Solanum guineense

Solanum guineense or coastal nightshade, in Afrikaans called melkellie (something related to milk), is a sprawling or erect shrub that may grow to 1,5 m in height. It lacks the prickles often found on Solanum species.

The young stems are green and finely hairy; older stems turn brown, sometimes seen with sparsely scattered whitish lenticels. Some old stems are almost black and rough with prominent scars where leaves had dropped off.

The leaves are soft, elliptic to ovate in shape, tapering to slightly pointed or rounded tips. Leaves attenuate at the base into green petioles. The leaves are alternate on young stems, in whorls at older stem tips, usually dropping off to leave stems bare lower down.

The distribution of the species is coastal from southern Namaqualand to the Eastern Cape. It grows on dunes, riverbanks and at forest margins. The species is not considered to be threatened in its habitat early in the twenty first century (Manning, 2007; iSpot; Bond and Goldblatt, 1984; http://redlist.sanbi.org).