Fuzzyfruit nightshade seeds (Solanum candidum)

Fuzzyfruit nightshade seeds (Solanum candidum)

Price for Package of 5 seeds.

A herby shrub to 3 m tall with large, lobed leaves and furry, apricot-sized, edible fruits. Solanum candidum is widely distributed in woodlands and disturbed areas from southern Mexico south along the Andes to Peru.

Solanum candidum is a species of evergreen shrub native to South America and occasionally grown for its edible fruit.

Undomesticated and very rare in cultivation, it is known as fuzzyfruit nightshade, naranjilla Silvestre or chichilegua. The fruit somewhat resembles the related Cocona (Solanum sessiliflorum), and Solanum candidum will apparently hybridize with a number of close relatives, including cocona, naranjilla, and pseudolulo. One notable difference is the extremely hirsute fruits, which – unlike most of its relatives – do not detach easily upon full ripening, which is a hindrance to eating the ripe fruit. Nonetheless, S. candidum is a close relative of other nightshades cultivated for their edible fruit, including the tomato (S. lycopersicum), the naranjilla (S. quitoense), and the eggplant (S. melongena). Its relatively strong resistance to pests and disease (in comparison with its more appetizing relatives) has drawn some agricultural interest.

Scientifically, S. candidum is of additional interest, as it appears to be the closest relative and a possible ancestor to Asian members of the same botanical clade, notably Solanum lasiocarpum, which is native to India but is cultivated for its naranjilla-like fruits, and will likewise readily hybridize with S. candidum.

Solanum candidum is presumed to be native to the temperate Andean regions of Colombia, Peru and Chile. Like the cocona, naranjilla, and Indian nightshade, S. candidium can bear fruit within 1 or 2 years from seed. A short-lived perennial, fruit production requires a rather long growing season, which limits its agricultural potential in more temperate climates. Like the naranjilla and cocona, S. candidum is best adapted to subtropical cloud forest climates, where frost is unknown, but extreme heat is likewise very rare or unknown. The fruits are round berries, covered in persistent fur even when ripe, to 2 cm in size, which ripen to yellow or red.