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Solanaceae
Kangaroo Apple Flower
Solanum laciniatum
Adaptability and resourcefulness.
- Family
- Solanaceae
- Genus
- Solanum
- Native to
- Australia, New Zealand
- Bloom season
- Spring, Summer
- Type
- evergreen shrub
- Height
- 5-10 ft
- Sunlight
- full sun to part shade
- Soil
- well-drained, fertile, loamy
- Water
- moderate
- Hardiness
- 9-11
- Lifespan
- short-lived perennial
Did you know
- The egg-shaped fruits turn from green to orange when ripe and were traditionally eaten by Aboriginal Australians, but only when fully ripe as unripe fruits are toxic.
- The plant was commercially cultivated in the Soviet Union and New Zealand as a source of solasodine, a precursor for manufacturing steroid hormones.
- Its deeply lobed, almost palm-like leaves give it a distinctly tropical appearance unlike most plants in the nightshade family.
- The name 'Kangaroo Apple' may come from the fruit being eaten by kangaroos or from the lobed leaves resembling a kangaroo's paw prints.
- It is a fast-growing pioneer species that quickly colonizes disturbed ground, forest edges, and coastal cliffs in its native range.
Color meanings
0
versatility
1
pioneering spirit