During the mid 1970s, there was much concern about black nightshade among soybean growers. The purple-red color usually present on the lower surface of the seedling leaves of eastern black nightshade helps distinguish it from other nightshade species. Eastern black nightshade is a highly branched annual plant that grows 1 to 3 feet tall.
Flowers have five reflexed petals and fruits are green berries that turn black at maturity.
The plant can be found in cultivated fields, gardens, waste places and overgrazed pastures. Seeds germinate in the spring and early summer and plants flower from July to October with seed maturing in August through October. In recent years, eastern black nightshade has caused serious economic losses to soybean producers, and it may well pose hazards to forage livestock producers. In certain cases, eastern black nightshade contaminates the harvested crop resulting in either a lower market value or perhaps rejection. For example, nightshade fruits harvested with peas, snap beans and soybeans are impossible to remove mechanically from the harvested crop.