A RARE Australian tropical plant has been found thriving in London's heatwave.
The solanum aviculare - commonly known as the Kangaroo Apple - was found by residents in the Churchill Gardens estate in Westminster last week.
The plants' original habitat is in the forests of south-eastern Australia.
Its authenticity has been verified by scientists from the Natural History Museum.
It is a small shrub with ornate purple flowers blooming throughout spring and summer.
The flowers are followed by a green fruit, ripening to yellow and then a deep orange.
However, the leaves and berries are known to be poisonous, except when extremely ripe.
Since the mid 1960s the Kangaroo Apple has been cultivated and studied in the former USSR, New Zealand, India, Egypt and other countries for the production of industrial steroids.
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