scale bar = 1cm.

Quena - native (Solanum esuriale)

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Native of mainland Australia.

Family: Solanaceae (Potato family).

Occurrence: A plants of northern Victoria, often on seasonally inundated areas.

Identification:

it is a shrublet with blue potato-like flowers
it has silvery to grey-green leaves.

Silver-leaf Nightshade (*Solanum elaeagnifolium) is also found in northern Victoria. Differences beween the two are

	*Silver-leaf Nightshade	Quena
Size	An erect shrublet to 60 cm or more.	Usually sprawling and less than 15 cm tall.
Spines	Stem prickly at base; regrowth usually very prickly.	Usually without prickles. Sometimes a few at the base.
Leaves	Silver-green with wavy edge. Often prickly on the underside.	Grey green.
Fruit	A round berry. Ripe fruit is a dull orange.	A round or conical berry with a nipple. Ripe fruit is a dull yellow.

Silver-leaf Nightshade is a declared noxious weed in Victoria. Quena is an aboriginal food plant. There are several other native solanums that grow in inland Australia.

Photos: 1: Quena. Boort. 2,3: Silver-leaf Nightshade. The stems have prickles.