Solanum hoplopetalum Bitter & Summerh., Bull. Misc. Inform. 116 (1926)

T: Merredin, W.A., May 1925, E.J. Limbourne s.n.; holo: K; iso: MEL.

Sprawling, clonal, perennial herb with usually annual stems to 35 cm long, green; prickles to 14 mm long, abundant on all parts.

Leaves elliptic; lamina 4–12 cm long, 1–5 cm wide, concolorous, deeply lobed, hispid with simple, often glandular hairs, and minute glandular hairs; lobes oblong to triangular, toothed or shallowly lobed; petiole 15–45 mm long.

Inflorescence 4–8–flowered; peduncle to 30 mm long; rachis 10–20 mm long; pedicels 5–13 mm long. Calyx 6–13 mm long, enlarged in fruit; tube almost obscured by prickles; lobes narrowly triangular, 2–5 mm long. Corolla broadly stellate to subrotate, 15–30 mm diam., pale blue or white. Anthers 4–6 mm long.

Berry globular or depressed globular, 15–20 mm diam., bright green, drying almost black; fruiting calyx 15–20 mm diam. Seeds 2.5 mm long, dark grey. n=12.

Occurs in south-western W.A. where sometimes a minor weed of cereal crops and sheep grazing areas. Possibly naturalised in the 90-mile Desert region of south-eastern S.A. but not collected there since the 1940's. The status of the collection, P.G.Wilson 10895, collected from Heywood Island in the Bonaparte Archipelago of northern W.A. in May 1972 is unknown.  

Common on sandy plains, in open woodlands, cultivated areas and roadsides.