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Purple Nightshade
Solanum xanti
  
About Purple Nightshade (Solanum xanti) 20 Nurseries Carry This Plant Purple Nightshade (Solanum xanti) is a poisonous shrub with deep blue purple flowers blooming from winter through spring. Purple Nightshade has dark green foliage, and the form is loosely spreading or trailing. To promote a bush form, prune leggy branches in late summer or fall.

This plant likes sun to part shade in coastal gardens and shady spots inland. It is very drought tolerant but will tolerate modest summer watering. Though it prefers rocky soil or loam, it will grow in any relatively well drained soil.

It is noted for being deer resistant and hosts numerous moth and butterfly species.
The green berries, though toxic to animals, attract birds.
Plant Description
Plant Type
Plant Type
Shrub, Perennial herb

Size
Size
2 - 4 ft tall
2 - 4 ft wide

Form
Form
Spreading

Dormancy
Dormancy
Summer Semi-Deciduous, Evergreen

Flower Color
Flower Color
Blue, Purple

Flowering Season
Flowering Season
Winter, Spring, Summer

Wildlife Supported
 


Landscaping Information
Sun
Sun
Full Sun, Part Shade

Moisture
Moisture
Very Low

Summer Irrigation
Summer Irrigation
Max 1x / week once established

Nurseries
Nurseries

Ease of Care
Ease of Care
Moderately Easy

Cold Tolerance
Cold Tolerance
Tolerates cold to 5° F

Soil Drainage
Soil Drainage
Fast, Medium, Slow

Soil Description
Soil Description
Tolerates many soils, sandy, loamy or clay. Soil PH: 6.0 - 8.0

Common uses
Common uses
Deer Resistant, Bird Gardens

Companion Plants
Companion Plants
Best used in habitat restoration or "wild" gardens with shrubs such as Chamise (Adenostoma fasciculatum), Manzanita (Arctostaphylos sp. or Xylococcus sp.), Ceanothus sp., Coyote Brush (Baccharis pilularis), Scrub Oak (Quercus dumosa or berberidifolia), and other woody plants.

Natural Setting
Site Type
Site Type
Semi-arid bluffs, foothills, canyons and valleys, among larger shrubs or trees

Climate
Climate
Annual Precipitation: 5.2" - 117.2", Summer Precipitation: 0.14" - 3.15", Coldest Month: 25.5" - 56.4", Hottest Month: 50.5" - 80.6", Humidity: 0.36" - 29.63", Elevation: -3" - 9752"

Alternative Names
Common Names: Chaparral Nightshade


Sources include: Wikipedia. All text shown in the "About" section of these pages is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Plant observation data provided by the participants of the California Consortia of Herbaria, Sunset information provided by Jepson Flora Project. Propogation from seed information provided by the Santa Barbara Botanical Garden from "Seed Propagation of Native California Plants" by Dara E. Emery. Sources of plant photos include CalPhotos, Wikimedia Commons, and independent plant photographers who have agreed to share their images with Calscape. Other general sources of information include Calflora, CNPS Manual of Vegetation Online, Jepson Flora Project, Las Pilitas, Theodore Payne, Tree of Life, The Xerces Society, and information provided by CNPS volunteer editors, with special thanks to Don Rideout. Climate data used in creation of plant range maps is from PRISM Climate Group, Oregon State University, using 30 year (1981-2010) annual "normals" at an 800 meter spatial resolution.

Links:   Jepson eFlora Taxon Page  CalPhotos  Wikipedia  Calflora


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