This
plant was called the Woody Nightshade (Solanum dulcamara)
by the old herbalists to distinguish it from the Deadly Nightshade. Its generic
name "Solanum" is derived from ‘Solor’ (I ease), and
testifies to the medicinal power of this group of plants. The second name,
"Dulcamara" used to be more correctly written in the Middle Ages,
Amaradulcis, signifying literally 'bittersweet,' the common country name of the
plant, given to it in reference to the fact that the root and stem, if chewed,
taste first bitter, and then sweet. Another old name is Felonwood, probably a
corruption of ‘Felonwort’, the plant for felons - ‘felon’ being an old
name for ‘whitlow’.
In the days of belief in witchcraft, shepherds used to hang it as a charm round the necks of those of their beasts whom they suspected to be under the evil eye.
The older physicians valued Woody Nightshade highly, and applied it to many purposes in medicine and surgery, most of which is no longer used. It was in great repute as far back as the time of Theophrastus, and we know of it being in use in Europe in the thirteenth century.
Boerhaave, the celebrated Dutch physician, considered the young shoots superior to Sarsaparilla as a restorative, and Linnaeus, who at first had an aversion to the plant, later spoke of it in the highest terms as a remedy for rheumatism, fever and inflammatory diseases of all kinds. There are few complaints for which it has not been at some time recommended.
The prevailing property of plants belonging to the Nightshade tribe is narcotic, rendering many of them in consequence highly poisonous.
The genus Solanum - to which the older herbalists formerly assigned Atropa Belladonna, and to which the Potato and Aubergine belong, is represented by two species: Solanum nigrum (Black or Garden Nightshade) and S. Dulcamara (Bittersweet or Woody Nightshade). The leaves bear a certain resemblance to those of Belladonna, and the flowers of both Bittersweet and Belladonna are purple, though totally distinct in shape, and both have berries, red in the case of Bittersweet, not black as in the Belladonna.
Woody Nightshade is a perennial, shrubby plant, quite woody at the base, but throws out long, straggling, slender branches, which trail over the hedges and bushes among which it grows, reaching many feet in length, when supported by other plants. They are at first green and hairy, but become woody and smooth as they grow older, with an ashy green bark.
The flowers, which are open all the summer, are in loose, drooping clusters, on short stalks opposite the leaves. They are of a bluish purple tint, with reflexed petals when expanded, so as almost to appear drooping. Their bright yellow stamens project in a conical form around the pistil, or seed bearing portion of the flower.
Woody Nightshade contains the alkaloid Solanine and the amorphous glucoside Dulcamarine, to which the characteristic bittersweet taste is due. Sugar, gum, starch and resin are also present.
Solanine acts narcotically; in large doses it paralyses the central nervous system, without affecting the peripheral nerves or voluntary muscles. It slows the heart and respiration, lessens sensibility, lowers the temperature and causes vertigo and delirium, terminating in death with convulsions.
The drug possesses feeble narcotic properties, with the power of increasing the secretions, particularly those of the skin and kidneys. It has no action on the pupil of the eye.
It is chiefly used as an alterative in skin diseases, being a popular remedy for obstinate skin eruptions, scrofula and ulcers. It has also been recommended in chronic bronchial catarrh, asthma and whooping cough.
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