Solanaceae FAMILY

Solanum subinerme

Edibility

0/5

Medicinal

2/5

Safety & Hazards

Although providing many well-known foods for people, including the potato, tomato, pepper and aubergine, most species in this genus also contain toxic alkaloids. Whilst these alkaloids can make the plant useful in treaing a range of medical conditions, they can also cause problems such as nausea, vomiting, salivation, drowsiness, abdominal pain, diarrhoea, weakness and respiratory depression^[1]. Unless there are specific entries with information on edible uses, it would be unwise to ingest any part of this plant^[PFAF].

Cultivation Details

HabitShrub

Growth—

Succeeds in a sunny position, growing well on nutrient-depleted soils^[2]. The plant responds well to coppicing and can survive forest fires by resprouting from the roots^[2].

Propagation

Seed - sow in trays in a nursery. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots when they are large enough to handle and grow them on fast. Plant them out when 10cm or more tall. Cuttings of half-ripe wood. Very easy, the cuttings root within a couple of weeks. Cite as: Tropical Plants Database, Ken Fern. tropical.theferns.info. 2026-02-20. <tropical.theferns.info/viewtropical.php?id=Solanum+subinerme>

Pollinators

Data unavailable

References

[1]Poisonous Plants of North Carolina — http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/depts/hort/consumer/poison/poison.htm ↩︎An excellent concise but comprehensive guide to toxic plants that grow in N. Carolina. It lists even those plants that are of very low toxicity, including several well-known food plants such as carrots and potatoes.
[2]The role of the shrub Cordia multispicata Cham. as a 'succession facilitator' in an abandoned pasture, Paragominas, — Vieira I.C.G.; Uhl C. & Nepstad D.C. · 1994 · http://10.1007/BF00044863 ↩︎
[3]Fruits of the Guianan Flora — van Roosmalen. M.G.M. · Institute of Systematic Boyany, Utrecht University; Netherlands. · 1985 · ISBN 90-9000988-4 ↩︎Terse descriptions of over 1,700 species from the Guianas that bear fruits - not necessarily edible! Often mentions if the fruit is edible, plus gives brief description of habit and habitat.
[4]Medicinal Plants of the Guianas — DeFilipps, R. A.; Maina, S. L.; & Crepin, J. · Smithsonian Museum · http://botany.si.edu/bdg/medicinal/index.html ↩︎A down-loadable PDF document of a book in pre-publication awaiting illustration. An excellent, if rather terse, guide to the traditional medicinal uses of the plants of the region
[PFAF]Plants for a Future — pfaf.org ↩︎