Local garden egg, Bitter tomato
Solanum melongena var. incanum

Family: Solanaceae

What it is like

An erect biennial plant. It is a small shrub. It grows 90-120 cm tall. The stems are round with hairs around the stem like a star. It does not have prickles. The leaves are dark green and also have hairs. The leaf blade is coarsely toothed and is often irregular in shape. The leaf blade can be 30 cm long and 10-15 cm across. The base of the leaves varies on each side. The flowers are white and star shaped. They are about 2 cm across and about 8 flowers occur together. The fruit are in groups of 2-5 and are 1-4 cm across. They are whitish green with dark stripes. When ripe they become deep orange. The seeds are thin and kidney shaped. They are 2-3 mm long.

There are about 1400 Solanum species. See Taxon reference.

Where it is found

A tropical plant. It requires loose soil and heavy manuring during growth. It is drought resistant. It does not grow well in the shade.

Countries/locations it is found in

Asia, Africa, Central Africa, Congo, East Africa, India, Madagascar, Malaysia, Nigeria, SE Asia, Sudan, Uganda, West Africa

How it is used for food

The fruit are eaten raw or sliced and used in soups and stews. They are also dried for later use. The seeds are used for curdling milk. The leaves are also eaten. CAUTION: Some people have raised concerns about cancer causing chemicals in these fruit.

Common and popular in Africa.

Edible parts

Leaves, fruit

How it is grown

Plants are grown from seed. Seedlings appear in 7-10 days. They can be put in a nursery then transplanted. This is done after about 4 weeks when they are about 5-10 cm high. Plants need to be about 1.5 m apart. Each fruit contains about 450 seeds. These weigh about 1 g.

The first fruit can be harvested about 3-4 months after planting. Plants remain productive for over a year. Fruit can weigh 70 g. The yield from one plant over a year is about 4 kg.

Its other names

Local names

Asind, Bari mauhari, Ikan, Maraghune, Merigam, Palestine nightshade, Terong perat, Tingi, Ubhi ringani

Synonyms

Solanum coagulens Forsk.; Solanum incanum Linn.;