Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Introduction
- List of symbols and abbreviations
- 1 Species associations
- 2 Vegetation in West Africa
- 3 Annonaceae – soursop family
- 4 Amaranthaceae – amaranth family
- 5 Cucurbitaceae – gourd family
- 6 Ochnaceae – ironwood family
- 7 Combretaceae – afara family
- 8 Guttiferae (Clusiaceae) – butter tree family
- 9 Sterculiaceae – cocoa family
- 10 Bombacaceae – silk cotton family
- 11 Malvaceae – cotton family
- 12 Euphorbiaceae – cassava family
- 13 Caesalpiniaceae – pride of Barbados family
- 14 Mimosaceae – Acacia family
- 15 Papilionaceae – cowpea family
- 16 Ulmaceae – afefe family
- 17 Moraceae – mulberry family
- 18 Meliaceae – mahogany family
- 19 Sapindaceae – akee apple family
- 20 Anacardiaceae – cashew nut family
- 21 Sapotaceae – sheabutternut family
- 22 Apocynaceae – frangipani family
- 23 Asclepiadaceae – blood flower or milkweed family
- 24 Rubiaceae – abura family
- 25 Compositae (Asteraceae) – Tridax family
- 26 Solanaceae – tomato family
- 27 Convolvulaceae – sweet potato family
- 28 Bignoniaceae – jacaranda family
- 29 Acanthaceae – Thunbergia family
- 30 Verbenaceae – teak family
- 31 Labiatae (Lamiaceae) – Hausa potato family
- 32 Commelinaceae – day flower family
- 33 Zingiberaceae – ginger family
- 34 Marantaceae – (West Indian) arrowroot family
- 35 Liliaceae – lily family
- 36 Araceae – cocoyam family
- 37 Palmae (Arecaceae) – palm family
- 38 Orchidaceae – orchid family
- 39 Cyperaceae – sedge family
- 40 Gramineae (Poaceae) – grass family
- General bibliography
- Index of family, generic and common names
26 - Solanaceae – tomato family
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 02 November 2009
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Introduction
- List of symbols and abbreviations
- 1 Species associations
- 2 Vegetation in West Africa
- 3 Annonaceae – soursop family
- 4 Amaranthaceae – amaranth family
- 5 Cucurbitaceae – gourd family
- 6 Ochnaceae – ironwood family
- 7 Combretaceae – afara family
- 8 Guttiferae (Clusiaceae) – butter tree family
- 9 Sterculiaceae – cocoa family
- 10 Bombacaceae – silk cotton family
- 11 Malvaceae – cotton family
- 12 Euphorbiaceae – cassava family
- 13 Caesalpiniaceae – pride of Barbados family
- 14 Mimosaceae – Acacia family
- 15 Papilionaceae – cowpea family
- 16 Ulmaceae – afefe family
- 17 Moraceae – mulberry family
- 18 Meliaceae – mahogany family
- 19 Sapindaceae – akee apple family
- 20 Anacardiaceae – cashew nut family
- 21 Sapotaceae – sheabutternut family
- 22 Apocynaceae – frangipani family
- 23 Asclepiadaceae – blood flower or milkweed family
- 24 Rubiaceae – abura family
- 25 Compositae (Asteraceae) – Tridax family
- 26 Solanaceae – tomato family
- 27 Convolvulaceae – sweet potato family
- 28 Bignoniaceae – jacaranda family
- 29 Acanthaceae – Thunbergia family
- 30 Verbenaceae – teak family
- 31 Labiatae (Lamiaceae) – Hausa potato family
- 32 Commelinaceae – day flower family
- 33 Zingiberaceae – ginger family
- 34 Marantaceae – (West Indian) arrowroot family
- 35 Liliaceae – lily family
- 36 Araceae – cocoyam family
- 37 Palmae (Arecaceae) – palm family
- 38 Orchidaceae – orchid family
- 39 Cyperaceae – sedge family
- 40 Gramineae (Poaceae) – grass family
- General bibliography
- Index of family, generic and common names
Summary
A tropical and temperate family of herbs and soft-wooded shrubs, a few members being climbers or small trees. Prickles and/or stellate hairs are frequently present. The family is centred in central and south America, and is best known for its economic products, which include tobacco, tomato, Irish potato and egg plant, all introduced, and the indigenous Solatium nigrum (ogumo, bologi).
Ornamentals introduced from tropical South America include the shrub Brunfelsia americana, which has blue .1. flowers. A number of Solanum and Datura spp. with ⊕ flowers are weeds. The flowers of Solatium wrightii are large and easily examined.
Members of the family have sympodial growth, bearing alternate, simple exstipulate leaves, which are sometimes lobed and usually adnate to the axis above their node of origin. Latex is lacking. The flowers are in cymes, and are generally white or purple and delicate, often with very short free corolla lobes (limbs), the whole folded or pleated. The pistil is of two joined carpels with axile placentation and numerous ovules. Bracts often occur in pairs in the inflorescences, one larger than the other, the larger one remaining adnate to the shoot it subtends.
Flowers ⊕ (but see Solatium) 5-part (occasionally more, e.g. tomato), except for the pistil. K(5) persistent. C(5), .1. in only 1 small tribe; ribbed and at least conduplicate (also contorted as in Convolvulaceae in Datura) though valvate in Capsicum.
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- Flowering Plants in West Africa , pp. 228 - 234Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 1988