Solanum Species of Eastern Australia
| Solanum Species of Eastern Australia | |
Habit and juveniles. Erect. Rhizomatous perennial shrub. 1.5–4 m high. Juvenile branchlets with c. 15 prickles per dm. Juvenile branchlets prickles 3–6 mm long. Juvenile leaves broadly ovate; shallowly-lobed throughout, or deeply lobed throughout; with 5–6 pairs of lobes; lamina 23–41 cm long; lamina 16–40 cm wide; with 10–30 prickles on upper surface.
Branchlets. Adult branchlets rusty, or brown, or green. Adult branchlets prickles 0–20 per decimetre; curved, broad-based; 1–4 mm long; 2–3 times longer than wide; glabrous, or with scattered stellate hairs on lower half. Adult branchlets hairs stellate. Adult branchlets stellae sparse to moderate to dense; 0.5–0.6 mm diameter; stalks 0.1–1 mm long; lateral rays 6–8; lateral rays porrect; central ray absent, or present; central ray 0–0.4 times as long as laterals; central ray not gland-tipped; rigid.
Leaves. Adult leaves broadly ovate; shallowly lobed throughout; lobes 3–5 on each side; lobes acute, or obtuse; lobing index 1.2–2.1; lamina 12–26 cm long; lamina 9–19 cm wide; lamina 1.3–1.9 times longer than broad; apex acute, or acuminate; base cuneate or attenuate, or obtuse, or cordate; oblique part 0–12 mm long; obliqueness index 0–5 percent. Adult leaves petioles 2–6.3 cm long; 11–25 % length of lamina; prickles absent, or present.
Upper leaf surface. Upper leaf surface green; prickles absent; stellate hairs distributed throughout; protostellae present; stellate hair density sparse to moderate density. Upper leaf surface ordinary stellae 0.3–0.6 mm apart; 0.2–0.6 mm across; stalks 0 mm long; lateral rays 5–8; porrect; central ray 0.2–2 times as long as laterals; central ray not gland-tipped. Upper leaf surface simple hairs absent. Upper leaf surface Type 2 hairs absent.
Lower leaf surface. Lower leaf surface green, or yellowish; prickles absent, or present on midvein only; prickles 0–3; prickles straight, broad-based, or curved, broad-based. Lower leaf surface stellate hair density moderate to dense. Lower leaf surface stellae 0.3–0.5 mm apart; 0.4–0.6 mm diameter; stalks 0–0.3 mm long; lateral rays 6–8; lateral rays porrect; central ray 0.1–0.7 times as long as laterals; central ray not gland-tipped. Lower leaf surface simple hairs absent. Lower leaf surface Type 2 hairs absent.
Inflorescence. Inflorescence leaf-opposed, or supra-axillary; branched (paniculate to corymbose); common peduncle 6–18 mm long; rachis prickles absent; 13–65-flowered; weakly andromonoecious. Flowers 5-merous. Pedicels at anthesis 3–13 mm long; markedly thicker distally; 0.7–0.9 mm thick at mid-point; prickles absent. Calyx tube at anthesis 2–4 mm long. Calyx lobes at anthesis rostrate, or attenuate; 4.5–10 mm long. Calyx prickles at anthesis absent. Calyx stellae dense to very dense; brown or rusty; 0.3–0.9 mm across; stalks 0–1 mm long; lateral rays 7–9; central ray 0.2–1 times as long as laterals; central ray not gland-tipped. Calyx simple hairs absent. Calyx Type 2 hairs absent. Corolla white; 14–20 mm long; deeply lobed; inner surface sparsely stellate-hairy. Anthers 6–9 mm long. Ovary with Type 2 hairs only. Functional style 10–13.5 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 7–37 per inflorescence; globular; 14–17 mm diameter; yellow, or yellowish-green; 2-locular, or 3-locular; placenta stalked, anvil-shaped; mesocarp moist but not juicy; exocarp 0.5–0.8 mm thick. Pedicels at fruiting stage 11–21 mm long; 1.4–1.8 mm thick at mid-point. Seeds pale yellow; 2.4–2.8 mm long.
Distribution and habitat. Queensland, New South Wales. Moreton, Wide Bay, Burnett. North Coast (NC). Wet eucalypt forest with rainforest understorey, or rainforest margins.
Miscellaneous. Naturalised. Common name: Giant Devil's Fig. Data source: specimens.
Illustrations. • prickles on stem. • leaves and fruits. • flowers and ripe fruits.
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’.
