Solanum wallacei, also known as Catalina nightshade,[2] Wallace's nightshade, Northern island nightshade, or wild tomato, is a perennial plant that produces purple flowers, but otherwise resembles a tomato plant. The foliage and purple-black berries are poisonous.

Solanum wallacei

Imperiled  (NatureServe)[1]
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Solanales
Family: Solanaceae
Genus: Solanum
Species:
S. wallacei
Binomial name
Solanum wallacei

This rare plant is native to canyons and hillsides on two of the three Channel Islands of California, as well as Guadalupe Island off Baja California.[3] It blooms in April and May.

Wallace's nightshade is named for William Allen Wallace (1815-1893) who collected samples from the Los Angeles area around 1854. Also named for him is the woolly daisy, (Eriophyllum wallacei), among others.

References edit

  1. ^ "NatureServe Explorer 2.0".
  2. ^ USDA, NRCS (n.d.). "Solanum wallacei". The PLANTS Database (plants.usda.gov). Greensboro, North Carolina: National Plant Data Team. Retrieved 17 November 2015.
  3. ^ California Native Plant Society Rare Plant Profile

External links edit