NIPPLEFRUIT Seeds | Solanum mammosum

STEP 1 - Surface sow the seeds onto Seed Raising Mix.

STEP 2 - Sprinkle some mix over the seeds to hold them in place but not bury them as they need light in order to germinate.

STEP 3 - Lightly mist daily. Use of a humidity dome speeds up the process. Germination generally occurs in around 2 - 4 weeks.

STEP 4 - Transplant into the garden when they reach 10cm tall. Prefers a full sun position and moderate watering.

Although providing many well known foods for people, including the potato, tomato, pepper and eggplant, most species in this genus also contain toxic alkaloids. Whilst these alkaloids can make the plant useful in treating a range of medical conditions, they can also cause problems such as nausea, vomiting, salivation, drowsiness, abdominal pain, diarrhoea, weakness and respiratory depression. It would be unwise to ingest any part of this plant.

The fruit is cooling and purgative. It is used to treat coughs and loss of appetite. The burnt fruit is used in the treatment of liver problems. When bruised with vinegar, the fruit is used as a poultice on abscesses and cracked nipples.

Extracts of the leaf and fruit are taken in order to lose weight and to lower high blood pressure and high cholesterol levels. Applied topically, they are used for treating mouth infections and skin wounds.

The leaves are anodyne and narcotic. A decoction is used as a remedy for diseases of the kidneys, bladder and stomach problems. A decoction of the leaves is used for cleansing wounds and teating haemorrhoids. The peduncle when burned is used as a treatment for piles, toothache and intestinal hemorrahges.

The seeds are stimulant and said to be used as a remedy for colds. A decoction of the roots is taken as a general stimulant and in the treatment of asthma. Boiled with sour milk and grain porridge, it is used to treat syphilis. Juice of fruit, combined with the pounded leaves and roots, is used to treat a variety of skin diseases. The plant is said to be narcotic.

The species has been used to treat athlete's foot among hunter groups in Belize and Trinidad. In Peninsular Malaysia, the plant is used to heal caterpillar rash and the Malays drink the leaf sap to treat fever.

In Sarawak, fresh fruit juice is used to treat sore eyes in children. In Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam, the plant is used to induce narcosis.

The plant is a source of solasodine, a poisonous, teratogenic, alkaloidal compound that is a precursor to pharmaceutical production of the contraceptive pills and has also been the subject of recent research for its diuretic, anti-cancer, anti-fungal, cardiotonic, anti-spermatogenetic, anti-androgenic, immunomodulatory and antipyretic effects on the central nervous system.

This plant will regenerate quickly, especially on bare ground. It is also found in areas of secondary growth and so, with its prickly habit, could be of use as a pioneer species that helps to exclude grazing animals as the young forest trees become established.

An extract of the fruit is used as an ingredient in commercial cosmetic preparations as an antioxidant. The mashed fruit is mixed with tobacco or Mansoa alliacea and rubbed on the feet in order to ward off sand fleas. The Kofan people of Colombia and Ecuador employ the plant as an insect repellant, especially against cockroaches. The powdered fruit is considered to be an effective, specific poison for cockroaches and has also been used against leaf cutter ants. Before soap was common in villages, the juice was used as a detergent to wash clothes.