---

CLASSIFICATION

ORDER	: Solanales
FAMILY	: Solanaceae
GENUS	: Solanum L.
SPECIES	: nigrum L.
BOTANICAL NAME	: Solanum nigrum L.
SYNONYMS	: Solanum rubrum auct. Non L.
COMMON NAME	: Black nightshade.
TAMIL NAME	: Manatakkali.
HINDI NAME	: Mokoi.

PLANT DESCRIPTION

HABIT :  An annual herb, unarmed, variable in appearance with stem divaricately branched, minutely puberulous or glabrous.

LEAVES :  Lanceolate-ovate or ovate-elliptic, acute or obtuse at the apex, base tapering into the petiole, minutely puberulous on both sides, at length glabrous, petiolate.

INFLORESCENCE :  Extra-axillary subumbellate cymes.

FLOWERS :  Pedicellate, calyx 5 lobed, lobes ovate, obtuse. Corolla white, tube green, limb 5-13 mm in diameter, puberulous outside, lobes oblong, acute, ovary globose, glabrous.

FRUIT :  Globose, deep-red or black when ripe. Seeds spherical, flat, yellowish-brown, glabrous, microscopically rugose.

FLOWERING AND FRUITING TIME :  May – October.

MEDICINAL USES

Black nightshade is used for skin diseases, rheumatism, and gout.

Juice of the herb is given in chronic enlargement of the liver. It can cure ear, and eye diseases. It is sometimes prescribed to "remove the effect of old age."

It has been used traditionally for the treatment of bacterial infections, cough and indigestion.

IMAGES

Print this page