Solanum Species of Eastern Australia
| Solanum Species of Eastern Australia | |
Habit and juveniles. Erect. Rhizomatous perennial shrub. 0.5–1.8 m high. Juvenile branchlets with 240–1400 prickles per dm. Juvenile leaves ovate; deeply lobed throughout; with 3–4 pairs of lobes; lamina 11.5 cm long; lamina 8 cm wide; with c. 40 prickles on upper surface.
Branchlets. Adult branchlets terete, or ridged; grey, or brown, or green. Adult branchlets prickles 240–1400 per decimetre; straight, acicular; 1–10 mm long; 14–20 times longer than wide; glabrous. Adult branchlets hairs Type 2, or stellate. Adult branchlets stellae dense; 0.4–0.7 mm diameter; stalks 0–0.15 mm long; lateral rays 6–8; lateral rays porrect; central ray 0.5–1 times as long as laterals; central ray not gland-tipped; thready. Adult branchlets Type 2 hairs sparse.
Leaves. Adult leaves elliptical, or ovate; entire, or shallowly lobed throughout; lobes 0 on each side, or 3–4 on each side; lobes acute, or obtuse; lobing index 1–1.9; lamina 5.5–10.5 cm long; lamina 1.8–6.5 cm wide; lamina 1.5–3 times longer than broad; apex acute; base obtuse, or cordate; oblique part 0–3.5 mm long; obliqueness index 0–5 percent. Adult leaves petioles 1.1–2.8 cm long; 18–30 % length of lamina; prickles present.
Upper leaf surface. Upper leaf surface green; prickles present on midvein and lateral veins; prickles 8–20; prickles straight, acicular; prickles 1–8 mm long; stellate hairs distributed throughout; protostellae absent; stellate hair density very sparse to sparse. Upper leaf surface ordinary stellae 1–3 mm apart; 0.25–0.7 mm across; stalks 0–0.1 mm long; lateral rays 4–8; porrect; central ray 0.8–1.5 times as long as laterals; central ray not gland-tipped. Upper leaf surface simple hairs absent. Upper leaf surface Type 2 hairs present only in vein depressions.
Lower leaf surface. Lower leaf surface white; prickles present on midvein only, or present on midvein and lateral veins; prickles 2–10; prickles straight, acicular. Lower leaf surface stellate hair density very dense. Lower leaf surface stellae c. 0.05 mm apart; 0.5–0.8 mm diameter; stalks 0–0.3 mm long; lateral rays 7–9; lateral rays porrect; central ray 1–1.5 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), or branched (paniculate to corymbose); common peduncle 21–40 mm long; rachis prickles present; 7–25-flowered; with all flowers bisexual. Flowers 5-merous. Pedicels at anthesis 3–6 mm long; same thickness throughout, or markedly thicker distally; 0.3–0.6 mm thick at mid-point; prickles absent, or present. Calyx tube at anthesis 0.5–1.5 mm long. Calyx lobes at anthesis hemispherical, or deltate, or attenuate; 2–3.5 mm long. Calyx prickles at anthesis absent. Calyx stellae moderate to dense; transparent; 0.25–0.5 mm across; stalks 0 mm long; lateral rays 5–8; central ray 0.8–1.2 times as long as laterals; central ray not gland-tipped. Calyx simple hairs absent. Calyx Type 2 hairs absent. Corolla purple; 7–10 mm long; deeply lobed; inner surface glabrous. Anthers 3.5–5.5 mm long. Ovary glabrous, or with stellate hairs only. Functional style 6.5–8.5 mm long; erect; glabrous, or with stellate hairs only; stellae c. 0.4 mm across; stellae lateral rays c. 8; stellae central ray c. 1 times as long as laterals.
Fruits. Fruiting calyx lobes less than half length of mature fruit; prickles absent. Mature fruits 7–17 per inflorescence; globular; 8–10 mm diameter; black; 1-locular (septum absent or incomplete); placenta not apparent; mesocarp juicy, succulent; exocarp 0.1–0.2 mm thick. Pedicels at fruiting stage 8–10 mm long; 0.8–0.9 mm thick at mid-point. Seeds brown to black; 1.8–2.4 mm long.
Distribution and habitat. Queensland, New South Wales. Darling Downs, Burnett, Maranoa, Leichhardt, Warrego, Port Curtis. North-western slopes (NWS). Semi-evergreen vine thicket or brigalow/belah, shrubby eucalypt woodland, remote from rainforest.
Miscellaneous. Data source: specimens.
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’.