. Leaflet margins deeply lobed along whole margin; foliage when crushed without citrus odour; fruit >2 cm wide, usually; corolla shallowly stellate, the lobes divided 1/3 to 1/2 way to base; stems robust with occasional long trichomes up to 3 mm long
7. Leaflet margins shallowly lobed mainly towards the base; foliage when crushed with citrus odour; fruit <2 cm wide; corolla deeply stellate, the lobes divided almost to the base; stems slender with occasional long trichomes up to 2.2 mm long
1. (Key B) Stem and upper leaf blade surface of simples hairs or glabrous (lower blade surface with stellate hairs in S. viarum)
2
1. Stem and upper leaf blade surface with stellate hairs
3
2. Pubescence eglandular or plant glabrate; fruit orange to red; seed winged
2. Pubescence glandular and eglandular; fruit yellow or mottled green; seed unwinged
3. Stems glabrate to sparsely stellate-pubescent
3. Stems moderately to densely stellate-pubescent
4
4. Leaves sessile (rarely petiole to 1 cm)
4. Leaves petiolate, longer petioles 1-10 cm long
4
5. Pubescence silvery- or bright white-canescent, especially on leaf blade lower surface
5. Pubescence not silvery or bright-white canescent
6
6. Leaves to 35 cm wide; fruit hirsute, the trichomes 2-5 mm long
6. Leaves to 18(20) cm wide; fruit glabrous or sparsely pubescent, trichomes 0.3-1 mm long
7
7. Shrub or small tree 1-4 m tall; inflorescence with simple, glandular hairs
7. Herb to 1.2 m tall; inflorescence with stellate hairs
8
8. Leaf blade lower surface with stellate trichomes with mostly 4 lateral arms; calyx 5-7 mm long; corolla 2-3 cm wide
8. Leaf blade lwoer surface with stellate trichomes with mostly 6-8 lateral arms; calyx 8-12 mm long; corolla 3-4 cm wide
1. (Key C) Sprawling, scrambling, or climbing vine; often some leaves with 1-3 basal lobes
1. Herb or shrub; leaves without basal lobes
2
2. Plant with stellate trichomes, sometimes few or sparse
3
2. Plant glabrous or with simple trichomes
9
3. Herb; fruit 15-50 cm long; eggplant
3. Shrub or small tree; fruit to 3 cm long or wide
4
4. Ovary and fruit pubescent
5
4. Ovary and fruit glabrous or glabrate
7
5. Young stem often with highly reduced, stipule-like leaves; corolla purple
5. Young stem without stipule-like leaves; corolla white
6
6. Leaf blade mostly ovate to ovate-elliptic, acute to rounded-truncate at the base; calyx and corollla densely stellate with short-armed trichomes
6. Leaf blade mostly narrowly lanceolate to lanceolate-elliptic, tapering at the base; calyx and corolla shaggy with long-armed trichomes
7. Inflorescence axillary, of 1-3 flowers; fruit 12-18 mm long or wide
7. Inflorescence termnal, of (3)5-20(30) flowers; fruit 3-8 mm long or wide
8
8. Not rhizomatous; leaf blades coriaceous, often lustrous, elliptic to elliptic-lanceolate; corolla white to violet, the lobes linear-lanceolate; anther adaxial surface with stellate hairs
8. Rhizomatous; leaf blades chartaceous, dull, broadly elliptic to ovate-lanceolate; corolla white, the lobes lanceolate; anther adaxial surface without stellate hairs
9. Young stems densely villous, sometimes glandular
9. Young stems glabrous, appressed-pubescent, to pilosulous (sometimes glandular in S. nigrum)
10
10. Shrub or small tree, 1-3 m tall; fruit yellow, orange, or red
11
10. Herbs; fruit green, white, purple, to purplish black
12
11. Stem often with a reduced leaf in the axil of a larger leaf; leaf blade mostly broadly elliptic to ovate, not glaucous
11. Stem lacking reduced leaves in the axils; leaf blade narrowly lanceolate to elliptic, glaucous
12. Fruit with 0(2) sclerotic granules; anthers 2-3 mm long
13
12. Fruit with (0)2-9 sclerotic granules; anthers 0.7-3 mm long
15
13. Plant sometimes glandular; inflorescence raceme-like; pedicels mostly spreading; seeds 1.8-2 mm long, 1.5-1.6 mm wide
13. Plant eglandular; inflorescence umbel-like; pedicels mostly recurved to reflexed; seeds 1-1.5 mm long, 0.8-1.5 mm wide
14
14. Fruiting peduncle sharply reflexed downard; style extending to 1.5 mm beyond anther cone; calyx lobes appressed in fruit
14. Fruiting peduncle recurved to reflexed; style extending (1)2-2.5 mm beyond anther cone; calyx lobes reflexed in fruit
15. Anthers 2-3 mm long; calyx lobes appressed to spreading in fruit; seeds 1.2-1.5 mm long
15. Anthers 0.7-1.5 mm long; calyx lobes and seeds various
14
16. Pedicels mostly erect to spreading; fruit lustrous, with (0)2-4(6) sclerotic granules, the calyx lobes reflexed; seeds 1-1.5 mm long
16. Pedicels mostly reflexed or recurved; fruit dull or slightly lustrous, with 6-9 sclerotic granules, the calyx lobes appressed to spreading; seeds 1.5-2 mm long
Genus Synonyms
| Synonym | Full Citation | Basionym | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| No synonyms found. | |||