FoI
Shoofly Plant
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Shoofly Plant
aturalized Photo: Thingnam Girija
Common name: Shoofly Plant, Apple of Peru • Marathi: पोपटी Popti • Kannada: Bilibudde gida • Tamil: Sudakku thakkali • Nepali: इश्मगोल Ishmahol
Botanical name: Nicandra physalodes    Family: Solanaceae (Potato family)
Synonyms: Physalis spectabilis, Physalis daturifolia, Nicandra undulata

Shoo-Fly Plant, is a coarse, erect annual that is native to Peru. The large alternate leaves reach up to 1 foot long and somewhat resemble Datura leaves. Plants will reach 3 to 8 feet in height and are about half as wide. They can become very weedy and have become a noxious weed in the tropics. All parts of the plant are poisonous and care should be taken in using in the landscape. In mid-spring, the plants are adorned with 1½ inch solitary violet bell-shaped flowers with white centers. After successful pollination, a globose fruit forms inside the persistent calyx, resembling a tomatilla. Shoofly Plant is best propagated from seed.

Identification credit: Rahul Prabhu Khanolkar Photographed in Govindghat-Ghangria route, Uttarakhand & Dibang Valley, Arunachal Pradesh.

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