Solanaceae

Nightshade
Family

Datura sanguinea
 Introduction
• Annual, biennial, or
perennial
• Herbs
• Sometimes shrubs or
trees
• Often with prickles

Hyoscyamus niger
 Leaves
• Simple, sometimes
pinnately divided
• Alternately arranged
– Often becoming
oppositely arranged in
the inflorescence
• Exstipulate (no stipules)

Solanum dulcamara
 Inflorescence
• Determinate
• Cymose
• Flowers sometimes
solitary, axillary

Datura stramonium
 Flowers
• Actinomorphic (radially
symmetrical)
• Perfect (both male and
female reproductive
structures)
• Hypogenous (ovary
superior)
• Generally showy
 Calyx
• Synsepalous
– 5 lobes
• Persistent
• Often enlarging in fruit
 Corolla
• Synpetalous (petals
fused)
– 5 lobes
 Corolla
• Synpetalous (petals fused)
– 5 lobes
• Rotate
– Short tube
– Petals form a flat,
circular surface
 Corolla
• Synpetalous (petals fused)
– 5 lobes
• Rotate
• Funnelform
– Funnel-shaped
 Corolla
• Synpetalous (petals fused)
– 5 lobes
• Rotate
• Funnelform
• Salverform
– Petals are fused into a
slender tube at the base
and abruptly expand to
form a flat surface

Browallia americana
 Corolla
• Synpetalous
– 5 lobes Physalis pubescens
Downy ground cherry
• Rotate
• Funnelform
• Salverform
Anthocercis littorea
• Variously colored Yellow tailflower

Anthocercis viscosa
Sticky tailflower
Solanum elaeagnifolium
Lycium carolinianum Silverleaf nightshade
Carolina wolfberry
 Corolla
• Synpetalous
– 5 lobes
• Rotate
• Funnelform
• Salverform
• Variously colored
• Plicate
– Folded into pleats, like a
fan
 Corolla
• Synpetalous
– 5 lobes
• Rotate
• Funnelform
• Salverform
• Variously colored
• Plicate
• Or convolute
– Edges of petals overlap
 Androecium
• Comprised of 5 stamens
• Epipetalous
– Arising from or on the
petals
 Androecium
• Comprised of 5 stamens
• Epipetalous
• Distinct filaments
 Androecium
• Comprised of 5 stamens
• Epipetalous
• Distinct filaments
• Anthers basifixed,
sometimes connivent
– Filament attached to
the base of the anther
– Coming together or
converging with but not
fused to another floral
part; stuck to a part
 Androecium
• Comprised of 5 stamens
• Epipetalous
• Distinct filaments
• Anthers basifixed,
sometimes connivent
• Dehiscing
longitudinally or by
apical pores
 Gynoecium
• Of 1 pistil
• 2-carpellate
• Superior ovary
• Single style
• 2-lobed stigma
 Gynoecium
• Of 1 pistil
– 2-carpellate
• Superior ovary
 Gynoecium
• Of 1 pistil
– 2-carpellate
• Superior ovary
• Single style
 Gynoecium
• Of 1 pistil
– 2-carpellate
• Superior ovary
• Single style
• 2-lobed stigma
Solanum campechiense
Redberry nightshade

Solanum elaeagnifolium
Silverleaf nightshde
 Fruit
Solanum elaeagnifolium

• Berry
– An indehiscent fleshy
fruit, with few to many
seeds
• Sometimes enclosed by
an inflated persistent
calyx

Solanum americanum

Capsicum annuum
 Fruit
• Berry
– Sometimes enclosed by an
inflated persistent calyx
• Septicidal capsule
– A capsule that splits
along the partitions
(septa) between the
chambers
 Fruit
• Berry Datura wrightii

– Sometimes enclosed by an
inflated persistent calyx
• Septicidal capsule
– A capsule that splits along the
partitions (septa) between
the chambers
• Seeds numerous
Representative
Genera

