Physiological Approaches

India, one among the twelve meagre biodiversity centres in the world, is regarded as the paradise of vegetation due to the rich diversity of agroclimatic and socio-cultural conditions prevailing in the country. Lack of basic information on different crop production is a limiting factor in herbal sector. Therefore, need for intensive agricultural studies leading to genetical, physiological and agronomic manipulations to increase productivity with quality, which leads to future expansion of area under medicinal plants. Black nightshade is the vernacular name of Solanum nigrum L., which belongs to the family Solananceae. This herb is nowadays gaining importance in pharmaceutical industry due to its amazing drug potential. Synthetic cultivation of black nightshade is not followed anywhere, which is a serious handicap in exploiting their long established advantages. Attempts are being made to develop agrotechniques for this crop through the Department of Indian System of Medicine and Homeopathy, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India.So the present investigation was carried out to generate knowledge and technology for improving the yield and quality of this crop.