| | Solanum species of eastern and northern Australia |
Habit. Prostrate or sprawling. Rhizomatous perennial shrub. 0.1–0.5 m high.
Branchlets. Branchlets rusty or brown. Branchlet prickles 50–130 per decimetre, straight and acicular, 1–6 mm long, 7–11 times longer than wide, glabrous or with stellate hairs only at base. Branchlet hairs stellate. Branchlet stellate hairs very dense, 0.3–0.6 mm diameter, stalks 0–0.25 mm long, lateral rays 7–8, lateral rays porrect or ascending, central ray 0.8–1.2 times as long as laterals, central ray not gland-tipped. Branchlet short glandular hairs absent.
Leaves. Leaves ovate or broadly ovate, 3–7.9 cm long, 1.4–3.9 cm wide, 1.9–2.6 times longer than broad, entire. Leaf apex acute, base obtuse or cordate, oblique part 1–4.5 mm long, obliqueness index 2–6 percent. Petioles 1.4–5.1 cm long, 34–67% length of lamina, prickles absent or present.
Upper leaf surface. Upper leaf surface yellowish, prickles absent. Upper leaf surface stellate hairs distributed throughout, very dense, 0.05 mm apart, 0.35–0.5 mm across, stalks 0–0.2 mm long, lateral rays 7–8, lateral rays porrect, central ray 0.7–1 times as long as laterals, central ray not gland-tipped. Upper leaf surface simple hairs absent. Upper leaf surface short glandular hairs absent.
Lower leaf surface. Lower leaf surface white to grey, prickles absent. Lower leaf surface stellate hairs very dense, 0.05 mm apart, 0.4–0.6 mm diameter, stalks 0–0.3 mm long, lateral rays 7–8, lateral rays porrect, central ray 0.4–0.8 times as long as laterals, central ray not gland-tipped. Lower leaf surface simple hairs absent. Lower leaf surface short glandular hairs absent.
Inflorescence. Inflorescence supra-axillary, cymose (pseudo-racemose), common peduncle 12–42 mm long, rachis prickles present, 3–6-flowered, with all flowers bisexual. Flowers 5-merous. Pedicels at anthesis 4–9 mm long, prickles absent or present. Calyx tube at anthesis 2.5–3 mm long. Calyx lobes at anthesis deltate, 1.5–3 mm long. Calyx prickles at anthesis absent or present, 0–50 per flower, 0.5–4 mm long. Calyx stellae very dense, brown or rusty, 0.4–0.6 mm across, stalks 0–0.4 mm long, lateral rays 7–8, central ray 1–1.4 times as long as laterals, central ray not gland-tipped. Calyx simple hairs absent. Calyx short glandular hairs absent. Corolla purple, 7–11 mm long, rotate, inner surface densely stellate-hairy. Anthers 3.8–4.8 mm long. Filaments 1.1 mm long. Ovary glabrous. Functional style 10 mm long, protruding between anthers, glabrous.
Fruits. Fruiting calyx hypanthium accrescent, enclosing most or all of mature fruit, prickles 2–7 mm long. Mature fruits 1–4 per inflorescence, oblate, 4-locular, pedicels 12–17 mm long, pedicels 0.7–0.9 mm thick at mid-point.
Distribution and habitat. Northern Territory.
Classification. Subg. Leptostemonum. Data source: specimens.
Cite this publication as: ‘Bean, A.R. 2012 onwards. Solanum species of eastern and northern Australia. Version: 25th January 2023. delta-intkey.com’.