Bittersweet or Woody, Nightshade
Fuath Gorm
| Irish name: | Fuath Gorm |
| See it in: | Summer |
| Wildflowers of Ireland Profile: | Bittersweet Nightshade |
Bittersweet or Woody nightshade (Fuath gorm) can frequently be seen in July clambering through damp hedgerows. This plant belongs to the Solanum family and is therefore related to the potato, tomato, aubergine, green pepper, red pepper and the tobacco plant. The five petals which make up the corolla are purple. The protruding yellow part consists of five closely joined stamens which hold the pollen. The poisonous berries change from green to bright red. They are not as pousonous, however, as the black berries on its near relative, Deadly nightshade. This plant is rare in Ireland. It, too, has purple flowers but they lack the yellow column of fused stamens. ( Photo taken near Castlewarden cross roads)