What's this nightshade(?) in my herb spiral? It seems perennial...

Sep 08, 2018 18:01:17

I've spotted this plant growing in my herb spiral for years, but never knew what it was. This year it made berries that look very nightshade like. Any idea what this plant is? Is it poisonous like deadly nightshade?

Fruit from the plant

Leaves and fruit of the plant (i hooked it up on a lovage stalk to get the picture)

In previous years, there was just one little plant. This year there are at least 4. I'm assuming it spreads by runners and is perenial in zone 8? Here's another picture

Sep 08, 2018 18:06:50

I'm thinking it might be bittersweet nightshade https://www.kingcounty.gov/services/environment/animals-and-plants/noxious-weeds/weed-identification/bittersweet-nightshade.aspx. The flowers loooked like these that I found on reddit (https://www.reddit.com/r/whatsthisplant/comments/2bx6jn/is_this_deadly_nightshade_washington_state_usda/)

Sep 08, 2018 18:07:26

I don't know, but I have something similar. It's like a spiky vine with little fruits. No idea!

Sep 09, 2018 20:42:20

What color are the berries when ripe? If black, probably deadly nightshade or belladona. If red, likely bitter nightshade. Leaves and flowers look much the same. Both are perennials that spread by rhizomes.

I have a nightshade relative in my garden with edible black berries called schwarzenberen. It's an annual but the berries look a lot like deadly nightshade. I just noticed that. :) A bunch of other plants we use regularly are also in the nightshade family.

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