Common Name:

General Information

Solanum schumannianum is an erect perennial herb or lightly branched small shrub growing from 1 - 3.6 metres tall[]. Older branches become spiny[].
The plant is harvested from the wild for local use as a food and medicine. It is sometimes cultivated as a crop near houses and is also grown as a hedge and boundary marker[]. The plant is sometimes sold as a food and medicine in local markets[].

Known Hazards

Although providing many well-known foods for people, including the potato, tomato, pepper and aubergine, most species in this genus also contain toxic alkaloids. Whilst these alkaloids can make the plant useful in treaing a range of medical conditions, they can also cause problems such as nausea, vomiting, salivation, drowsiness, abdominal pain, diarrhoea, weakness and respiratory depression[].
Unless there are specific entries with information on edible uses, it would be unwise to ingest any part of this plant[].

Botanical References

Range

East tropical Africa - Kenya, Tanzania.

Habitat

Dense evergreen and wet montane forests, open glades and around water holes in forest areas, moist forest remnants, disturbed forest edges, tea estates, locally common in dry montane forest, at elevations from 1,300 - 2,700 metres[].

Properties

Edibility Rating
Medicinal Rating
Other Uses Rating
Habit	Shrub
Height	2.50 m
Cultivation Status	Cultivated, Wild

Cultivation Details

Not known

Edible Uses

Young and mature fruits are eaten raw or cooked with vegetables such as peas, beans or amaranth to improve their flavour[, ]. The fruits can be pounded and mixed with onion and lemon juice and the liquid used as a substitute for vinegar[]. The fruits can be dried and stored as a powder for later use[]. The fruit is a soft, round, dark red berry 6 - 8mm in diameter, carried on the plant in dense bunches[].

Juice of a mixture of pounded fruits, onion and lemon is used as a substitute for vinegar[].

Medicinal

The fruits are pounded, boiled and the decoction used as a remedy for constipation and intestinal worms[, ].

Agroforestry Uses:

The plant is grown as a hedge and used as a boundary marker[, ].

Other Uses

None known

Propagation

Seed - sow in trays in a nursery. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots when they are large enough to handle and grow them on fast. Plant them out when 10cm or more tall.
Cuttings of half-ripe wood. Very easy, the cuttings root within a couple of weeks.

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