Nicandra physalodes (L.) Gaertn., Solanaceae

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Present on Pacific Islands?  yes

Primarily a threat at high elevations?  no

Common name(s): [more details]

Chinese: jia suan jiang

English: apple of Peru, shooflyplant

French: nicandra

Spanish: capulí cimarró, capuli cimarron, capuli de la costa, cimarró, toccoro

Habit:  herb

Description:  "Erect annual herbs up to 2 m tall, glabrous or sparsely pubescent.  Leaves narrowly to broadly ovate, 4-20 cm long, 2-10 cm wide, upper surface with sparse, short, inflated, eglandular hairs, lower surface glabrous or nearly so, margins widely, irregularly, and shallowly dentate or subentire, apex acute to acumunate, base cuneate to attenuate, petioles 2-6 cm long, narrowly winged above.  Pedicels 1-2 cm long, recurved; calyx lobes ovate, 1-2 cm long, apex acute to acuminate, base sagittate and often mucronate at basal tips, the lobes appressed along the margins to form longitudinal wings; corolla pale blue or mauve with a blue spot on the paler base of each lobe, the lobes 1-2.5 cm long, 0.5-1.5 cm wide, margins entire, obtuse; style thick, erect, 3-6 mm long.  Berries pale yellowish, dryish, globose, 1-2 cm in diameter, enclosed in the accrescent, scarious, reticulate calyx.  Seeds numerous, subdiscoid to broadly reniform, 1.2-2.1 mm long, testa reticulate-foveolate" (Wagner et al., 1999; pp. 1260-1261).

Habitat/ecology:  "A weed of crop lands throughout the world in temperate and tropic zones"  (Motooka et al., 2003).  In Hawai‘i, "naturalized in dry to mesic, disturbed habitats, 3-830 m" (Wagner et al., 1999; pp. 1260-1261). In New Caledonia, "mauvaise herbe peu commune des cultures" (MacKee, 1994; p. 131).

Propagation:  Seed

Native range:  Peru

Presence:

Pacific
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
Australia (Pacific offshore islands) Norfolk Islands	Norfolk Island	introduced invasive	Orchard, Anthony E., ed. (1994) (p. 10) "A native of Peru which is now widespread as a weed of arable land in warm temperate and subtropical areas". Vouchers cited: W.R. Sykes NI 140 (CHR); 1898, I. Robinson (NSW); 1902, J.H. Maiden & J.L. Boorman (NSW); J.D. McComish 193 (NSW)
Ecuador (Galápagos Islands) Floreana Group	Floreana Island	introduced invasive	Charles Darwin Foundation (2008)
Ecuador (Galápagos Islands) Isabela Group	Isabela Island	introduced invasive	Charles Darwin Foundation (2008)
Ecuador (Galápagos Islands) Isabela Group	Volcán Sierra Negra, Isabela Island	introduced invasive	Charles Darwin Foundation (2008)
Ecuador (Galápagos Islands) San Cristóbal Group	San Cristóbal Island	introduced invasive	Charles Darwin Foundation (2008)
Ecuador (Galápagos Islands) Santa Cruz Group	Santa Cruz Island	introduced invasive	Charles Darwin Foundation (2008) Observed in survey, no herbarium record.
Ecuador (Galápagos Islands) Santiago Group	Santiago Island	introduced invasive	Charles Darwin Foundation (2008)
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	Hawai‘i (Big) Island	introduced invasive cultivated	Wagner, Warren L./Herbst, Derral R./Sohmer, S. H. (1999) (pp. 1260-1261)
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	Kaua‘i Island	introduced invasive cultivated	Wagner, Warren L./Herbst, Derral R./Sohmer, S. H. (1999) (pp. 1260-1261)
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	Lāna‘i Island	introduced invasive cultivated	Oppenheimer, Hank (2010) (p. 38) Voucher cited: Oppenheimer & Perlman H50807 (BISH, PTBG)
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	Maui Island	introduced invasive cultivated	Wagner, Warren L./Herbst, Derral R./Sohmer, S. H. (1999) (pp. 1260-1261)
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	Moloka‘i Island	introduced invasive cultivated	Wagner, Warren L./Herbst, Derral R./Sohmer, S. H. (1999) (pp. 1260-1261)
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	O‘ahu Island	introduced invasive cultivated	Wagner, Warren L./Herbst, Derral R./Sohmer, S. H. (1999) (pp. 1260-1261)
New Caledonia Matthew Island	Île Matthew	introduced invasive	MacKee, H. S. (1994) (p. 131) Voucher cited: Monzier s.n. (NOU)
New Caledonia New Caledonia Archipelago	Île Grande Terre	introduced invasive	Tassin, Jacques (2005)
New Caledonia New Caledonia Archipelago	Île Grande Terre	introduced invasive	MacKee, H. S. (1994) (p. 131) Vouchers cited: Baumann 5248, MacKee 27092, Cherrier in MacKee 35906, Cherrier in MacKee 43544
Niue Niue	Niue Island	introduced	Whistler, W. A. (1988) (p. 36) Rare. Not seen by author. Voucher cited: Sykes 1235
Tonga Tongatapu Group	Tongatapu Island		Whistler, W. A. (1988) (p. 36) Voucher cited: Buelow 1905

