Solanum elaeagnifolium

:"This article is about the "Solanum elaeagnifolium" described by A. J. Cavanilles. The plant described under the same name by W. Herbert and C. L. Willdenow based on E.G. von Steudel is "S. aethiopicum.Taxobox
name = Silver-leaved Nightshade

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image_width = 200px
image_caption = Plant with flowers, unripe berries (green with stripes, center), and previous year's berries (orange, upper left)
regnum = Plantae
divisio = Magnoliophyta
classis = Magnoliopsida
subclassis = Asteridae
ordo = Solanales
familia = Solanaceae
genus = "Solanum"
species = "S. elaeagnifolium"
binomial = "Solanum elaeagnifolium"
binomial_authority = Cav.
synonyms =See text

Silver-leaved Nightshade or Silverleaf nightshade, "Solanum elaeagnifolium", is a common weed of western North America and also found in South America. Other common names include Prairie Berry, Silverleaf Nettle, White Horsenettle or Silver Nightshade. In South Africa it is known as Silver-leaf bitter-apple or "satansbos" ("Satan's Bush" in Afrikaans). More ambiguous names include "bull-nettle", "horsenettle" and the Spanish "trompillo"". [Cronquist "et al." (1984), USDA (2006)]

Description and ecology

It is a perennial 10 cm [Niehaus "et al." (1984)] to 1 m in height. The stems are covered with short spines, ranging from very few on some plants to very dense on others. Leaves and stems are also covered with downy hairs that lie against and hide the surface, giving a silvery or grayish appearance.Cronquist "et al." (1984)]

The leaves are up to 15 cm long and usually only 0.5 to 2.5 cm wide, with shallowly waved edges. This is one of the marks distinguishing it from the closely related Carolina Horsenettle ("S. carolinense"), which has wider, more deeply indented leaves. The flowers, appearing from April to August, have five petals united to form a star, ranging from blue to pale lavender or occasionally white; five yellow stamens and a pistil form a projecting center. The plant produces glossy yellow, orange, or red berries that last all winter and may turn brown as they dry.

Its range is from Kansas south to Louisiana, and west through the Mexican-border states of the United States into Mexico, as well as Uruguay, Argentina, and ChileUSDA (2006)] . Possibly it originated in North America and was accidentally introduced to South AmericaWSNWCB (2008)] or vice-versa. It can grow in poor soil with very little water. It spreads by rhizomes as well as seeds, and is common in disturbed habitats. Partly because of these characteristics, it is considered a noxious weed in 21 U.S. states and in countries such as Australia, Egypt, Greece, India, Israel, Italy, South Africa, and Zimbabwe [Nugent (2005), WSNWCB (2008)] . It is toxic to livestock and very hard to control, as rootstocks less than 1 cm long can regenerate into plants [CDFA [2008] ] . However, some gardeners encourage it as a xeriscape ornamental.

The Pima Indians used the berries as a vegetable rennet, and the Kiowa used the seeds together with brain tissue to tan leather.

ynonyms

This plant has been described under a range of names, all now invaild. These contain many homonyms among them:Solanaceae Source [2008] ]
* "Solanum dealbatum" Lindl.
* "Solanum flavidum" Torr.
* "Solanum incanum" Pav. ex Dunal ("non" L.: preoccupied):"S. incanum" of Ruiz & Pavón Jiménez is "S. albidum" as decribed by Dunal. :"S. incanum" of Kitaibel based on Kanitz is "S. villosum" as decribed by Philip Miller:"S. incanum" of Scheff. is "S. schefferi".:"S. incanum" var. "lichtensteinii" and var. "subexarmatum" are "S. lichtensteinii".
* "Solanum leprosum" Ortega
* "Solanum obtusifolium" Dunal ("non" Willd.: preoccupied):"S. obtusifolium" of Hartweg based on Otto Sendtner in von Martius is "S. ferrugineum".:"S. obtusifolium" of Willdenow is "S. aethiopicum".
* "Solanum pyriforme var. uniflorum" Dunal
* "Solanum roemerianum" Scheele
* "Solanum saponaceum" Hook. ("non" Dunal: preoccupied):"S. saponaceum" of Welwitsch is "S. aculeastrum".:"S. saponaceum" var. "uruguense" is "S. bonariense".
* "Solanum texense" Engelm. & A.Gray
* "Solanum uniflorum" Meyen ex Nees ("non" Dunal: preoccupied):"S. uniflorum" of de Conceição Vellozo is "S. pseudocapsicum". :"S. uniflorum" of Sessé & Mociño and "S. uniflorum" of Dunal in Poiret have been identified as "Lycianthes mociniana".:"S. uniflorum" of Lagasca y Segura and "Solanum uniflorum var. berterianum" are undetermined species of "Lycianthes".

Several varieties and forms of "S. elaeagnifolium" have been named. But therse days, they are not usually considered taxonomically distinct anymore:
* "Solanum elaeagnifolium" f. "albiflorum" Cockerell
* "Solanum elaeagnifolium" var. "angustifolium" Kuntze:Not to be confused with "S. angustifolium" of Philip Miller
* "Solanum elaeagnifolium" var. "argyrocroton" Griseb.
* "Solanum elaeagnifolium" f. "benkei" Standl.
* "Solanum elaeagnifolium" var. "grandiflorum" Griseb.:Not to be confused with "S. grandiflorum" of Ruiz and Pavón Jiménez
* "Solanum elaeagnifolium" var. "leprosum" (Ortega) Dunal
* "Solanum elaeagnifolium" var. "obtusifolium" (Dunal) Dunal

However, "S. elaeagnifolium" var. "ovalifolium" does not refer to the "S. ovalifolium" as described by Dunal and does not belong to the present species; it is actually "S. aridum". Meanwhile, "S. crispum" var. "elaeagnifolium" is just the normal "S. crispum" of Ruiz and Pavón Jiménez.

Footnotes

References

* [2008] : Encycloweedia – [http://www.cdfa.ca.gov/phpps/ipc/weedinfo/solanum-americanum.htm "Solanum" part 2] . Retrieved 2008-SEP-26.
* (1984): "Intermountain Flora; Vascular Plants of the Intermountain West, U.S.A." (Vol. 4. Subclass Asteridae except Asteraceae). The New York Botanical Garden. ISBN 0-231-04120-9
* (1984): "A Field Guide to Southwestern and Texas Wildflowers". Houghton Mifflin Company, ISBN 0-395-36640-2
* (2005): Oregon Invasive Species Action Plan. [http://www.oregon.gov/OISC/docs/pdf/oisc_plan6_05.pdf PDF fulltext]
* [2008] : [http://www.nhm.ac.uk/research-curation/research/projects/solanaceaesource/taxonomy/description-detail.jsp?spnumber=2361 "Solanum elaeagnifolium"] . Retrieved 2008-SEP-26.
* (2006): Germplasm Resources Information Network - [http://www.ars-grin.gov/cgi-bin/npgs/html/taxon.pl?101507 "Solanum elaeagnifolium"] . Version of 2006-JAN-14. Retrieved 2008-SEP-26.
* (2008): [http://www.nwcb.wa.gov/weed_info/Solanum_elaeagnifolium.html Silverleaf Nightshade] . Version of 2008-JUL-09. Retrieved 2008-SEP-26.