Solanum seaforthianum

Solanum seaforthianum, the Brazilian nightshade, is a flowering evergreen vine of the family Solanaceae native to tropical South America. As a member of the Solanum genus, it is related to such plants as the tomato and potato. It is characterized by clusters of four to seven leaves and can climb to a height of 6 m (20 ft) given enough room. It blooms in the mid to late summer with clusters of star-shaped purple inflorescence followed by scarlet marble-sized berries. The plant is highly heat resistant, but cannot tolerate frost conditions. The plant contains modest amounts of various tropane alkaloids such as atropine, scopolamine and hyoscyamine and should be considered mildly toxic and inedible. Promising molluscicidal and schistosomicidal activities were displayed for the S. seaforthianum extracts and fractions which are attributed to the glycoalkaloid content. The species has become widely naturalised outside its native range and is an invasive species in Australia, Africa, Indochina, the Pacific Islands and India, choking native vegetation and poisoning livestock.

Description

A climbing vine. It grows to 3-5 m long. It is hairless and evergreen. The leaves are produced alternately along the vine and are often divided into leaflets. The leaves are 10-20 cm long and they can be entire or with 6-9 lobes or leaflets. The flowers are purple and 2 cm across. They develop in large clusters 15 cm across. The fruit are bright red berries. They are oval in shape and 6-10 mm across.

Edible Uses

The fruit can be eaten.

Traditional Uses

CAUTION. The berries have been reported as poisonous due to the chemical alkaloid solasodine.

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Known Hazards

The berries have been reported as poisonous due to the chemical alkaloid solasodine.

Distribution

It is a tropical plant. It is native to tropical America. It needs temperatures above 7-10°C. It suits hardiness zones 10-12. In Yunnan.

Where It Grows

Africa, Asia, Australia, Belize, Botswana, Brazil, Central Africa, Central African Republic, CAR, Central America*, China, Colombia, Comoros, Congo DR, Costa Rica, Cuba, Cyprus, Dominican Republic, East Africa, Ecuador, El Salvador, Eswatini, Europe, Guatemala, French Guiana, Ghana, Guyana, Haiti, Hawaii, Himalayas, Honduras, India, Indonesia, Jamaica, Kenya, Lebanon, Leeward Is., Lesser Antilles, Madagascar, Malawi, Malaysia, Mauritius, Mexico, Mozambique, Myanmar, Namibia, New Caledonia, Nicaragua, North America, Pacific, Pakistan, Panama, Papua New Guinea, PNG, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Puerto Rico, Reunion, SE Asia, Senegal, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Southern Africa, South America, Swaziland, Syria, Taiwan, Tanzania, Thailand, Trinidad-Tobago, Uganda, USA, Vanuatu, Venezuela, Vietnam, West Indies*, Zambia, Zimbabwe,

Cultivation

It needs a support to climb over.

Notes

There are about 1400 Solanum species.

Synonyms

Also Known As

Italian Jasmine, Potato creeper, Purple potato-vine, St Vincent's lilac

References (23)

• Ambasta, S.P. (Ed.), 2000, The Useful Plants of India. CSIR India. p 582
• Bot. Repos. 8: t. 504. 1808
• Brickell, C. (Ed.), 1999, The Royal Horticultural Society A-Z Encyclopedia of Garden Plants. Convent Garden Books. p 965
• Burkill, I.H., 1966, A Dictionary of the Economic Products of the Malay Peninsula. Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Vol 2 (I-Z) p 2083
• Cooper, W. and Cooper, W., 2004, Fruits of the Australian Tropical Rainforest. Nokomis Editions, Victoria, Australia. p 522

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