Skip to main content

Cockroach berry (Solanum capsicoides)

Dlium Cockroach berry (Solanum capsicoides)

Cockroach berry (Solanum capsicoides) is a plant species in the Solanaceae, low shrub, stems and leaves have thorns, white star flowers, round fruit, grows in forests, agricultural land and roadsides.

S. capsicoides has cylindrical stems, green or reddish in color, full of large, sharp spines 1 cm long. Leaves have stalks 7 cm long. The leaves are up to 15 cm long, have a sharp tip, are green, hairy, have a large vein in the middle and many small pinnate veins, both sides have large and sharp spines.





The flowers are star-shaped, 2.5 cm wide, have stalks, five white ears, a yellow center and are cone-shaped. The fruit is perfectly spherical, young is bright green with dark streaks and when ripe it is bright red.

This species grows in forests, agricultural land, roadsides, waterways, open and shady places, solitary or in small groups. The plant contains alkaloids, solasonine, solamargine and solanine, the steroid withanolide cilistol, capsisteroids A-F. Widely used to treat coughs, relieve pain, rheumatism, toothache and nose wounds.

TAXON

Kingdom: Plantae
Phylum: Tracheophyta
Subphylum: Angiospermae
Class: Magnoliopsida
Order: Solanales
Family: Solanaceae
Subfamily: Solanoideae
Tribe: Solaneae
Genus: Solanum L. in Sp. Pl.: 184 (1753)
Species: Solanum capsicoides All. in Auct. Syn. Meth. Stirp. Hort. Regii Taur.: 12 (1773)

HETEROTYPIC SYNONYMS

Solanum aculeatissimum var. denudatum Dunal in A.P.de Candolle, Prodr. 13(1): 244 (1852)
Solanum arrebenta Vell. in Fl. Flumin.: 89 (1829)
Solanum bodinieri H.Lév. & Vaniot in Bull. Soc. Bot. France 55: 206 (1908)
Solanum ciliare Willd. in Enum. Pl. Hort. Berol. 1: 237 (1809)
Solanum ciliatum Lam. in Tabl. Encycl. 2: 21 (1794)
Solanum ciliatum var. arenarium Dunal (1852)
Solanum ciliatum var. multiflorum Dunal (1852)
Solanum macowanii Fourc. in Trans. Roy. Soc. South Africa 21: 101 (1932)
Solanum pentapetaloides Roxb. in Hort. Bengal.: 17 (1814)
Solanum pentapetalum Schltdl. in Linnaea 25: 197 (1852)
Solanum sinuatifolium Vell. (1829)
Solanum sphaerocarpum Moric. in Pl. Nouv. Amér.: 31 (1837)
Solanum ungens Weinm. in Flora 4: 27 (1821)
Solanum xanthocarpum var. geoffrayi Bonati in H.Lecomte (ed.), Fl. Indo-Chine 4: 324 (1915)

PUBLICATIONS

Aubriot, X. & Knapp, S. (2022). A revision of the "spiny solanums" of Tropical Asia (Solanum, the Leptostemonum Clade, Solanaceae). PhytoKeys 198: 1-270.

Barooah, C. & Ahmed, I. (2014). Plant diversity of Assam. A checklist of Angiosperms and Gymnosperms: 1-599. Assam science technology and environment council, India.

Flora of North America Editorial Committee (2023). Flora of North America North of Mexico 14: 1-505. Oxford University Press, New York, Oxford.

Hassler, M. & Muer, T. (2022). Flora Germanica: alle Farn- und Blütenpflanzen Deutschlands in Text und Bild 2: 865-1712. Verlag Regionalkultur, Uberstadt-Weiher.

Hợp, V.V. (2017). Thực Vật Chí Việt Nam. Flora of Vietnam 17: 1-324. Nhà xuất bản khoa học và kỹ thuật, Hà Nội.

Liogier, A.H. (1994). Flora de la Española 6: 1-517. Instituto Tecnológico de Santo Domingo.

Lorence, D.H. & Wagnwe, W.L. (2020). Flora of the Marquesas Islands 2: 413-1135. National Tropical Botanic Garden, Smithsonian, DRPF.

Whistler, W.A. (2022). Flora of Samoa Flowering Plants: 1-930. National Tropical Botanicl Garden. Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History.

