''Nicandra '' is a

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (), commonly called angiosperms. The term "angiosperm" is derived from the Greek words ('container, vessel') and ('seed'), and refers to those plants th ...

in the family

Solanaceae The Solanaceae , or nightshades, are a family of flowering plants that ranges from annual and perennial herbs to vines, lianas, epiphytes, shrubs, and trees, and includes a number of agricultural crops, medicinal plants, spices, weeds, and orn ...

, native to western South America. It was first described by Michel Adanson in 1763. The genus is named for Greek poet

Nicander Nicander of Colophon ( grc-gre, Νίκανδρος ὁ Κολοφώνιος, Níkandros ho Kolophṓnios; fl. 2nd century BC), Greek poet, physician and grammarian, was born at Claros (Ahmetbeyli in modern Turkey), near Colophon, where his famil ...

of Colophon, who wrote about plants – notably in his poem ''Alexipharmaca'', which treats of poisons and their antidotes. ,

Plants of the World Online Plants of the World Online (POWO) is an online database published by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. It was launched in March 2017 with the ultimate aim being "to enable users to access information on all the world's known seed-bearing plants by ...

accepted three species: *'' Nicandra john-tyleriana'' S.Leiva & Pereyra *''

Nicandra physalodes ''Nicandra physalodes'' is a species of flowering plant in subfamily Solanoideae of the nightshade family. It is known by the common names apple-of-Peru and shoo-fly plant. It is thought originally to have been native to western South America, in ...

'' (L.) Gaertn. *'' Nicandra yacheriana'' S.Leiva From 1763 until 2007, when ''Nicandra john-tyleriana'' was described, the only species in the genus was ''Nicandra physalodes''. A third species, ''Nicandra yacheriana'', was described in 2010.

References

Solanoideae Solanaceae genera {{Solanales-stub