Solanum Species of Eastern Australia
| Solanum Species of Eastern Australia | |
Habit and juveniles. Erect. Rhizomatous perennial shrub. 1–4 m high. Juvenile branchlets with 90–200 prickles per dm. Juvenile branchlets prickles 2–12 mm long. Juvenile leaves ovate; shallowly-lobed throughout; with 7–9 pairs of lobes; lamina c. 12 cm long; lamina 5 cm wide; with 100–150 prickles on upper surface.
Branchlets. Adult branchlets yellow, or rusty, or brown. Adult branchlets prickles absent, or present; 0–55 per decimetre; straight, acicular; 3–7 mm long; 7–12 times longer than wide; glabrous. Adult branchlets hairs stellate. Adult branchlets stellae sparse to moderate to dense; 0.15–0.25 mm diameter; stalks 0 mm long; lateral rays 6–8; lateral rays porrect; central ray absent, or present; central ray 0–0.2 times as long as laterals; central ray not gland-tipped. Adult branchlets Type 2 hairs absent.
Leaves. Adult leaves elliptical, or ovate; entire, or shallowly lobed throughout; lobes 0 on each side, or 3–5 on each side; lobes acute, or obtuse; lobing index 1–1.2; lamina 9–16 cm long; lamina 3–7.5 cm wide; lamina 2.1–3.2 times longer than broad; apex acute, or acuminate; base cuneate or attenuate, or obtuse; oblique part 0–9 mm long; obliqueness index 0–6 percent. Adult leaves petioles 1.4–2.6 cm long; 10–18 % length of lamina; prickles absent.
Upper leaf surface. Upper leaf surface green; prickles absent, or present on midvein only, or present on midvein and lateral veins; prickles 0–80; prickles straight, acicular; prickles 3–8 mm long; stellate hairs confined to midrib, or distributed throughout; protostellae absent; stellate hair density absent from surface, or very sparse. Upper leaf surface ordinary stellae 0.8–5 mm apart; 0.2–0.3 mm across; stalks 0 mm long; lateral rays 6–8; porrect; central ray 0–0.5 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; prickles absent, or present on midvein only, or present on midvein and lateral veins; prickles 0–16; prickles straight, acicular. Lower leaf surface stellate hair density very sparse to moderate. Lower leaf surface stellae 0.2–0.5 mm apart; 0.2–0.3 mm diameter; stalks 0 mm long; lateral rays 7–10; lateral rays porrect; central ray 0–0.3 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 supra-axillary; cymose (pseudo-racemose); common peduncle 1–7 mm long; rachis prickles absent; 7–30-flowered; weakly andromonoecious. Flowers 5-merous. Pedicels at anthesis 6–12 mm long; markedly thicker distally; 0.4–0.7 mm thick at mid-point; prickles absent. Calyx tube at anthesis 2–4 mm long. Calyx lobes at anthesis deltate, or rostrate; 1.8–3.5 mm long. Calyx prickles at anthesis absent. Calyx stellae dense to very dense; yellow, or transparent, or purple; 0.2–0.25 mm across; stalks 0 mm long; lateral rays 6–9; central ray 0–1 times as long as laterals; central ray not gland-tipped. Calyx simple hairs absent. Calyx Type 2 hairs absent. Corolla mauve, or purple; 8–10 mm long; deeply lobed; inner surface sparsely stellate-hairy. Anthers 4–5.5 mm long. Ovary with stellate hairs only, or with stellate and Type 2 hairs. Functional style 5–7 mm long; erect; with stellate hairs only, or with stellate and Type 2 hairs; stellae 0.25–0.4 mm across; stellae lateral rays 7–9; stellae central ray 0.5–2 times as long as laterals.
Fruits. Fruiting calyx lobes less than half length of mature fruit; prickles absent. Mature fruits 1–2 per inflorescence; globular; 24 mm diameter; red, or orange; 2-locular; placenta stalked, anvil-shaped; mesocarp moist but not juicy; exocarp 4.7–5 mm thick. Pedicels at fruiting stage 22–31 mm long; 1.1–1.8 mm thick at mid-point. Seeds pale yellow; 3–3.6 mm long.
Distribution and habitat. Queensland. Cook, North Kennedy. Evergreen notophyll rainforest (no eucalypts), wet eucalypt forest with rainforest understorey, or rainforest margins.
Miscellaneous. Data source: specimens.
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Cite this publication as: ‘Bean, A.R. 2005 onwards. Solanum species of Eastern Australia. Version: 8th October 2006. http://delta-intkey.com’.