Solanum viarum
Solanum citrullifolium
tropical soda apple
melon-leaf nightshade, watermelon nightshade
petiolate;
petiole 3–6 cm;
blade simple, ovate to suborbiculate, 7–10(–20) × 6–8(–15) cm, margins coarsely lobed with 3–5 lobes per side, lobe margins entire to coarsely toothed, base truncate to cordate.
petiolate;
petiole 2–7 cm;
blade simple to compound, broadly ovate, 4–10(–15) × 3–8 cm, margins bipinnately lobed or divided with 3–4 main leaflets per side, these with obtuse or rounded lobes, base truncate.
extra-axillary, sessile or nearly so, unbranched, 3–5-flowered.
extra-axillary, unbranched, 4–10-flowered, 3–11 cm.
0.7–1.1 cm in flower, 1–2 cm in fruit.
1–2 cm in flower, 1–2 cm and erect in fruit.
radially symmetric;
calyx somewhat accrescent, unarmed or sparsely prickly, 3–4 mm, densely pubescent, lobes triangular;
corolla greenish or whitish, stellate, 1.5–2.5 cm diam., without interpetalar tissue;
stamens equal;
anthers narrow and tapered, 5.5–7(–10) mm, dehiscent by terminal pores;
ovary densely pubescent, hairs glandular and eglandular.
bilaterally symmetric;
calyx accrescent and tightly covering fruit, densely prickly, 2.5–3.8 mm, densely glandular-pubescent, lobes linear-lanceolate;
corolla violet or blue, pentagonal-stellate, 2.5–3.5 cm diam., with interpetalar tissue at margins and bases of lobes;
stamens unequal, lowermost much longer and curved;
anthers narrow and tapered, dehiscent by terminal pores, short anthers yellow, 6–10 mm, longer anther purplish, 11–16 mm;
ovary glabrous.
light green mottled with dark green when young, yellow when ripe, globose, (1.5–)2–3 cm diam., glabrous, without sclerotic granules.
brown, globose, 0.8–1.2 cm diam., glabrous, dry, without sclerotic granules.
reddish brown, flattened, 2–3 × 2–2.5 mm, minutely pitted.
dark brown, flattened, 2.3–3 × 2–2.5 mm, reticulately wrinkled, ridged, or undulate.
= 24.
= 24.
Solanum viarum
Solanum citrullifolium
In the United States, Solanum viarum was first collected in Florida in 1988 and has subsequently become an aggressive and invasive species in the Southeast. It is on the Federal Noxious Weeds List and is classified as a noxious weed or plant pest in many states. Cattle and other animals eat the fruits and spread the seeds through their feces, and the seeds are coated with a sticky substance that makes them adhere to farm equipment when the plants are mowed. It can form large patches that are difficult to eradicate due to their extensive root systems and sharp prickles. It is a major agricultural pest and a threat to native ecosystems.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
North American plants identified as Solanum heterodoxum Dunal are largely misidentifications of S. citrullifolium. Solanum heterodoxum in the current sense is now restricted to Mexico.
Varieties 2 (2 in the flora).
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
1. Stems scattered-prickly with fewer than 20 prickles per cm of stem; prickles often to 1 mm diam. at base; stems densely glandular-pubescent. | var. citrullifolium |
1. Stems densely bristly with 25+ bristles per cm of stem; bristles mostly less than 0.5 mm diam. at base; stems sparsely glandular-pubescent. | var. setigerum |
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