| | Solanum species of eastern and northern Australia |
Habit. Sprawling or erect. Rhizomatous perennial shrub. 0.6–3 m high.
Branchlets. Branchlets grey or yellow or rusty or brown. Branchlet prickles 4–30 per decimetre, straight and acicular, 3–7 mm long, 12–16 times longer than wide, glabrous. Branchlet hairs stellate. Branchlet stellate hairs dense to very dense, 0.15–0.25 mm diameter, stalks 0 mm long, lateral rays 6–8, lateral rays porrect, central ray absent.
Leaves. Leaves elliptical or ovate (sometimes obovate), 4.5–10.5 cm long, 1.9–5 cm wide, 2–2.9 times longer than broad, entire or shallowly lobed throughout, lobes 0 on each side or 2–3 on each side, lobes obtuse, lobing index 1–1.2. Leaf apex acute, base cuneate, oblique part 0–1.5 mm long, obliqueness index 0–2 percent. Petioles 0.3–1.1 cm long, 6–14% 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 0–15, prickles straight and acicular, prickles 3–6 mm long. Upper leaf surface stellate hairs absent or confined to midrib, absent from surface. Upper leaf surface simple hairs absent. Upper leaf surface short glandular hairs absent.
Lower leaf surface. Lower leaf surface white to grey or yellowish, prickles absent or present on midvein only or present on midvein and lateral veins, prickles 0–5, prickles straight and acicular. Lower leaf surface stellate hairs very dense, 0.05 mm apart, 0.15–0.25 mm diameter, stalks 0 mm long, lateral rays 7–8, lateral rays porrect, central ray 0 times as long as laterals. Lower leaf surface simple hairs absent. Lower leaf surface short glandular hairs absent.
Inflorescence. Inflorescence supra-axillary, sessile (rachis very short or absent) or cymose (pseudo-racemose), common peduncle absent or present, common peduncle 0–3 mm long, rachis prickles absent, 3–10-flowered, with all flowers bisexual. Flowers 5-merous. Pedicels at anthesis 6–21 mm long, same thickness throughout, 0.3–0.5 mm thick at mid-point, prickles absent. Calyx tube at anthesis 1–2.5 mm long. Calyx lobes at anthesis deltate or rostrate, 1.5–3 mm long. Calyx prickles at anthesis absent. Calyx stellae moderate to dense, 0.15–0.25 mm across, stalks 0 mm long, lateral rays 6–8, central ray 0 times as long as laterals. Calyx simple hairs absent. Calyx short glandular hairs absent. Corolla white or mauve, 8–10 mm long, deeply lobed, inner surface glabrous. Anthers 4–5.5 mm long. Ovary with short glandular hairs only. Functional style 5.5–7 mm long, protruding between anthers, with short glandular hairs only or with stellate and short glandular hairs, stellae c. 0.2 mm across, stellae lateral rays 6–7, stellae central ray 0.5–1 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, 7–12 mm diameter, red, 1-locular (septum absent or incomplete), placenta not apparent, interior juicy, succulent, pericarp 0.2–0.7 mm thick, pedicels 10–22 mm long, pedicels 0.6–0.9 mm thick at mid-point. Seeds pale yellow, 2.8–3.7 mm long.
Distribution and habitat. Queensland, New South Wales. Qld: Moreton, Darling Downs, Wide Bay, Burnett, Cook, Port Curtis, Kennedy North. NSW: North Coast. Evergreen notophyll rainforest (no eucalypts).
Classification. Subg. Leptostemonum. Data source: specimens.
Illustrations. • immature and mature fruits. • leaves (lower surface) and mature fruits. • flowers. • mature fruits. • leaves, upper surface.
Cite this publication as: ‘Bean, A.R. 2012 onwards. Solanum species of eastern and northern Australia. Version: 25th January 2023. delta-intkey.com’.
