It’s The Potato Tree

This is growing in the grounds of Sidney Sussex College, here in Cambridge. The moment I saw it I thought of Woody Nightshade (Solanum dulcamara) which is also in the same family, except that this is a large shrub above eight feet tall, trained against a wall.

I saw it a few weeks ago and again today, and it is still flowering.

From WikiPedia:

Solanum crispum is a species of flowering plant in the Solanaceae family, native to Chile and Peru. Common names include Chilean potato vine, Chilean nightshade, Chilean potato tree and potato vine. Growing to 6 m (20 ft) tall, it is a semi-evergreen, woody-stemmed climbing plant. The small blue fragrant flowers, 2.5 cm in diameter, with prominent yellow ovaries, appear in clusters in summer. They resemble those of the closely related potato. Very small poisonous berries are produced in autumn. The berries start out green, then yellow-orange, and finally purple. The leaves are oval.

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