Solanum americanum |
Solanum erianthum |
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American black nightshade, American black or common or West Indian nightshade, glossy nightshade, little white nightshade, small-flower nightshade, white nightshade |
mullein nightshade, potato tree |
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Habit | Herbs to subshrubs, annual to perennial, erect, unarmed, to 1.5 m, glabrate to moderately pubescent, hairs whitish, unbranched, to 1 mm, eglandular. | Shrubs or small trees, erect, unarmed, 2–8 m, densely pubescent, hairs sessile to short-stalked, stellate to echinoid. |
Leaves | petiolate; petiole 1–4 cm; blade simple, ovate to ovate-elliptic, 2–10.5 × 1–4.5 cm, margins entire or shallowly sinuate-dentate, base decurrent. |
petiolate; petiole 1–10 cm; blade simple, elliptic to ovate, 10–25 × 3–15 cm, margins entire, base rounded or acute. |
Inflorescences | extra-axillary or leaf-opposed, unbranched, usually umbel-like, 3–10-flowered, 0.5–3 cm. |
terminal, becoming leaf-opposed, much-branched, 10–50-flowered, 5–20 cm. |
Pedicels | erect or spreading, 0.3–1 cm in flower, to 1.5 cm in fruit. |
0.2–0.6 cm in flower, erect and 0.4–10 cm in fruit. |
Flowers | radially symmetric; calyx somewhat accrescent, unarmed, 1–3 mm, lobes deltate, strongly reflexed in fruit; corolla white, sometimes with yellowish central star, stellate, 0.4–0.8 cm diam., without interpetalar tissue; stamens equal; anthers ellipsoidal, 0.7–1.5 mm, dehiscent by terminal pores that open into longitudinal slits; ovary glabrous. |
radially symmetric; calyx accrescent and subtending fruit, unarmed, 5–7 mm, densely pubescent, hairs stellate to echinoid, lobes broadly triangular; corolla white, stellate, 1–2 cm diam., without interpetalar tissue; stamens equal; anthers oblong, 2.5–3.5 mm, dehiscent by terminal pores that open into longitudinal slits; ovary tomentose, hairs stellate or echinoid. |
Berries | shiny purplish black, globose, 0.5–1 cm diam., glabrous, with (0–)2–4(–6) sclerotic granules, usually 2–4 larger and 2 smaller. |
yellow to orange, globose, 1–2 cm diam., densely pubescent, without sclerotic granules. |
Seeds | pale yellow to brown, 1–1.5 × 0.5–1.5 mm, minutely pitted. |
yellowish brown, flattened, 1.5–2 × 1–1.5 mm, minutely pitted. |
2n | = 24. |
= 24. |
Solanum americanum |
Solanum erianthum |
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Phenology | Flowering May–Nov (year-round in Fla.). | Flowering Apr–Oct (year-round in Fla.). |
Habitat | Weedy habitats, secondary forest, disturbed areas. | Hammocks, pinelands, disturbed sites. |
Elevation | 0–1000(–2000) m. (0–3300(–6600) ft.) | 0–100 m. (0–300 ft.) |
Distribution |
AL; AZ; CA; FL; GA; LA; MO; MS; OR; SC; TX; UT; WA; BC; Mexico; Central America; South America; West Indies [Introduced in Europe, Asia, Africa, Pacific Islands, Australia]
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FL; TX; Mexico; Central America; West Indies; South America (Colombia) [Introduced in Asia, Africa, Pacific Islands (including the Galapagos Islands), Australia]
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Discussion | Solanum americanum is a morphologically variable and globally distributed weedy species. It has often been confused with other species in the black nightshade group such as S. emulans, S. nigrescens, S. nigrum, and S. pseudogracile and has often been referred to as S. nodiflorum in floristic treatments. It is distinguished by its very short anthers and shiny black mature fruits with strongly reflexed calyx lobes and usually two to four (rarely none or as many as six) sclerotic granules per fruit. Leaf shape and pubescence can vary considerably throughout its range, and there are some suspected cases of introgression with other species such as S. nigrescens or S. pseudogracile. The name S. nigrum has been misapplied to S. americanum (for example, A. E. Radford et al. 1968). (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
In the United States, Solanum erianthum is common only in central to southern Florida and in extreme southern Texas near the Gulf of Mexico. The name Solanum verbascifolium Linnaeus has been widely misapplied to S. erianthum (K. E. Roe 1968), but is a synonym of S. donianum that has now been rejected. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Source | FNA vol. 14. | FNA vol. 14. |
Parent taxa | Solanaceae > Solanum | Solanaceae > Solanum |
Sibling taxa | ||
Synonyms | S. nigrum var. americanum, S. nigrum var. nodiflorum, S. nodiflorum, S. ptychanthum | |
Name authority | Miller: Gard. Dict. ed. 8 Solanum no. 5. (1768) | D. Don: Prodr. Fl. Nepal., 96. (1825) |
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