Obdkb 94.— SOLANACE^. 571 



prickly. Lvs. sometimes twin, pinnatifid or undivided. Ped. solitary 

 or several, 1 to oo-flowerod, terminal, but becoming lateral by the ex- 

 tension of the axis. 



i Unarmed, Anthers ovate-elliptic, pores terminal-introrse (a). 



a Herbaceous, witli pinnatiiid loaves. Eaceme exceeding tlie leaves No. 1 



a Herbaocous, witli undivided leaves. Baceme shorter than the leaves Nos. 2—4 



a Shrubby, climbing or erect. Berries red Noe. 5 — 7 



$ Armed with sharp spines. Anthers linear-oblong, pores terminal-extrorse (b). 



b Peduncles exceeding tho leaves, many-flowered Nos. 8, 9 



b Peduncles shorter than the leaves, few-flowered Nos. 10, 11 



1 S. tuberdsum L. Comuok Potato. St. herbaceous; subterraneao 

 branches bearing tubers ; lvs. pinnatifid, segm. unequal, the alternate ones min- 

 ute ; cor. 5-angled ; pedicels jointed. — @ This valuable plant is a native of the 

 Cordilleras of S. America, where it still grows wild. Although it now consti- 

 tutes so large a portion of the food of civilized man, it was scarcely kno\vn untal 

 the 17th century, and was not extensively cultivated before the middle of the 

 18th. The varieties of the potato are very numerous, differing in their time of 

 ripening, quality, color, form, size, almost endlessly. 



2 S. nigrum L. Black Nightshade. St: herbaceous, angular, smooihish ; ha. 

 ovate, toothed and waved ; umbels lateral, drooping. — @ A weed-like plant, with- 

 out beauty and of suspicious aspect, about rubbish, in old fields, N. and W. 

 States. Stem erect, branching, angular, a foot high. Leaves almost always with 

 the lamina perforated and the margin erose as if gnawed by insects. Ped. gener- 

 ally midway between the leaves. Fls* white, anthers yellow. Berries globoua, 

 black. Reputed poisonous, but is used medicinally. Flowers in summer 

 § Eur. 



3 S. nodifldnun Jacq. St. herbaceous or half-shrubby, branched; branches 

 terete, herbaceous, glabrous ; lvs. ovate, entire, or subrepand, acute, glabrous ; fls. 

 subumbellate, minute; stalks and caL puberulent. — 2( S. Car. to Fla. and La. 

 Stem 2 to 3f high, with a ridge descenifing irom each petiole. Lvs. 2 to 4' long, 

 half as wide, petioles near 1'. 'Ped. filiform, 6 to 12" long, growing from thick- 

 ened nodes a httle below the next lea^ bearing several (3 to 8) white fls. Cor. 

 cup-form, 2" broad. Fr. not seen. 



4 S. pycnduthum DunaL St. herbaceous, slender, angular-furrowed, hispid; 

 lvs. ovate-oilong, acuminate, attenuate to a petiole, subrepand^ puberulent, pale 

 beneath ; ped. short, filiform, hirsute, 1 to 3-flowered, subopposite to the leaves. — 

 Ga. about Savannah (Dunal, apud DC. Sed dubito.) Plant green. Lvs. 1 to 2' 

 by 3 to 8", petioles 2 to 5". Fls. nodding, 2 to 3" broad, white? Anthers yel- 

 low. . Berry globular. 



5 S. Dulcamara L. Bitteesweet. "Woody Nightshade. St. shrubby, fleiru- 

 ous ; lvs. ovate-cordate, upper ones hastate or laciniate ; clusters cymous, suboppo- 

 site and terminal. — A well-known shrubby climber, with blue flowers and red 

 berries, N. Eng. to Ark. Stem branching, several feet in length, climbing about 

 hedges and thickets in low grounds. Lower leaves entire ; the upper ones be- 

 coming aurioulate or hastate. Flowers drooping, on branching peduncles from 

 . the side of the stem. Corolla of 5 reflexed segments, purple, with 2 green spots 

 at the base of each segment. Berries bright red, said to be poisonous. JL 

 §Eur. 



6 S. Pseudo-Cdpslcuin L. JeRBSAlem Cheery. St. shrubby ; lvs. oblong- 

 lanceolate, subrepand; ped. 1-flowered, opposite the leaves. — ij A small, orna- 

 mental shrub, cultivated. Stem 2 — if high, branchmg into a symmetrical sum- 

 mit Leaves dark evergreen, smooth and shining, about 2' long. Flowers white, 

 with orange anthers, drooping, succeeded by a few scarlet, globous berries of the 

 size of small cherries, f Mauritius, &o. 



7 S. sempervirens Dun. Shrubby, twining and dimbmg ; branches herba- 

 ceous ; lvs. entire, lance-ovate or elliptic, obliquely cordate, obtuse, with a blunt cusp, 

 very smooth and shining ; panicles terminal, divaricate, roughish and hairy. — 

 Shrubberies, arbors, Ac., hardy South. An elegant climber. Branches cinnamon- 

 colored, glandular. Lvs. thick, of a bright, shining green. Cor. plicate, 6 or 6 

 times larger than the calyx, f Guiana. 



37 



