v6i2.147

ISSN: 1800-427X (print)
eISSN: 1800-427X (online)
DOI:10.47605/tapro.v6i2.147

Submitted date: 11 February 2013
Accepted date: 12 May 2014
Published date: 30 August 2014
Pp. 140.

Solanum diphyllum (Solanaceae) in India

R. Kr. Singh*, J.S. Jalal & C.R. Jadhav
*Corresponding author. E-mail: rksbsiadsingh@yahoo.co.in

Solanum diphyllum L., commonly known as two-leaf nightshade, is native to Mexico south to Costa Rica in Central America but widely naturalized in many tropical and subtropical regions of the world having escaped from cultivation. The first occurrence of S. diphyllum in India was reported in 1995 from two locations in the Howrah District of West Bengal where it was known from only a few individuals. The species went unnoticed for several years until a large population near Bhushi dam and the Ambavane area of Lonavala town, Pune District, was found by the senior author in 2006. According to local sources the species had been present for seven or eight year and, in 2006, it was found to have occupied grasslands and forests edges in the towns of Lonavala and Khandala as well as most of the wastelands of Pune, Pimpri-Chinchwad, and other nearby towns. It was also found in various botanical gardens in the city of Pune including the Empress Garden, Mudwa Experimental Garden of Botanical Survey of India (BSI), the associated garden of BSI office campus, and other public gardens.

Section Editor: James L. Reveal