364 SOLANACEAE (NIGHTSHADE FAMILY) 
sistent # ‘he base of the fruit, which is an ovoid pulpy berry, at 
first green, then bright orange, and finally ruby-red, the thin skin so 
transparent as to reveal the yellow seeds within. A single vine 
may exhibit all stages of coloring, from violet‘flowers to green and 
ripe fruit. 
Means of control 
Young plants may be hand-pulled when the ground is soft; older 
roots must be grubbed out. Or the shrub may be killed by pouring 
hot brine or caustic soda about the roots. 
COMMON, OR BLACK, NIGHTSHADE 
Solanum nigrum, L. 
Other English names: Deadly Nightshade, Duscle, Poison Berry, 
Hound’s Berry, Stubble Berry. 
Native. Annual. Propagates by 
seeds. 
Time of bloom: July to October. 
Seed-time: Berries ripe in late 
August, but frequently are still 
maturing when plants are win- 
terkilled. 
Range: Nova Scotia to the North- 
west Territory, southward to 
Florida and Texas. 
Habitat: Cultivated ground, old 
fields, waste places. 
The poisonous qualities of this 
plant are said to vary much with 
the conditions of its growth, the 
more dangerous having more of 
the characteristic musky odor. 
Some housewives boldly make pies 
of the fruit—occasionally with un- 
pleasant consequences. Children 
have been poisoned by it, also 
Fia, 254. — Black Nightshade (Sola- Calves, sheep, goats, and swine, but 
num nigrum). x4. “fortunately few cases are fatal,”? 
1Thirty Poisonous Plants, by V. K. Chesnut, U.S. Dept. of Agriculture. 
