| | Solanum species of eastern and northern Australia |
Habit. Erect. Rhizomatous perennial shrub. 0.3–1 m high.
Branchlets. Branchlets brown or green. Branchlet prickles 30–80 per decimetre, straight and acicular, 1.5–8 mm long, 8–16 times longer than wide, glabrous or with scattered short glandular hairs on lower half. Branchlet hairs short glandular or simple. Branchlet stellate hairs absent. Branchlet simple hairs erect, straight, not gland-tipped, 3–6 mm long, short glandular hairs sparse or dense.
Leaves. Leaves broadly ovate or orbicular, 7.5–16.5 cm long, 6–13 cm wide, 1–1.4 times longer than broad, entire or shallowly lobed throughout or deeply lobed throughout, lobes 0 on each side or 2–4 on each side, lobes acute or obtuse, lobing index 1–3. Leaf apex acute, base obtuse or cordate, oblique part 0–6 mm long, obliqueness index 0–4 percent. Petioles 3.8–6.2 cm long, 35–55% length of lamina, prickles present.
Upper leaf surface. Upper leaf surface green, prickles present on midvein and lateral veins, prickles 4–30, prickles straight and acicular or straight, broad-based, prickles 3–10 mm long. Upper leaf surface stellate hairs absent, absent from surface. Upper leaf surface simple hairs erect, straight, sparse or moderate to dense, not gland-tipped, 1–4 mm long. Upper leaf surface short glandular hairs present only in vein depressions.
Lower leaf surface. Lower leaf surface green, prickles present on midvein and lateral veins, prickles 30–50, prickles straight and acicular or straight, broad-based. Lower leaf surface stellate hairs absent. Lower leaf surface simple hairs absent or erect, straight, sparse or moderate to dense, not gland-tipped, 1.5–3 mm long. Lower leaf surface short glandular hairs present only on veins.
Inflorescence. Inflorescence supra-axillary, solitary or sessile (rachis very short or absent), common peduncle absent, 1–5-flowered, with some bisexual and some male flowers. Flowers 5-merous. Pedicels at anthesis 8–21 mm long, same thickness throughout, 0.3–0.4 mm thick at mid-point, prickles present. Calyx tube at anthesis 1–3 mm long. Calyx lobes at anthesis deltate, 1.5–3 mm long. Calyx prickles at anthesis present, 20–30 per flower, 1.5–6 mm long. Calyx stellae absent. Calyx simple hairs present. Calyx short glandular hairs present. Corolla white, 7–10 mm long, deeply lobed, inner surface glabrous. Anthers 4.5–6 mm long. Ovary with short glandular hairs only. Functional style 5.5–7 mm long, protruding between anthers, glabrous.
Fruits. Fruiting calyx lobes less than half length of mature fruit, prickles 3–7 mm long. Mature fruits 1–3 per inflorescence, globular, 25–45 mm diameter, orange, 1-locular (septum absent or incomplete), placenta not apparent, interior dry, pericarp 2 mm thick, pedicels 17–28 mm long, pedicels 1–1.4 mm thick at mid-point. Seeds pale yellow, 4.8–5.5 mm long.
Distribution and habitat. Queensland, New South Wales. Qld: Moreton, Wide Bay, Burnett, Cook, Port Curtis, Kennedy South. NSW: North Coast, Central Coast, North-west Slopes. Evergreen notophyll rainforest (no eucalypts), wet eucalypt forest with rainforest understorey, or rainforest margins.
Classification. Naturalised. Subg. Leptostemonum. Common name: Devil's Apple. Data source: specimens.
Illustrations. • leaf and mature fruit.
Cite this publication as: ‘Bean, A.R. 2012 onwards. Solanum species of eastern and northern Australia. Version: 25th January 2023. delta-intkey.com’.
