Thank you! Just checked the site & oh wow! Lots of new edible plants I didn’t even knew existed.
Fantastic! Have you tried any of the berries? What flavors did you notice? Mine in Maryland taste like Purple Grape x Tomato.
That’s Epic! So glad you have lots of types. This gives me hope GTS may offer them one day.
How strange, Species in that group all hybridize like crazy & it’s so hard to distinguish other species. Some species even made certain species, but I’ve also read there are some polidy issues with wild ranges of polidy. I’m wondering if Mentor Pollination & Grafting can by pass these issues?
Lets say if i cross 2 different Black Nightshade species with mis-matching chromosome numbers but I mix pollens from many sources (Including some that are same matching chromosome numbers), I can force the “Incompatible” species to accept pollen it either-wise wouldn’t have. With such wide crosses, who knows maybe a Mutation happens & Chromosomes double again. Nature always finds a way, already well known in Brassicaceae, Asteraceae, Poaceae, Cactaceae, Rosaceae, and many more familes who make Mis-matched chromosomes work (However Solanace seems not be one of those, yet but lots of Chromosome doubling has happened in the Black Nightshade group).
Isn’t Solanum melanocerasum the old scientific name for Solanum retroflexum? I’ve read Solanum retroflexum was a species that created Solanum nigrum when it introgressed with another species. Also Some Solanum nigrum have yellow fruit, this group is such a taxonomic Nightmare to sort thru.
Very very interesting, are they better than the red fruits? Also noticed the Yellow-white tomatoes taste better than red tomatoes, is something similar going on with yellow black nightshades, if in both cases yellow tastes better?
We might have to try grabing genes from Huge Tomatoes, should be graft compatible at least. Maybe Horizontal Gene Flow can get Those “Big fruit genes” into Black Nightshades? I might have to do that with limited germaplasm of Black Nightshades.
Also you say perennial down to -5 or -6°C? So the plants you have a true perennials & not annuals that self-sow so much, functioning like perennials?
Cuz Bittersweet Nightshade group (Solanum dulcamara) is direct sister to Black Nightshade group & it’s the most cold hardy Solanum I know, not to mention leaves can remain after frosts & stems are woody. Grafting with That plant is worth experimenting with. Who knows maybe Bittersweet Nightshade can become an edible crop too. It might even help make Tomatoes & Less cold hardy Black Nightshades cold hard too as Scions.