VERNACULAR NAME

Chinese (simplified): 牛茄子 - 刺茄
Chinese (traditional): 癲茄 - 牛茄子 - 刺茄
English: Cockroach Berry, Poisonous Tomato, Devil s apple, Love apple, Red soda apple, Soda apple
Guangdong: 牛茄子 - 癲茄
Hindi: रक्त चंदन Rakthachunda
Hong Kong: 牛茄子 - 癲茄
Indonesia: Takokak kori, Ceri kori, Lanteung, Terong kori, Buah kecoa
Japanese: キンギンナスビ - ニシキハリナスビ
Java: Ceri kori, Ceri tori, Takokak kori
Macao: 牛茄子 - 癲茄
Malayalam: രക്തചുണ്ഡ
Malaysia: Terong asam hutan, terong perat, terong puyoh
Portuguese: Melancia-da-praia
Slovak: ľuľok paprikovitý
Spanish: Tomatillo de Montaña
Sunda: Terong tenang
Swedish: Guldbärsskatta
Taiwan: 刺茄 - 牛茄子 - 癲茄
Tapanuli: Lanteung

Aryo Bandoro
Dlium TheDlium
Web: https://www.dlium.com
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@Dlium

Popular Posts

Yellow garden spider (Argiope appensa)

Yellow garden spider ( Argiope appensa ) is a species of spider in Araneidae that lives on the coast to forests on islands in the western Pacific Ocean. Black and yellow females are striking and have a length of 5.1-6.4 cm including long legs, while males are brown and have a length of about 1.9 cm. A. appensa lives on cliffs in the hills at 600 m above sea level in Kewu plain to rice fields in the lowlands. They make nests at a height of 1.5 meters from the ground between teak ( Tectona grandis ), sonokeling ( Dalbergia latifolia ), sonosiso ( Dalbergia sissoo ), crown flower ( Calotropis gigantea ) and various grasses. Yellow garden spiders grow in large sizes, but are not toxic to humans. Advanced builds ball-shaped nets and most of them make stabilizers which are zigzag-shaped lines in nets made of thicker bands. This species spends more time in stationary and sits in the middle of the net with its head down to wait for insects to be entangled in fine silk thread. Unli...

Skyflower (Duranta erecta)

Sinyo nakal or skyflower ( Duranta erecta ) is plant species in Verbenaceae, a broad shrub or small tree, up to 6 m high, stems growing upright or horizontally with broad clumps, many branches, bark light brown, old tree has axillary spines and grows to form dense colonies. D. erecta has bright green leaves, elliptical to ovoid, pointed or rounded ends, sitting opposite, 7.5 cm long, 3.5 cm wide, a main vein in the middle with several small lateral veins, petiole long 1.5 cm. Flowers are light blue or lavender or white, appear in tight clusters as on terminal stems and axils, often curled or pendulous, blooms in summer. The fruit is a berry having a stalk, small round, yellow or orange or white in color, up to 11 mm in diameter, an eye green in front and containing several seeds. Skyflower grows in dry or humid areas and lots of sun, rocky or sandy beaches, forests, farmland and disturbed places. Plants will grow at a rate of up to half a meter per year. Kingdom: Plantae Phylum:...

Broad-leaved dock (Rumex obtusifolius)

Broad-leaved dock ( Rumex obtusifolius ) is a species of plant in the Polygonaceae, herbaceous perennial, growing broadly, up to 150 cm tall, large, oval-shaped leaves with a heart-shaped base and rounded tip, large taproot with many branches extending to a depth of 150 cm. R. obtusifolius has leaves up to 30 cm long, 15 cm wide and green. Stems are long, hard, alternate, green or reddish in color and unbranched until just below the inflorescence. A main vein in the middle and green or reddish in color. Flat or wavy surface. The inflorescences consist of large clusters of racemes that contain small, greenish flowers that turn red as they mature. Seeds are reddish brown and dry. Broad-leaved dock grows in fertile soils, grasslands, waste lands, roadsides, ditches, coastlines and riverbanks, forest margins, forest clearing and agricultural land. The leaves are used as a salad to make vegetable broth or cooked like spinach. Dried seeds are used as a spice. Kingdom: Plantae Phylum: Tr...