Ontario Weeds: Hairy nightshade

Table of Contents

1. Name
2. Other Names
3. Family
4. General Description
   • Photos and Pictures
5. Stems and Roots
6. Flowers and Fruit
7. Habitat
8. Similar Species
9. Related Links

Name: Hairy nightshade, Solanum sarachoides Sendt.

Other Names: morelle poilue, morelle sarachoide, Cupped nightshade, Potatoweed

Family: Nightshade or Potato Family (Solanaceae) 

General Description: Annual, reproducing only by seed.

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Photos and Pictures

Hairy nightshade. A. Plant.

B. Cluster of flowers.

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Stems & Roots: Stem branching and softly hairy, up to 1m (40in.) long, spreading or erect; leaves alternate, ovate, to nearly triangular (resembling some leaves of Lamb's-quarters), dull green to gray-green, thick and opaque to transmitted light, 1.5-10cm (3/5-4in.) long, usually finely hairy, especially along margins and main veins; some of these hairs with tiny glandular tips (seen under magnification), giving the plant a slightly sticky or clammy texture; margins of leaves usually smooth but occasionally with coarse, irregular, rounded teeth.

Flowers & Fruit: Inflorescence of 3-9 flowers in a short raceme sticking out from the side of the stem rather than from the axil of a leaf; corolla white or tinged with bluish-purple; calyx at first small but enlarging with age to 4-9mm (1/6-2/5in.) across at maturity and acting as a cup around the lower half (stem end) of the fruit; fruit a greenish berry turning yellowish-brown to brown at maturity. Flowers from July to October.

Habitat: A native of South America, Hairy nightshade is found in southern Ontario in cultivated fields on both mineral and muck soils.

Similar Species: It is distinguished by its relatively small, thick, non-translucent leaves, its stem and leaves being finely hairy and slightly sticky or clammy, its inflorescence a short raceme, its calyx enlarging with age and partially enclosing the base of the fruit, and its fruit turning yellowish-brown to brown at maturity.

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Related Links

... on general Weed topics
... on weed identification, order OMAFRA Publication 505: Ontario Weeds
... on weed control, order OMAFRA Publication 75: Guide To Weed Control

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