Solanaceae

Purple African nightshade

Solanum marginatum L.f.

Family: Solanaceae
Genus: Solanum

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Purple African nightshade (Solanum marginatum) — FlowerPhoto: Marco Iboshi, CC BY 4.0, from iNaturalist

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Common names

By language (3)

English: Purple African nightshade
Quechua: Kichka t'ankar
Swedish: Vitskatta

Synonyms

Solanum argyracantha Dum.Cours.
Solanum argyracanthum Dum.Cours.
Solanum argyracanthum St.-Lag.
Solanum cabiliense E.Vilm.
Solanum cabiliense var. argenteum hort. ex Vilm.
Solanum cabiliense var. cabiliense
Solanum coagulans A.Schimp. ex Dunal
Solanum marginatum var. marginatum
Solanum marginatum var. polyhoplum Bitter
Solanum niveum All. ex Vitman

Flowers

In flower: January to May, July, October (from 23 flowering iNaturalist observations worldwide)

Characteristics

Growth habit: Shrub, Subshrub
Lifespan: Perennial
In the US and Canada: Lower 48 states: introduced

Photos

FlowerPhoto: Marco Iboshi, CC BY 4.0, from iNaturalist
FlowerPhoto: Andrés Ramírez-Barrera, CC BY 4.0, from iNaturalist
FlowerPhoto: Andrés Ramírez-Barrera, CC BY 4.0, from iNaturalist
Photo: Leif & Anita Stridvall, CC BY 3.0, from Wikimedia Commons
Photo: Frank Dietze, CC BY 4.0, from iNaturalist
Photo: Fabián David Rosas Dávila, CC BY-SA 4.0, from Pl@ntNet via GBIF
Photo: Stefano Menchetti, CC BY-SA 4.0, from iNaturalist
Photo: penarc, CC BY-SA 3.0, from Wikimedia Commons
Photo: perez juanca, CC BY-SA 4.0, from Pl@ntNet via GBIF
Photo: htumey, CC BY 4.0, from iNaturalist
Photo: JMK, CC BY-SA 3.0, from Wikimedia Commons
Photo: Trap Hers, CC BY-SA 4.0, from Pl@ntNet via GBIF

More in Solanum

Sources: classification, synonyms from World Flora Online Plant List (2026-06, CC0 1.0); common names, popularity from Wikidata (2026-10-26, CC0 1.0); common names, US characteristics from USDA PLANTS Database (2025-05-29, CC0 1.0). About our plant data.