Horse nettle (Solanum carolinense) is native to North America. The species is a major problem in agriculture because it is very competitive and poisonous. The plant has an extensive root system consisting of a taproot, which in turn forms several meters long, horizontally growing lateral roots with numerous regenerative buds. This means that large areas can be colonized by horse nettle in a few years. Successful mechanical or chemical control is therefore very difficult.
In south-eastern Austria, horse nettle is spreading and is mainly found in crops such as soybean, maize and oil pumpkin. A species distribution model shows that although only a relatively small part of Austria is currently climatically suitable, most of it is used for agriculture. Climate change will further increase the potential distribution area in Austria. This underlines the need to take effective measures to stop the further spread of horse nettle and avoid yield losses.
The study by Follak et al. (2023) investigated the current occurrences of the horse nettle in Austria and its spread potential: Follak S. Chapman D., Schwarz M., Essl F. (2023): An emerging weed: rapid spread of Solanum carolinense in Austria. BioInvasions Records 12, 649–658, https://www.reabic.net/journals/bir/2023/3/BIR_2023_Follak_etal.pdf