[Illustration: European bittersweet, blue nightshade, woody nightshade
_Solanum dulcamara--SOLANACEAE_]
=Description=: A woody climbing or reclining herb with slender stems
and dark green pointed leaves which may be purplish-green when young.
Clusters of white or purplish-white flowers borne on a 5-pointed,
wheel-shaped base (calyx). During summer and early fall, fruits become
attractive berries, bright red to scarlet, and are scattered in
clusters. They remain when leaves fall.
This weed is found in numerous areas, such as on dumps, along fence
walls, and generally in moist, rich soil conditions. It is a common
weed in many gardens, near dwellings or in fields, and is related to
the black and deadly nightshades.
NOTE. The black nightshade, American bittersweet or poison berry
(_Solarium nigrum-SOLANACEAE_) closely resembles the European
bittersweet, excepting the berries which are purple or black. It
contains the same poisonous principles.
=Poisonous Parts=: Chiefly the leaves and unripe fruits. The red
berries (black berries of the black nightshade) can be poisonous if
several are eaten. The plant contains =solanine=, =dulcamarin=, and
similar principles which are related to the alkaloids of the deadly
nightshade. Poisoning is characterized by burning in the throat,
nausea, dizziness, dilation of eye pupils, convulsions, and general
muscular weakness.
=Antidote=: Call your doctor. Have patient vomit. Physicians treat for
alkaloids, as in atropine poisoning.