Datura stramonium
 Capsicum annuum
Chile pequin
• Duration: Annual or
perennial
Habit: Herb
Leaf Arrangement:
Alternate
• Blooms: May-October
 Physalis pubescens
Downy ground cherry
• Upright hairy annual herb
• Stem solitary, much-branched in
upper portion
• Leaves 2-9 cm long; 2-4.1 cm
wide; alternate; long-stalked;
margins entire to irregularly
several-toothed
• Flowers 8-10 mm long; 10-16
mm wide; solitary from leaf axils
• Corolla of 5 fused petals
 Chamaesaracha coronopus
Green false nightshade
• Low, sprawling or reclining, usually
densely hairy perennial
• Stems solitary or few; much-
branched from the base, to 15 cm
high or long
• Glandular hairs throughout; making
plant sticky to the touch
• Leaves to 6 cm long, alternate,
stalkless or almost so, margins entire
to shallowly toothed or lobed
• Flowers 13 mm wide
• 5 fused petals, flatly 5-lobed at the
rim
• Flowers solitary or few in clusters
from the leaf axils
 Solanum elaeagnifolium
Silver-leaf nightshade
• Upright, sparsely prickly
perennial up to 1 m tall
• Stems solitary or few from the
base
• Densely covered with star-shaped
hairs
• Leaves to 15 cm long, 3-5 times
longer than wide; alternate, long-
stalked, gray-green; margins wavy
• Flowers 2-3 cm wide; 5 petals
fused at the base; 5-lobed at the
rim and appearing star-shaped;
androeciun of 5 large yellow
anthers
• Flowers few, in clusters from leaf
axils near ends of branches
 Solanum dimidiatum
Western horse-nettle
• Erect, bushy perennial 30-
60 cm tall
• Large stellate hairs cover
stem and leaf surfaces;
stout prickles distributed
along stems and on main
veins on the underside of
leaves
• Leaves 5-15 cm long,
ovate, lobed
• Flowers 2.5 cm wide
 Solanum rostratum
Buffalo bur
• Low, spreading or sprawling, bristly
annual, 41/81 cm tall; densely
covered in golden-yellow prickles
• Stems solitary of few from base,
much-branched in upper portion
• Leaves 5-15 cm long, deeply parted
into irregular segments, the segments
further divided or lobed and very
spiny
• Flowers up to 25 mm wide; 5 bright
yellow petals united at the base, 5-
lobed at the rim, lobes usually widely
spreading; anthers usually held tightly
upright in column
• Flowers clustered at ends of branches
or from leaf axils
 Solanum carolinense
Carolina horse nettle
• Upright, coarse, prickly perennial;
up to 1 m tall
• Stems solitary or few, branched
or unbranched, with straight
yellowish prickles
• Leaves to 12 cm long, alternate,
stalked, with yellowish prickles on
the lower surface and along the
midrib; margins lobed or
shallowly toothed
• Flowers up to 32 mm wide, white,
with 5 petals fused at the base,
spreading into a 5-lobed star; 5
upright stamens in a column
• Flowers few, in one-sided
terminal clusters, each cluster
elongating as the flowers open
 Datura wrightii
Jimson weed
• Spreading, bushy plant to
1 m tall
• Stems branching in the
upper half
• Leaves 10-25 cm long, on
short stems with fine
hairs, especially along the
veins
• Flowers white to pale
pink; petals fused into a
funnel 15-23 cm long and
6.4-10 cm wide
 Nicotiana trigonophylla
Desert tobacco
• Upright, sticky-hairy, strongly
rank smelling biennial or
perennial herb up to 1 m tall;
stems solitary, with few branches
• Leaves 5-22 cm long and to 6 cm
wide; lower leaves broadly
stalked; upper leaves stalkless,
lobed at the base, and clasping
the stem
• Flowers 5-lobed and wavy; 1.3-2
cm long, to 1 cm wide; greenish-
white or yellowish, trumpet-
shaped, abruptly flattened at the
rim
• Flowers few, in loosely branched
terminal clusters
 Nicotiana repanda
Fiddle-leaf tobacco
• Upright, slender, smooth to somewhat hairy,
aromatic annual to 1.3 m tall
• Stem usually solitary, loosely branched
• Leaves to 20 cm long and 1 cm wide,
alternate, thin, with somewhat sticky
glandular hairs; often contracted slightly
below the middle and then expanded again;
lower leaves narrowed into a winged stalk;
upper leaves deeply notched and clasping
stem; wavy margins
• Flowers 5-lobed, 45-76 mm long, white,
sometimes tinged with rose, often brown-
striped, tubular with widely flaring rim
• Flowers few to several, widely spaced in spike-
like racemes at the top of slender branches
 Homework
• Using the characteristics listed for the 4
species of Solanum, create a key that can be
used to identify each species.