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Can anyone help identify this plant?

Posted by illygirl98 z5 IL (My Page) on
Mon, Jul 31, 06 at 17:30

A friend found this on the net, but the person selling it had / has no clue what the name of the plant is.

Here is the descritpion that was posted with the picture.. "I found this plant growing by an old homesite dating back to the Civil War. I have no idea what it is called. It appears to be a perennial. It is shrub looking. It has small white blooms. The fruit turns red. I tasted one, and it has a watermelon taste. This is the only where that I have seen these plants growing. They seem to be doing best in shade. If anyone has an idea of what these might be please let me know. The seeds look like pepper or tomato seeds."

The photo of this plant can be seen on my website ..
www.angelfire.com/poetry/cuzbrat/plants.html

Any information on this plant would be dearly appreciated. Thank you. illygirl98@frontiernet.net


Follow-Up Postings:

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RE: Can anyone help identify this plant?

It looks very similar to Solanum pseudocapsicum, Jerusalem or winter cherry. This is a rather tender perennial, frequently sold as a houseplant in colder climates, that is often seeded by birds in more southerly areas. All parts of the plant are poisonous, so I'd hesitate to make taste tests to see just how much like watermelon it is - small amounts ingested will cause just gastrointestinal upset. You would have to eat quite a bit to have truly toxic effects.

Here is a link that might be useful: Jerusalem or winter cherry


 
 

 

 


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