Solanum viarum
Solanum perplexum
tropical soda apple
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 1–6 cm;
blade simple, broadly ovate, 7–22 × 8–18 cm, margins shallowly to deeply lobed with 2–5 lobes per side, lobe margins entire to coarsely lobed, base truncate to cuneate and often oblique.
extra-axillary, sessile or nearly so, unbranched, 3–5-flowered.
extra-axillary, forked to several times branched, to 15-flowered, 7–15 cm.
0.7–1.1 cm in flower, 1–2 cm in fruit.
1–2 cm in flower, curved downward and to ca. 2.4 cm 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.
radially symmetric;
calyx not accrescent, unarmed or sparsely prickled, 7–13 mm, densely stellate-pubescent, lobes ovate-lanceolate;
corolla lavender, stellate to stellate-pentagonal or rotate-stellate, 2–4.4 cm diam., with sparse to moderate interpetalar tissue at margins and base of lobes;
stamens equal;
anthers narrow and tapered, 4–10 mm, dehiscent by terminal pores;
ovary glabrous.
light green mottled with dark green when young, yellow when ripe, globose, (1.5–)2–3 cm diam., glabrous, without sclerotic granules.
yellow, subglobose, 1.8–3.5 × 2–4 cm, glabrous, without sclerotic granules.
reddish brown, flattened, 2–3 × 2–2.5 mm, minutely pitted.
yellow, flattened, ca. 2 × 2.5 mm, minutely pitted.
= 24.
= ca. 72.
Solanum viarum
Solanum perplexum
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.)
Solanum perplexum is similar to S. dimidiatum and was placed in synonymy with S. dimidiatum by W. G. D’Arcy (1974). The two species can be distinguished by their indumentum [golden stellate hairs with six to eight (rarely as few as four) lateral rays with the central ray one- or two-celled and longer than lateral rays in S. perplexum versus whitish stellate hairs with six to ten (rarely as few as four) lateral rays with the central ray one-celled and equal to or shorter than lateral rays in S. dimidiatum], the larger prickles on the stems and leaves (up to 15 mm in S. perplexum versus up to 6.5 mm in S. dimidiatum), and the larger leaves (up to 22 × 18 cm in S. perplexum versus up to 16 × 10 cm in S. dimidiatum).
Solanum perplexum occurs mainly in the region where the borders of Alabama, Florida, and Georgia meet, with a single outlying population known from western Mississippi.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
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