SOLANUM. 



THE ENGLISH FLOWER GARDEN. 



SOLANUM. 



86 5 



S. LAURIFOLIA. A high climbing species, 

 the stems round, armed with strong straight 

 prickles, the branches angled, mostly unarmed. 

 It is evergreen, and easily recognised by its 

 leathery, bright green, three-nerved leaves, 

 elliptic in shape. There is a fine specimen of 

 this in Canon Ellacombe's garden at Bitton. 

 N. America. 



S. PSEUDO-CHINA. The lower part of the 

 stem is armed with straight, needle-like 

 prickles, the upper part and the branches 

 mostly unarmed. The leaves become leathery 

 when old. They are ovate, often narrowed 

 about the middle or lobed at the base, seven 

 or nine-nerved and green on both sides, some- 

 times toothed on the margin. N. America and 

 the West Indies. 



S. ROTUNDIFOLIA (Green Briar}. A high 

 climbing species with large, thin and nearly 

 round leaves. The stems are angular and the 

 prickles stout, scattered, and sometimes a little 

 curved. This is a handsome strong-growing 

 species, which does well in the Trinity College 

 Botanic Gardens, Dublin. N.America. Syns., 

 S. caduca and S. quadrangularis. 



S. TAMNOIDES. This grows well in the 

 Bamboo Garden at Kew and shows well how 

 such a plant may be used to ramble over tree 

 stumps to make a mass of picturesque vegeta- 

 tion. It has the free-growing habit of S. aspera, 

 and bears numerous black berries. 



S. WALTERI has stems angled, prickly 

 below, the branches usually unarmed. The 

 berries are bright red, but perhaps not produced 

 in this country. N. America. 



R. IRWIN LYNCH. 



SOLANUM. The vast Solarium or 

 Potato family embraces plants of great 

 beauty from all over the world, many 

 being remarkable for their ample foliage 

 finely spined and cut. Others are grown 

 for their brilliant fruits of many colours 

 and often of great food value ; while 

 others again carry handsome flowers, and 

 in some cases charm of foliage, fruit and 

 flower is found in the same plant. They 

 are equally variable as to habit, many 

 being stout shrubs or low trees, and others 

 climbing or creeping plants. In a general 

 way the climbing kinds show beauty of 

 flower and the shrubby species beauty 

 of leaf and fruit. Coming mainly from 

 warm climates few kinds are hardy with 

 us, though many may be treated as tender 

 annuals or wintered under glass and used 

 with fine effect in the summer garden, as 

 in the Cambridge Botanic Garden. To 

 do well these kinds need a rich moist soil, 

 with shelter from wind. Those kinds 

 hardy enough to be grown against walls 

 in the open are best in rather poor dry 

 soil, for if grown too freely the shoots 

 perish during winter. Seed is easily 

 obtainable, and if raised early in heat the 

 plants are ready for putting out by the end 



of May or early in June. The following 

 are among the best for all purposes : 



S. ACANTHIFOLIUM. A stout shrubby kind 

 of erect growth, with dull green prickly leaves 

 and stems, large purple flowers, and heavy 

 golden fruits. 



S. ALBIDUM POORTMANI reaches the size 

 of a low tree in the mountains of Ecuador. 

 Its stems, armed with stout spines, are a 

 metallic blue colour, and the deeply-lobed 

 leaves sometimes 2 ft. in length a lively green ; 

 the flowers and fruits are insignificant. 



S. ARBOREUM is a shrub with handsome 

 flowers, hardy in mild seasons and on 

 sheltered walls near the south coast. The 

 leaves, 8 or 9 ins. long, are set with sharp 

 brown spines, and the large flowers in clusters 

 of 6 to 9 together are pale blue or mauve 

 with deep orange anthers. 



S. ATROPURPUREUM. An erect plant with 

 purple leaves and stems, 3 to 6 ft. high. The 

 deeply-lobed long-spined leaves are threaded 

 with pale veins, and the small purple flowers 

 yield small round berries. Brazil. 



S. BALBISI. A shrubby plant hardy against 

 walls in sheltered southern gardens, with 

 slender straggling stems and deeply-cut leaves 

 armed with pale brown spines. The pale 

 mauve flowers are large, succeeded by bright 

 scarlet berries like a small cherry and sweet. 

 Syn. S. sisymbrifolium. This can be treated 

 as a tender annual, or grown from cuttings. 



S. BETACEUM is a small tree from S. 

 America of distinct appearance, with stout 

 smooth stems and large oval leaves of fleshy 

 texture, veined with purple in the variety 

 purpureum. The flowers are small, followed 

 by orange-red or scarlet fruits like a hen's 

 e gg f r si ze ar >d shape, hanging in showy 

 clusters and so thickly that a thousand hang 

 on a single mature plant in its own land. 

 This is one of the best, of rapid growth, and 

 easily handled. 



S. CILIATUM, another species with showy 

 scarlet fruits, round and like a small Tomato 

 of dry texture and useful for winter decoration, 

 as they will hang for months among the glossy 

 spined leaves without spoiling. The variety 

 macrocarpum is the best. 



S. CITRULLIFOLIUM. A low spiny kind 

 from Texas, with much lobed leaves, large 

 rosy-violet flowers and showy yellow fruit. 



.S. CORNUTUM. An annual kind from 

 Central America, 2 to 3 ft. high, with slender 

 yellow-spined stems, much-cut leaves, and 

 large yellow flowers followed by spiny berries. 

 Though differing slightly, S. Fontanesianum 

 comes near this. 



S. CRINITUM is a stout shrubby plant of 5 

 or 6 ft., with leaves 2 ft. or more long, of 

 velvet texture and tender green tint, threaded 

 with purple veins set with spines. The deep 

 blue flowers are 2 ins. across and hang in 

 heavy clusters, followed by fruits an inch or 

 more in diameter. This grows strongly in 

 sheltered southern gardens. Increase by 

 suckers. Guiana. 



S. CRISPUM (Potato Tree) reaches 15 to 20 

 3 K 