Pacific Rim
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
Australia Australia (continental)	New South Wales		Holm, Leroy/Doll, Jerry/Holm, Eric/Pancho, Jaun/Herberger, James (1997) (p. 505)
Australia Australia (continental)	Northern Territory		Holm, Leroy/Doll, Jerry/Holm, Eric/Pancho, Jaun/Herberger, James (1997) (p. 505)
Australia Australia (continental)	Queensland		Holm, Leroy/Doll, Jerry/Holm, Eric/Pancho, Jaun/Herberger, James (1997) (p. 505)
Central America Central America (Pacific rim)	Costa Rica (Republic of)		Holm, Leroy/Doll, Jerry/Holm, Eric/Pancho, Jaun/Herberger, James (1997) (p. 509)
Central America Central America (Pacific rim)	El Salvador (Republic of)		Holm, Leroy/Pancho, Juan V./Herberger, James P./Plucknett, Donald L. (1979) (pp. 247-248)
Central America Central America (Pacific rim)	Guatemala (Republic of)		Holm, Leroy/Doll, Jerry/Holm, Eric/Pancho, Jaun/Herberger, James (1997) (p. 509)
Central America Central America (Pacific rim)	Honduras (Republic of)		Holm, Leroy/Doll, Jerry/Holm, Eric/Pancho, Jaun/Herberger, James (1997) (p. 509)
Central America Central America (Pacific rim)	Nicaragua (Republic of)		Holm, Leroy/Doll, Jerry/Holm, Eric/Pancho, Jaun/Herberger, James (1997) (p. 509)
China China	China (People's Republic of)		Holm, Leroy/Doll, Jerry/Holm, Eric/Pancho, Jaun/Herberger, James (1997) (p. 505)
China China	Hong Kong	introduced cultivated	Wu, Te-lin (2001) (p. 218) Ornamental.
Indonesia Indonesia	Indonesia (Republic of)		Holm, Leroy/Doll, Jerry/Holm, Eric/Pancho, Jaun/Herberger, James (1997) (p. 505)
Japan Japan	Japan		Holm, Leroy/Doll, Jerry/Holm, Eric/Pancho, Jaun/Herberger, James (1997) (p. 505)
Japan Japan	Japan	introduced	Mito, Toshikazu/Uesugi, Tetsuro (2004) (p. 188)
Mexico Mexico	Mexico (United Mexican States)		Holm, Leroy/Doll, Jerry/Holm, Eric/Pancho, Jaun/Herberger, James (1997) (p. 505)
New Zealand New Zealand	New Zealand (country)	introduced invasive	Webb, C. J./Sykes, W. R./Garnock-Jones, P. J. (1988) (p. 1228) "Gardens, waste places, rubbish heaps, open, modified scrub, and occasionally in crops".
South America (Pacific rim) South America (Pacific rim)	Perú (Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2013)
Thailand Thailand	Thailand (Kingdom of)		Holm, Leroy/Doll, Jerry/Holm, Eric/Pancho, Jaun/Herberger, James (1997) (p. 505)

Control: 

Chemical: "Susceptible to hormone-type herbicides, especially at young stages of growth, and probably to tebuthiuron, as are other solanaceous species"  (Motooka et al., 2003).