Solanum seaforthianum
Encyclopedia
Solanum seaforthianum or Brazilian Nightshade is a flowering evergreen vine of the Solanum
family 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 20 ft. (6 m.) 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.
The plant can be grown ornamentally and requires full to partial sun, warm climate year round, modest watering and mildly acidic soil (5.6 to 6.5 pH.) optionally supplemented with compost.
Solanum
Solanum, the nightshades, horsenettles and relatives, is a large and diverse genus of annual and perennial plants. They grow as forbs, vines, subshrubs, shrubs, and small trees, and often have attractive fruit and flowers. Many formerly independent genera like Lycopersicon or Cyphomandra are...
family native to tropical South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
. As a member of the Solanum genus, it is related to such plants as the tomato
Tomato
The word "tomato" may refer to the plant or the edible, typically red, fruit which it bears. Originating in South America, the tomato was spread around the world following the Spanish colonization of the Americas, and its many varieties are now widely grown, often in greenhouses in cooler...
and potato
Potato
The potato is a starchy, tuberous crop from the perennial Solanum tuberosum of the Solanaceae family . The word potato may refer to the plant itself as well as the edible tuber. In the region of the Andes, there are some other closely related cultivated potato species...
. It is characterized by clusters of four to seven leaves and can climb to a height of 20 ft. (6 m.) given enough room. It blooms in the mid to late summer with clusters of star shaped purple inflorescence
Inflorescence
An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Strictly, it is the part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed and which is accordingly modified...
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
Atropine
Atropine is a naturally occurring tropane alkaloid extracted from deadly nightshade , Jimson weed , mandrake and other plants of the family Solanaceae. It is a secondary metabolite of these plants and serves as a drug with a wide variety of effects...
, scopolamine
Scopolamine
Scopolamine, also known as levo-duboisine, and hyoscine, is a tropane alkaloid drug with muscarinic antagonist effects. It is among the secondary metabolites of plants from Solanaceae family of plants, such as henbane, jimson weed and Angel's Trumpets , and corkwood...
and hyoscyamine
Hyoscyamine
Hyoscyamine is a tropane alkaloid. It is a secondary metabolite found in certain plants of the Solanaceae family, including henbane , mandrake , jimsonweed , tomato and deadly nightshade...
and should be considered mildly toxic and inedible.
The plant can be grown ornamentally and requires full to partial sun, warm climate year round, modest watering and mildly acidic soil (5.6 to 6.5 pH.) optionally supplemented with compost.