Solanum pseudocapsicum
Solanum lycopersicum
Jerusalem cherry, Jerusalem- or winter-cherry, Jerusalem-cherry nightshade
garden tomato, tomate, tomato
petiolate;
petiole 0.2–1 cm;
blade simple, elliptic, 1–9 × 0.5–4.5 cm, margins entire, base acute to attenuate.
petiolate;
petiole 2–10 cm;
blade compound, elliptic, 10–30+ × 5–25 cm, margins divided with 3(–5) pairs of leaflets, interspersed with smaller interjected leaflets, leaflet margins toothed, base truncate to cordate.
leaf-opposed, unbranched, 1–8-flowered, 0.2–1 cm.
lateral, extra-axillary, simple or rarely forked, 4–15-flowered, to 10 cm.
0.3–0.7 cm in flower, 0.8–1 cm and erect in fruit.
articulated near middle, 0.5–2 cm in flower, to 3 cm in fruit.
radially symmetric;
calyx somewhat accrescent, unarmed, 2.5–6 mm, glabrous to densely pubescent with dendritic hairs, lobes long-triangular;
corolla white, stellate, 1–1.5(–2.5) cm diam., without interpetalar tissue;
stamens equal;
anthers oblong, 3–4 mm, dehiscent by terminal pores that open into longitudinal slits;
ovary glabrous.
radially symmetric;
calyx accrescent, unarmed, 5–25 mm, lobes 5–7, lanceolate-acuminate;
corolla yellow, pentagonal to stellate, 1–3 cm diam., with interpetalar tissue at margins and bases of lobes;
stamens equal;
anthers narrow and tapered, 6–11 mm, each with a sterile apical appendage, dehiscent by oblong pores that open into introrse, longitudinal slits;
ovary glabrous or glandular-puberulent.
yellow to orange or red, globose, 1–2 cm diam., glabrous, without sclerotic granules.
usually red, orange, or yellow, globose to ellipsoid or obovoid, 1.5–12 cm diam., glabrous, without sclerotic granules.
yellowish, flattened with thickened margins, 3–4 × 2.5–3 mm, minutely pitted.
pale brown, flattened, 2–4 × 1.5–2 mm, pubescent.
= 24.
= 24.
Solanum pseudocapsicum
Solanum lycopersicum
Solanum pseudocapsicum is native from Mexico to Argentina, southern Brazil, and Uruguay. It is grown as an ornamental for its showy fruits, especially around Christmas. It occasionally escapes from cultivation in southern Florida and Texas. In Texas, it has become established and fairly common in Austin, in the Lower Rio Grande Valley, and in Goliad and Caldwell counties. Cultivated forms are usually glabrous, but some can have branched pubescence. The fruits are mildly poisonous when ingested by humans but can be highly toxic to dogs and some birds.
Solanum pseudocapsicum, along with S. diphyllum, has a distinctive leaf arrangement in which a longer, narrower leaf is paired with a shorter, often more rounded one.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
The tomato is a major agricultural crop and is commonly grown in home gardens. The fruits can have a variety of shapes, sizes, colors, and flavors and are used raw or cooked in a vast array of dishes. Other parts of the plants are considered to be poisonous. The flowers can commonly be six- to eight-merous, especially in varieties selected for very large fruits.
The ancestors of Solanum lycopersicum were originally from western South America, but the species is now known only from cultivation. Tomatoes frequently escape from cultivation or germinate in compost piles or garbage dumps but are very susceptible to frost, rarely persist, and are not invasive, even in warm climates.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
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