Safety note: All parts contain toxic solanine alkaloids. The yellow berries resemble cherry tomatoes but are poisonous. Spiny stems can puncture skin.
Carolina Horsenettle is a prickly native perennial with star-shaped white to lavender flowers and hard yellow berries that persist through winter. Despite its common name, it is not a true nettle but a member of the nightshade family. It colonizes pastures, roadsides, and sandy open areas across the eastern and central United States, where it is considered a weed but supports specialist bees that buzz-pollinate its flowers. Its deep root system makes it difficult to eradicate.
Habitat
Pastures, roadsides, sandy fields, open disturbed ground
Diet
Flowers visited by bumblebees and specialist solitary bees; berries eaten by wild turkeys
How common
Common
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