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Common Name: Kangaroo Apple

General Information

Solanum laciniatum is an evergreen shrub that can grow up to 3.00 metres tall.
It is harvested from the wild for local use as a food, medicine and source of materials.

Known Hazards

All green parts of the plant, and the unripe fruits, are poisonous[, ].

Botanical References

,

Range

Australia - South Australia, Victoria, New South Wales, Tasmania.

Habitat

Open scrub and forest margins at low altitudes near the coast[].

Properties

Edibility Rating
Medicinal Rating
Habit	Evergreen Shrub
Height	3.00 m
Pollinators	Insects
Cultivation Status	Wild

Cultivation Details

Succeeds in most fertile soils in a sunny position[].
Tolerates temperatures down to at least -7°c in Australian gardens[] but is not very hardy in Britain. It sometimes succeeds as a shrub outdoors in the mildest areas of the country[] but is more usually cut to the ground by winter cold. It can, however, be grown at the foot of a warm sunny wall and be treated as a herbaceous perennial. As long as the roots are given a good mulch in autumn they should survive quite cold winters[, ]. Alternatively, it is possible to grow the plant as an annual. If the seed is sown in early spring in a warm greenhouse and planted out after the last frosts it can fruit in its first year though yields will be lower than from plants grown as perennials[].
There is much confusion between this species and S. aviculare. Some botanists unite the two under S. aviculare whilst others say that S. laciniatum is a tetraploid form of that species[]. S. laciniatum is treated as a distinct species here[].

Edible Uses

Fruit - raw or cooked[, ]. It must be thoroughly ripe because the unripe fruit is poisonous[, , , ]. It can be used as a sweet fruit or as a vegetable[]. Best harvested once it has fallen from the plant, the fruit will then have lost its unpleasant acidity[]. It tastes much worse than it looks, the fruit is sickly sweet and often bitter[]. The quality varies from plant to plant and even from year to year from the same plant[]. The fruit is up to 2cm long and contains a large number of flat seeds[].

Medicinal

A source of steroids, much used in the pharmaceutical industry. The unripe berries are the richest source[, ].

Other Uses

In warmer climates than Britain this plant is often used as a hedge[].

Propagation

Seed - sow spring in a warm greenhouse. Germinates in 2 - 3 weeks at 20°c. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots when they are large enough to handle. If growing the plants as annuals, plant them out after the last expected frosts and give them some protection such as a cloche until they are growing well. If growing as a perennial, especially in areas at the limits of its cold-hardiness, it will probably be better to grow the plants on in the greenhouse for their first winter. Give them fairly large pots (12cm or larger) because they have very strong root growth. Top growth might die back over winter, but the roots should survive if temperatures in the greenhouse do not fall below about -5°c. Plant them out in early summer of the following year. The plants will be somewhat hardier in their second winter.
Cuttings of half-ripe wood, mid summer in a frame. Very easy, the cuttings root within a couple of weeks. Pot them up in fairly large pots and overwinter them in the greenhouse before planting out in early summer.