麻豆免费版下载Botanist鈥檚 Notes on a Nightshade
To ecology and evolutionary biology professor Stacey D. Smith, the research subjects she has dedicated 25 years of her life to studying are completely adorable. And, after hearing her eagerly discuss her work on tomatillos in the Solanaceae family 鈥 commonly known as nightshades 鈥 passersby may find the diminutive plants irresistible, too.
Smith is one of only a handful of scientists to study the wild members of this plant family, which includes over 300 species in the tomatillo tribe.听Her lab studies the evolutionary changes of the plants鈥 flowers and fruits, including how and why their colors and shapes have changed over time, and her work with the tomatillo plants鈥 smallest details, from their minuscule stem hairs to their fruits鈥 sticky residue, might someday help in the creation of natural pesticides.
鈥淚 want to understand why plants do the things they do, and why they live the way they do,鈥 Smith said.
Physalis heterophylla
鈫捖灿补迟颈惫别
One of the four native Boulder tomatillos: heterophylla, hederifolia, longifolia 补苍诲听virginiana.
鈫捖烫濒补尘尘测
Called 鈥渃lammy鈥 because of the sticky hairs on its stems and leaves.
鈫捥鼿补产颈迟补迟
Can be found on hiking trails along the Front Range: Sanitas Valley, Saddle Rock, Skunk Canyon and the Shanahan Ridge Water Tank.
Tomatillo Facts
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Toxic
The plants are toxic, but some of their fruits are edible to humans.
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Nightshades
The plants are part of the nightshade family, Solanaceae, which has about 2,700 species.
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Greenhouse Plants
About 100 tomatillos and their relatives are growing in 麻豆免费版下载Boulder鈥檚听main campus greenhouses.
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Difficult Cultivation
The plants are hard to cultivate, but grow well in the wild.
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Delicate in Nature
The plants don鈥檛 recover well when mowed over and are easily overrun by non-native plants.听
Physalis heterophylla Fruit
Lanterns
When fruit forms, the plant creates a lantern around it to protect it from insects.
Ground Cherries
The edible fruits, referred to as 鈥済round cherries,鈥 are orange and high in vitamin A.
Illustration by Irene Laschi