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Ontario Weeds: Eastern black nightshade
Return to the Ontario Weeds Gallery Excerpt from Publication 505, Ontario Weeds, Order
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Name: Eastern black nightshade, Solanum
ptycanthum Dun. | Top of Page |
| Top of Page | Stems & Roots: Stems erect, 5-100 cm (2-40 in.) high, usually much-branched in the upper part, mostly hairless; leaves alternate (1 per node), ovate or rhombic (diamond-shaped), pale green, soft, thin and nearly translucent.Flowers & Fruit: Flowers small, usually 2 to 5 grouped together in a small umbel (flower stalks all from 1 point) on a short stalk sticking out from the side of the stem rather than from the axil of a leaf (angle between leaf and stem) as in most other plants; calyx of 5 united sepals with 5 pointed lobes, small and not enlarging with the fruit; petals white or white tinged with purple, united into a star-shaped corolla with 5 sharp lobes resembling the flower of a potato but much smaller, about 9 - 15 mm (1/3-2/5 in.) in diameter; the short anthers about 1.3-2 mm (1/20-1/12 in.) long, united and forming a yellow column in the centre of the flower; fruits are berries, always larger than the calyx, green at first but turning black and juicy when mature, 5-9 mm (1/5-1/3 in.) in diameter, containing several, small, flat seeds and 4 to 8 small, hard, irregular stone-like crumbs. Flowers from June until late autumn. Habitat: Eastern black nightshade occurs throughout southern Ontario in open dry woods, edges of pastures, waste places, and in cultivated land, especially in row crops. Caution: The berries of Eastern black nightshade are reputed to be poisonous and thus the plant is sometimes called "deadly nightshade," a name belonging to a different plant. Until more information is available about their palatability, it is advisable not to eat these attractive berries. Feeding experiments have demonstrated that this plant can be toxic to cattle if it comprises about 25% or more of the forage intake. | Top of Page | Related Links... on general Weed
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