Solanum Species of Eastern Australia
| Solanum Species of Eastern Australia | |
Habit and juveniles. Prostrate, or sprawling. Herbaceous resprouter. 0.1–0.4 m high. Juvenile branchlets with 50–100 prickles per dm. Juvenile branchlets prickles 2–5 mm long. Juvenile leaves broadly ovate; shallowly-lobed throughout; with 2–4 pairs of lobes; lamina c. 5 cm long; lamina 4.5 cm wide; with 20–40 prickles on upper surface.
Branchlets. Adult branchlets yellow, or rusty, or brown. Adult branchlets prickles 5–25 per decimetre; straight, acicular; 1–5 mm long; 10–17 times longer than wide; with scattered Type 2 hairs on lower half. Adult branchlets hairs Type 2, or stellate. Adult branchlets stellae dense; 0.4–0.7 mm diameter; stalks 0–0.25 mm long; lateral rays 6–11; lateral rays porrect, or ascending; central ray present; central ray 1.5–3 times as long as laterals; central ray not gland-tipped, or gland-tipped; rigid. Adult branchlets Type 2 hairs sparse.
Leaves. Adult leaves broadly ovate, or orbicular; entire, or shallowly lobed throughout; lobes 0 on each side, or 2–3 on each side; lobes obtuse; lobing index 1–1.2; lamina 3.5–8.5 cm long; lamina 2–5.5 cm wide; lamina 1.2–1.7 times longer than broad; apex obtuse; base cordate; oblique part 0–3.5 mm long; obliqueness index 0–5 percent. Adult leaves petioles 1.2–3.5 cm long; 30–65 % length of lamina; prickles absent.
Upper leaf surface. Upper leaf surface grey-green; prickles absent, or present on midvein only; prickles 0–2; prickles straight, acicular; prickles 1–3 mm long; stellate hairs distributed throughout; protostellae present; stellate hair density sparse to moderate density. Upper leaf surface ordinary stellae 0.4–0.6 mm apart; 0.6–0.9 mm across; stalks 0–0.3 mm long; lateral rays 7–10; porrect, or ascending; central ray 1–3 times as long as laterals; central ray not gland-tipped, or gland-tipped. Upper leaf surface simple hairs absent, or erect, straight; sparse; gland-tipped; 0.1–0.3 mm long. Upper leaf surface Type 2 hairs absent.
Lower leaf surface. Lower leaf surface green, or greenish-white; prickles absent. Lower leaf surface stellate hair density dense. Lower leaf surface stellae 0.1–0.2 mm apart; 0.5–0.6 mm diameter; stalks 0–0.1 mm long; lateral rays 8–11; lateral rays porrect; central ray 1–1.5 times as long as laterals; central ray not gland-tipped, or gland-tipped. Lower leaf surface simple hairs absent. Lower leaf surface Type 2 hairs absent.
Inflorescence. Inflorescence leaf-opposed, or supra-axillary; solitary, or cymose (pseudo-racemose); common peduncle absent, or present; common peduncle 0–2 mm long; rachis prickles absent, or present; 1–4-flowered; weakly andromonoecious, or with all flowers bisexual. Flowers 4–5-merous. Pedicels at anthesis 3–10 mm long; same thickness throughout; 0.5–0.6 mm thick at mid-point; prickles absent. Calyx tube at anthesis 1.5–3 mm long. Calyx lobes at anthesis deltate, or rostrate, or attenuate; 2–7 mm long. Calyx prickles at anthesis absent. Calyx stellae dense; transparent; 0.4–0.7 mm across; stalks 0–0.2 mm long; lateral rays 6–10; central ray 1–2 times as long as laterals; central ray not gland-tipped. Calyx simple hairs absent. Calyx Type 2 hairs absent. Corolla white; 7–9 mm long; deeply lobed; inner surface glabrous. Anthers 3–4 mm long. Ovary with Type 2 hairs only. Functional style 4.5–6 mm long; erect; with Type 2 hairs only.
Fruits. Fruiting calyx lobes less than half length of mature fruit, or lobes more than half length of mature fruit; prickles absent. Mature fruits 1–3 per inflorescence; globular; c. 15 mm diameter; yellowish-green, or green, often streaked; 1-locular (septum absent or incomplete); placenta sessile, elliptical; mesocarp moist but not juicy; exocarp 1–1.5 mm thick. Pedicels at fruiting stage 8–20 mm long; 1–1.2 mm thick at mid-point. Seeds pale yellow; 2.7–3.1 mm long.
Distribution and habitat. Queensland. Maranoa. Shrubby eucalypt woodland, remote from rainforest, lancewood communities (dominated by Acacia catenulata, shirleyi, burrowii, etc.).
Miscellaneous. Data source: specimens.
Illustrations. • plant at type locality. • population at type locality. • holotype.
The interactive key provides access to the character list, illustrations, full and partial descriptions, diagnostic descriptions, differences and similarities between taxa, lists of taxa exhibiting specified attributes, and summaries of attributes within groups of taxa.
Cite this publication as: ‘Bean, A.R. 2005 onwards. Solanum species of Eastern Australia. Version: 8th October 2006. http://delta-intkey.com’.
