Latin name
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IncrSolanu mauritianum
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Common name
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Bug weed or luisboom
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Location
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KwaZulu Natal, Gauteng, Mpumalanga, Northern Province
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Description
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Leaves large (25cm long x 10cm wide) dull green and velvety above, white and felty beneath. Strong smell when bruised.
Flowers (all year) compact, purple terminal clusters on dense felty stalks.
Fruits (all year) 10mm berries in compact clusters. Green turning yellow. Dispersed by birds and bats
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Edible
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Not edible, unripe fruits are poisonous.
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Irritant
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Hairy leaves and stems are an irritant to the respiratory tract and skin
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Invader
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Forest margins, plantations, savanna, roadsides, watercourses, urban open spaces.
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Status
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Invader 1 – prohibited and must be controlled
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Note: The indigenous selanum Gigantum bark is covered in short spines.
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