Aubergin (patamunakoiso) – Solanum melongena

Solanum melongena has a long taproot and often much branched stem. Stems are densely covered with stellate, 8-10 armed hairs, and with or without prickles. Leaves are alternate, simple, with 6-10 cm long petioles, without stipules. Leaf blade is ovate to ovate-oblong, 3-25 cm × 2-15 cm densely hairy, base rounded or cordate, often unequal, apex acute or obtuse, margins lobed. Inflorescence is a 1-5-flowered cyme. Flowers are bisexual or functionally male, regular, 5-8(-10)-merous. Calyx is campanulate, lobes enlarging greatly and splitting in fruit. Corolla is campanulate with broadly triangular lobes, 3-4 cm in diameter, violet, rarely white. Ovary is superior and style is as long as or longer than stamens. Stigma is green, capitate, lobed. Fruit is a depressed globose to ellipsoid, ovoid, obovoid or even serpentine berry, 2-35 cm long (sometimes longer) and 2-20 cm broad, many-seeded. Fruit colour is at commercial stage white, green or from pale violet-purple hues to black, sometimes netted or striped. Seeds are lenticular to kidney-shaped, flattened, 3 mm × 4 mm, pale brown.