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Key to Solanaceae

Solanaceae

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© Deborah Graham
(c) Zeta, María - CC-BY
1 Leaves all basal, from creeping rhizomes; corolla white; [subfamily Solanoideae].
  2 Leaves broadly elliptical, rounded at the base; corolla lobes > 2× as long as wide, attenuate at the tip; [tribe Jaboroseae]
  2 Leaves ovate, strongly cordate at the base; corolla lobes < 1.5× as long as broad, obtuse (acute) at the tip; [tribe Capsiceae]
1 Leaves all or mainly cauline.
    3 Plant distinctly woody, an upright shrub or scrambling vine.
      4 Corolla ≥ 16 cm long.
        5 Plants large shrubs to small trees
      4 Corolla < 16 cm long.
          6 Flowers white or yellow, the tube > 6× as long as its diameter; fruit either a white berry, or a capsule.
             7 Fruit a white, purple, or black berry; [subfamily Cestroideae; tribe Cestreae]
             7 Fruit a capsule; [subfamily Nicotianoideae]
          6 Flowers lavender or blue, the tube < 3× as long as its diameter; fruit a red, orange, or yellow berry; [subfamily Solanoideae].
               8 Leaves 0.5-7 cm long, 0.2-3.5 cm wide; [tribe Lycieae]
               8 Leaves 10-30 cm long, 4-14 cm wide; [tribe Solaneae]
    3 Plant herbaceous (some taxa keyed here can be robust and tough-stemmed, but are herbaceous, lacking overwintering buds on aerial stems).
                 9 Corolla salverform or funnelform, with a well-developed tubular portion, this > 1 cm long (except in Calibrachoa) and either flared or essentially isodiametric and > 4× as long as its midpoint diameter, the limb expanding more or less abruptly from the tubular portion; fruit a capsule opening by longitudinal valves or by apical pores.
(c) Michael J., Papay - CC-BY
                   10 Corolla 7-25 cm long, white, pale blue or pale pink; capsule spiny, 3-5 cm long, subtended by a collar formed by the reflexed corolla base; [subfamily Solanoideae; tribe Datureae]
                   10 Corolla 0.6-7 cm long, white, blue, pink, or other colors; capsule smooth, not collared.
                     11 Flowers solitary, axillary; [subfamily Petunioideae].
                       12 Plants viscid-pubescent, with eglandular hairs only; calyx not accrescent; capsules ovoid to hemispheric, 2-valved; [collectively widespread, including TX].
                     11 Flowers in (2-) 3-many flowered racemes or panicles.
                            14 Calyx accrescent in fruit, wholly or partly surrounding the capsule; corolla lavender to blue, with a whitish center; flower bilaterally symmetrical; stamens 4; [subfamily Cestroideae; tribe Browallieae]
                            14 Calyx not accrescent, subtending the mature fruit; corolla white, pink, green, pink, or blue; flower radially symmetrical; stamens 5.
                              15 Leaves broad, > 4 cm wide; corolla tube 1.5-12.0 cm long; [subfamily Nicotianoideae]
                              15 Leaves narrow, linear to narrowly oblancolate, to 0.5 mm wide; corolla tube 1.0-1.4 cm long; [subfamily Petunioideae]
                 9 Corolla either urceolate, campanulate, or rotate, lacking a narrow tubular portion that is both > 1 cm long and > 4× as long as its midpoint diameter; fruit a berry (or circumscissile capsule in Hyoscyamus); [subfamily Solanoideae].
(c) Максимова, Татьяна - CC-BY
                                16 Fruit a circumscissile capsule; calyx accrescent, nearly enclosing the fruit; corolla cream to yellow, with a maroon center; inflorescence a strongly secund raceme; [tribe Hyoscyameae]
(c) Campos, Aidan
                                16 Fruit a berry (hollow in Capsicum); calyx either accrescent around the fruit or not (and then subtending the fruit); corolla various (but not as above, though in some Physalis yellow and with each petal marked with a purple or maroon spot); inflorescence various.
                                    18 Berries 1.0-2.5 cm long; corolla urceolate (at least slightly constricted at the ‘neck’, just below the lobes of the corolla).
                                       19 Berries nearly spherical, blue-black, 1.0-2.0 cm long, 1.0-2.0 cm in diameter; corolla 2-3 cm long, maroon or purple, and greenish towards the base; plant an upright herb; [tribe Hyoscyameae]
                                       19 Berries elliptical, yellow, 1.5-2.5 cm long, 0.8-1.5 cm in diameter; corolla white 0.7-1.0 cm long, white; plant a trailing or scrambling vine; [tribe Physaleae]
                                         20 Locules air-filled; berries usually elongate and irregularly shaped (sometimes ovoidal or spherical; [peppers, chilies]; [tribe Capsiceae]
                                         20 Locules fleshy; berries spherical or ellipsoidal; [nightshades, tomato, potato, eggplant]; [tribe Solaneae]
(c) Fleming, Gary P.
(c) Campos, Aidan
(c) Campos, Aidan
                                  17 Calyx accrescent, wholly or partly surrounding the mature berry.
(c) Kalininsky, Timur - CC-BY
                                             22 Calyx divided nearly to the auricled base; corolla blue; [tribe Nicandreae]
(c) Campos, Aidan
                                             22 Calyx fused nearly to its summit; corolla primarily white or yellow; [tribe Physalinae].
(c) Derek
                                               23 Fruiting calyx bright red (fresh or dry); corolla white; [cultivated and weakly naturalized near gardens]
(c) Fleming, Gary P.
                                               23 Fruiting calyx green, yellow, or orange, drying brown or tan; corolla yellow, often marked with 5 large maroon or purple spots in the throat; [collectively widespread].
(c) McLaurin, Lauren - CC-BY
                                                 24 Flowers 2 or more per leaf axil; berries with spherical seed-like bodies intermixed with the flattened, reniform seeds; [of the Gulf Coastal Plain]
(c) Campos, Aidan
                                                 24 Flowers 1 per leaf axil; berries with flattened, reniform seeds only; [collectively widespread]