Solanum aviculare
G.Forst. Kangaroo AppleErect shrub or small tree to 4 m high, dark green, glabrous except for minute simple and glandular hairs on young growth and flowers; prickles absent. Leaves lobed or entire, apex acute to acuminate, base attenuate, concolorous, glabrous; lobed leaves broad-elliptic to obovate, 15–30 cm long; lobes 1–10 cm long, 0.5–2 cm wide; petiole to 4 cm long; entire leaves lanceolate-elliptic, 8–25 cm long, 1–3.5 cm wide; petiole 1–2 cm long. Inflorescences simple or forked at base, to 10-flowered; primary peduncle 0–3.5 cm long. Flowers on pedicels 1.5–2 cm long; calyx 5–6 mm long, lobes triangular, 1.5–3 mm long; corolla rotate-stellate, 25–40 mm diam., blue-violet, lobes acute; anthers 3.5–4.5 mm long. Berry ovoid to ellipsoid, 10–15 mm diam., orange-red to scarlet; seeds 1–1.5 mm long, light brown or red-brown; stone-cell granules mostly 1–1.5 mm long. Flowers mostly spring and summer.
GleP, VVP, VRiv, GipP, OtP, WaP, Gold, CVU, GGr, NIS, EGL, EGU, WPro, HSF, HNF, OtR, Strz, HFE, VAlp. Also WA (naturalised), SA (naturalised), Qld, NSW, Tas. New Zealand, New Guinea, New Caledonia. A colonizing species of disturbed or burnt sites, mostly eastern, some of the more westerly occurrences may be due to local naturalisations.
Occasionally cultivated as a source of solasodine for cortisone and other steroid drugs.
Jeanes, J.A. (1999). Solanaceae. In: Walsh, N.G.; Entwisle, T.J., Flora of Victoria Vol. 4, Cornaceae to Asteraceae, pp. 332–365. Inkata Press, Melbourne.
Spinning
