PlantFiles: White Horsenettle, Silverleaf Nightshade, Bull Nettle, Olive-leaf Nightshade, Devil's Tomato
Solanum elaeagnifolium

I chose negative because of the difficulty getting rid of them. They are beautiful to look at. And I especially enjoy watching the large black "Bumblebees" doing their pollenating of this plant. These "bees" are at least an inch long, really chubby and all black. Does anyone know whether they are truly bees? Or are they called something else?

Also, I live in the Southern California semi-desert area and have not personally seen this weed anywhere else so far. I guess birds brought them to me many years ago, at least 20 years now.

I have been trying to get rid of the silverleaf nightshade for many years and I think I have finally succeeded. I decided that I could not kill it all at once so i just started pulling every one of them as soon as they popped up. It has taken about five years but so far this year I have only pulled a half dozen or so. Before I started this approach they had taken over my side yard and had started on my front yard. I think this might be their last gasp of life (I hope). I think some seeds hitched a ride on my backpack while I was in the Grand Canyon on one of my hikes. They are ubiquitous in the area around Phantom Ranch where they grow into pretty good size shrubs.

I'm sure this is a noxious weed--but it is rare here and truly lovely. The one patch I know has very bushy silver foliage and is covered in stunning blue flowers in mid to late summer. It looks like something you would want to grow as an ornamental. It is contained in compacted earth between two fields cultivated in a rotation of grain and tomatoes and doesn't seem to be spreading. None of the farmers I've spoken to are familiar with it, so I'm assuming it is not common or problematic in this part of Northern California.

I spent about two months digging up all of the weeds in my backyard and then spread an organic anti-weed formula onto the dirt to keep the yard relatively weed free until fall. I was planning on planting grass this fall. My whole yard - literally- is now filled with horse nettle. From what I've read here today there is no way to get rid of it. Someone posted that grass will choke it out.

Silver-leaf Nightshade, Solanum elaeagnifolium, is native to Texas and other States.

This plant is indeed toxic! Last spring & summer, my 10-year old Lab/Chow mix had several unexplained episodes of bloody diarrhea. (We're talking uncontrollable, high-volume, day and night attacks.) Hundreds of dollars' worth of diagnostic testing at the vet did not identify a cause. Then one day, I noticed her munching on a weed (the leaves) in the large, fenced backyard. I'd never seen that weed before (although we seem to have every other undesirable flora), so googled until I found it--horse nettle. After reading of its toxic properties, I went out immediately (in the rain) and dug up the three plants I could find. I was very careful to dig deep and not chop off any of the roots to leave behind, and disposed of it in the garbage (not the yard waste bound for the community compost project). She hasn't had a symptom since.This year, I'm patrolling for it but have not seen any yet. Will start planting sunflowers again--that is her favorite salad.

I've seen this growing in the wild in Phoenix & Oracle Junction, & Concho Arizona

My grandfather taught my mother something wonderful about this plant. Yes, plant not weed. The root of this plant has a bark around it. If the plant is old enough you can take a knife and cut the bark from the root into beads. String these on thread and place them around a teething baby's neck. They will completely stop all symptoms of teething. Loose stools, fever, crying with sore gums will go away. You'll never know your baby is cutting teeth until the tooth shows up. But you have to leave them on all the time. You cannot take them off for a few days and then put them back on. Take them off about once a month and replace with new ones. I have a 12 year old son and I used them on him. I put them on him when he was about 5 months old. Never new he was teething until he got a tooth. Plus he never had ear infections and was hardly ever sick. My mother used them on me and my sister. My sister used them on her two kids. And now I'm using them for my kids. I now have a 4 month old and have already put them on my son. Everybody that has ever used them has been a true believer. I have in-laws and friends that will come and ask me to ask my mother to fix them some "roots" for their babies.

This plant is the bane of my existence & I can't say enough negative things about it.

First off - all parts of the plant are toxic if ingested by livestock, & as a horse owner I seem to spend an inordinate amount of time eradicating it from my fields & gardens, especially since it sometimes comes in with an occasional hay or straw bale. Trying to pick the dried stuff out of hay to dispose of it is nearly impossible due to the thorns, & the round marble-size fruit roll out everywhere.

As an organic gardener, I eschew most herbicides, but even RoundUp doesn't have much effect on it. And don't try to pull it out unless you're wearing good heavy gloves. The tiny needles that cover the stems on even small plants go iinto ones hands easily, & are a real devil to get out. Even with good gloves, it is difficult to get the entire plant out without leaving some of the root - & we all know where that gets you.

Although I don't know about what others have viewed, I have also NEVER seen any wildlife utilizing this plant in any way shape or form. The leaves are never touched, & the ripe fruit is still found hanging on dead plants when spring rolls around. What purpose this thing serves I have no idea.

This is definitely one plant I could easily live without having around. I'd certainly have a lot more time to do other things.

I saw this plant on countless roadsides in Albuquerque and only just recently found out what it was. I've seen a white form of this also.

I discovered this growing in my 4 acre prairie restoration project. It does well here in Wisconsin, especially in broken ground (crop land). Now, in the sixth year of this project, it has appeared, but I believe it poses no problem as it should be "choked out" as the grasses and forbes mature.

This plant is listed as a noxious weed by several states in the plant.usda.gov site.

Arkansas:
purple nightshade Noxious weed
California:
white horsenettle B list (noxious weeds)
Hawaii:
silverleaf nightshade Noxious weed
Idaho:
silverleaf nightshade Noxious weed
Nevada:
white horsenettle Noxious weed
Oregon:
silverleaf nightshade "A" designated weed
silverleaf nightshade Quarantine
Washington:
silverleaf nightshade Class A noxious weed
silverleaf nightshade Noxious weed seed and plant quarantine

This is horrible weed that pops up in flower beds. You can pull and spray and pull and spray but it always comes back.

The sharp nettles on this plant are painful if touched and can cause rashes.

I believe this plant serves as a host plant to many moth species and maybe some butterflies as well.

I had no idea this was something other than a nuisance in my backyard! No matter how often I mow it down or pull it out by the roots, this insistent plant grows back every year in the same area of my back yard! It definitely gives the area a unique look, it just also promotes a lot of other weeds to grow in its shadows.
Interesting note... when I first moved out here, my kitty would sometimes escape outside... and she would ALWAYS head straight towards these plants and roll around and act all giddy and "high", both while rubbing the plants and for a few hours afterwards... Now knowing it is in the nightshade family, I can understand her reaction to it a bit more.

Useful as a poultice to alleviate the itch of poison ivy. For that alone I give it a positive rating! Native Texas wildflower.

As I cannot seem to grow anything except noxious "weeds" in my desert yard here in Arizona, the least I can say about this one is that it is pretty to look at. In researching this plant, I have found that it is banned in quite a few areas as it is extremely difficult to get rid of and the leaves and berries are poisonous to livestock. It seems to also be a hazard to crops as it takes over quite readily. I have not tried to get rid of it because it beats looking at desert dirt.

This nettle grows with ease here in Georgia and seems to especially like growing in my dogpen which is mostly red clay on a draining slope. This plant produces berries that are dull to medium yellow and seem to have benefit as a pain reliever but be aware that this is the nightshade family and what I can ingest safely may make others quite ill. It grows wild in this area and as yet I have not tried to cultivate it.