Eastern Black Nightshade

Eastern Black Nightshade

Solanum ptycanthum Dunal

Solanaceae (Nightshade Family)

▲ ▼ seedlings

▲ ▼ young plants

▲ ▼ flowering plants

▲ immature fruit

▲ mature fruit

▲ ▼ mature plants

Eastern Black Nightshade:

much branched, summer annual weed, 1-3' tall
produces small white flowers and small oval purplish fruit
grows in cultivated fields, gardens, waste areas
unripe berries may be poisonous
can produce up to 178,000 seeds per plant
plants generally not spiny
black nightshade similar, but has larger fruit (up to 1/2" diameter), and usually leaf undersides are green, not purplish as on eastern black nightshade
hairy nightshade similar to eastern black nightshade, but leaves very hairy, berries stay green