Solanum

The Solanum family of plants is a large genus under the family umbrella of Solanaceae that includes up to 2,000 species, ranging from food crops, such as the potato and the tomato, to various ornamentals and medicinal species. The following entails interesting information about the Solanum genus and types of Solanum plants. The Solanum plant family is a diverse group containing both annuals to perennials with everything from vine, subshrub, shrub and even small tree habits. Advertisement The first mention of its generic name comes from Pliny the Elder at the mention of a plant known as ‘strychnos,’ probably Solanum nigrum. The root word for ‘strychnos’ may have come from the Latin word for sun (sol) or possibly from ‘solare’ (meaning “to soothe”) or ‘solamen’ (meaning “comfort”). The latter definition refers to the soothing effect of the plant upon ingestion. In either case, the genus was established by Carl Linnaeus in 1753. Subdivisions have long been disputed with the most recent inclusion of the genera Lycopersicon (tomato) and Cyphomandra into the Solanum plant family as subgenera.