Black nightshade

I wanted to share some experiences with Black nightshade (Solanum ptychanthum), a native tomato relative that I love.

They are smaller than tomatoes, only getting around knee high at the greatest, and the berries are huckleberry sized. They are reliably self sowing (after all, they’re native!) and like to spread through compost that hasn’t been heated sufficiently to kill all the seeds. I haven’t had any success germinating them intentionally like tomato seeds, but they always pop up here and there.

The flavor of the black nightshade, I think, is better than that of tomatoes. Some may be surprised, having worked with a black nightshade relative such as garden huckleberry or wonderberry that are rumored to be tasteless. Black nightshade is like a small, black, sweet, highly flavorful tomato—like the best cherry tomatoes—but you can taste in their flavor something a little more reminiscent of potatoes. I attribute this earthier flavor to trace amounts of solanine rather than the brighter-flavored tomatine present in tomatoes.

In regards to “toxins”…. I do not worry about them. If a berry tasted bad (after the frost) I wouldn’t eat it. Alkaloids generally taste bitter or acrid, but a small amount of them is healthy for us and considered medicinal, and they give complexity of flavor to our foods. I believe all medicinal plant foods affect us subtly in ways that let us adapt to our environment and season, and the tiny amounts that give the plant flavor are not going to hurt us. It is like the question of tasteless cucumbers. Some time ago people ate cucumbers that had flavor, then they bred out all of the flavor. Now people are breeding flavorful cucumbers again. But this slight bitterness that gives the cucumbers flavor is likely cucurbitacin, a deadly toxin in large quantities!

In all fairness though, I eat nightshade berries whenever I can find them. They do get bitter after the frost so I don’t eat them at that point, but usually they are tasty and good. I consider eggplants more toxic-tasting than black nightshade and prefer the latter, but you’d have to eat a lot of either to get poisoned.

The more compost they get, clearly, the bigger, sweeter, and better the flavor. They are a good crop for people who can’t get tropical nightshades like eggplant, tomato, and pepper started properly, but would still like to have some nightshade fruit.

I have not tried this because they are not abundant enough (yet) here, and I like the berries too much, but in many countries the greens are an especially important source of food. They are boiled and then eaten as a nourishing staple green vegetable. Independent of humans they grow in river beaches and rich rocky ledges, but in association with humans and ruminants, they grow in pastures, gardens, middens, construction sites, and compost heaps.

A great thread topic!

I only have become familiar in my gardening adventures with black nightshade after receiving some free 'volunteers' with some compost I imported on site. I have to admit, the term 'nightshade' invokes a small fear response inside because of all the stories I heard growing up. Thankfully though, it is not that hard to differentiate Black Nightshade from its more commonly feared cousin Deadly Nightshade.

Differences between Black and Deadly Nightshades

I haven't tasted one yet, but this thread gives me some inspiration so thank you.

The term nightshade is grossly overrated.

Growing various nightshade plants can be beneficial.

Nightshades are a rich supply of vitamins, minerals, and powerful antioxidants.

I a glad that you shared your love for this particular pant.

I'm familiar schwartzenberren, solanum nigrum. I purchased them from Baker Creek a few years ago and they return each year.

While I'm not brave enough to try eating the one I have growing in the yard (yet), I have left it to grow because it makes the birds and pollinators happy and isn't hurting anyone by befriending us all outdoors.

Black nightshade grows freely as a weed here in Portugal too.

Unfortunately I can't get over the fear factor of being raised to never go near little black nightshade berries - it's too deeply engrained in me and I just can't push through it.