Thorn apple can be a tall erect plant with long, smooth, toothed leaves about 8 to 20 cm long. The upper surface of the leaves is a darker green, and the bottom is a light green.
The stem is stout, smooth and pale yellow-green. The stem forks off repeatedly into branches, and each fork forms a leaf and a single, erect flower. Seeds mature approx. 30 days after pollination and the seed capsule opens about 20 days later.
There may be 50 or more capsules per plant, 600-700 seeds per capsule and around 30,000 seeds per plant.
A very difficult weed to control late, best controlled as a small seedling.