Cow's Udder Plant/Fox Head (Solanum mammosum) - The Asian Lucky Charm with a Bizarre Look

Bright yellow fruits with such a bizarre shape that you can't help but stop and stare? The sight of this exotic plant is guaranteed to attract attention. Solanum mammosum is an extraordinary botanical rarity, valued less for its culinary properties and more as a spectacular ornamental and structural plant. The waxy fruits, reminiscent of small cow udders or fox heads, are highly prized in floristry and incredibly long-lasting. If you're looking for an optical highlight for your late summer and autumn garden, you've found it here.

Scope of delivery: One young plant in a 7cm pot.

Growth & Appearance

• Lifespan: Perennial (shrub), but usually cultivated as an annual in our climate due to its frost sensitivity or must be overwintered indoors.

• Growth height: Reaches a good 100 to 150 cm in height as a potted plant.

• Habit: Grows as a vigorous, upright shrub. The stems and the large, soft, velvety hairy leaves are often covered with prominent thorns.

• Flower & Fruit: From late summer, star-shaped, purple flowers develop into bright yellow-orange, waxy fruits. They have a distinctive shape with an elongated tip and several rounded protuberances at the base.

• Ingredients: Important note! Like many members of the nightshade family, Solanum mammosum is highly toxic in all its parts. It contains high amounts of toxic steroid alkaloids (such as solanine). The fruits are absolutely inedible and serve purely decorative purposes.

Interesting facts

• Other names: In German, it is primarily known as Cow Udder Plant, Nipple Nightshade, or even Sodom Apple – a term for fruits that look tempting on the outside but are poisonous or inedible on the inside. In English-speaking regions, it is called Nipplefruit or Macaw bush. In Asia and floristry, it is very commonly found under the name Fox Face. In Central America, it is often known by indigenous names such as Chichita or Tinton.

• Origin & History: Its home is in tropical South America and the Caribbean. Due to its extremely unusual fruits, however, it has been exported worldwide to tropical and subtropical regions and is now cultivated there as an ornamental plant.

• Curiosities from around the world: This plant connects continents through its symbolism! In Guatemala, it is inextricably linked with the Catholic pilgrimages to Esquipulas. When believers pilgrimage to the famous shrine of the "Black Christ" in January, they traditionally adorn their characteristic straw hats, walking sticks, and vehicles with the bright yellow fruits and Spanish moss. There, they are considered a sign of devotion and a symbol of fertility and blessing. Quite different on the other side of the world: in East Asia, especially in Taiwan and Hong Kong, branches with the striking yellow fruits are traditionally displayed for Chinese New Year. The countless protuberances of the fruit here symbolize a large family, many descendants, and thus prosperity and good fortune.

Use

• Decoration & Floristry: Since the fruits are toxic, their use is limited exclusively to decoration. Cut, leafless branches with ripe fruits look spectacular in large floor vases and last for many weeks to months indoors without losing their color.

Location, Care & Other Important Things

• Location: Full sun, warm, and sheltered from wind.

• Care: Cultivation is very similar to that of eggplants. As a heat-loving plant from the tropics, it requires very nutrient-rich soil (heavy feeder) and regular, generous watering, especially on hot summer days.

• Overwintering: The plant cannot tolerate any frost. If it is to be cultivated as a perennial, it must be brought indoors before the first frost and overwintered in a bright location at about 10 to 15 °C.

Planting out & Location

• Outdoors: Only after the Ice Saints (mid-May), when temperatures are reliably double-digit even at night and there is no longer a risk of ground frost.

• Tip for cultivation: Due to the sharp thorns and the necessary overwintering, it is advisable to plant directly into a large, sturdy pot (at least 15 to 20 liters). This way, it can be moved into the winter garden or indoors in autumn, along with its decorative fruits, as an eye-catcher.

Long-lasting Branch Arrangement (DIY)