Mystery plant 048

This plant can be found throughout North America.  It is considered “weedy” and is usually disliked by anyone who feels compelled to remove it from where it’s growing.  When you can identify it, please leave a comment with both the common name and scientific name.  Also share any personal connection (or disconnection?) you may have with the plant.

048-a

Young plant

048-b

Mature plant

048-c

Inflorescence in varying stages

048-d

Flower

048-e

Developing seeds and thorny underside of leaf

048-f

Maturing fruits

 

ANSWER (subsequently added to this post to facilitate the “search” function for these images): Horse nettle (Solanum carolinense)

This entry was posted in Mystery plant. Bookmark the permalink.

10 Responses to Mystery plant 048

  1. Rhonda Dodson says:

    Horse nettle!

  2. Rhonda Dodson says:

    Solanum carolinense, horse nettle
    Great photos by the way!!!!

  3. leoni pizzillo says:

    horse nettle 🙂

  4. Horsenettle, Solanum carolinense. I have seen these flowers in blues and pinks as well as whites. They seem to vary quite a bit, though it may be largely a factor of age…Tomato or nightshade family.

  5. Chana Claudia says:

    I agree too…Solanum Carolinense

  6. Joan Knapp says:

    Yep. Me too. Horsenettle. Solanum caroinense

  7. Jasmene Rhem says:

    Horse Nettle

  8. Jane says:

    I remember as a kid sliding down a little dirt cliff where we used to find arrowheads, and being sorely interrupted by a horse nettle plant along the way!

  9. Angelyn says:

    Yes, indeed, this is Horse nettle (Solanum carolinense). Thanks, Jane, for your vivid (ouch!) memory.

  10. Gerben says:

    Horse nettle. These reproduce by seed and root-sprouts. These weedy perenials are very difficult to remove. I have had the best luck by waiting until they have grown fairly large in July and then painting all the leaves with a 50-50 mixture of glyphosate and water. By late August smaller Horse nettle plants will root-sprout, that is when I give them another treatment. After a few years most of these nettles have disappeared.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Time limit is exhausted. Please reload CAPTCHA.