Ground cherry what is it
They are occasionally available in US supermarkets in the spring, but these are usually imported from the Southern Hemisphere and carry a large carbon footprint from shipping and packaging.
Most species of Physalis , including ground cherries and cape gooseberries, are annuals in temperate areas, but perennials in tropical regions. They grow much like tomatoes and tomatillos — left on their own, they will vine and spread widely throughout the garden, but do well when staked.
The fruit is ripe when the husk turns papery and straw-colored, or when the fruit falls off the vine. Kept in their papery husks, the fruit will keep in the refrigerator for at least a week, and up to ten days.
While you are more likely to stumble upon a dessert recipe utilizing ground cherries or cape gooseberries, the fruit also excels in savory dishes. You can halve or quarter them and toss them into salads — they are divine with a bit of goat cheese.
They are also fantastic in savory cold grain salads, especially in combination with farro or wheat berries and nuts. Ground cherries make unique baked goods, like in this ground cherry and pineapple crumble and this ground cherry clafoutis. Or make these delightful chocolate-covered ground cherries , with the husk artfully folded to make a cute handle for eating. But our very favorite way of eating them is raw after getting them out of their husk, that is!
The fruit can be frozen with ease — just husk, rinse and dry them, then stick them on a cookie sheet and freeze until solid.
Like most of the Solanums, ground cherries have zilch tolerance for frost; in fact a good chill sends them into stress mode. Tropical crops, such as basil and Malabar spinach, seem to be so adapted to hot humidity that they totally lose it toward the other end of the weather spectrum. But while ground cherries welcome heat, they do not bear up well under drought, especially in their earlier growth, and unlike tomatoes they are not quick to snap back from a temporary wilt.
For one thing you can and should start them plenty early — at least as early as tomatoes — and baby them after setting out to minimize transplant shock. Starting in individual cells at least 2- x 2-inch is much preferred to letting them inter-root in seedling flats. That gives you an earlier crop — wonderful — but also an even bigger late crop to go to waste. A greenhouse would be the answer, I assume. You can do that with ground cherries to some extent, but the flavor will be disappointing, even more than after-ripened tomatoes.
It came to the National Germplasm collection from Poland, and I was impressed by its sweet pineapple-y taste tones, plus nice yellow color, often blushed with orange. A typical way to grow ground cherries is to let them live up to their name and sprawl on the ground. A major problem with this is that the ripe fruits tend to drop off and lie unseen under the foliage. I have contrived an alternate system that works very well for me. As shown in the accompanying photo, I lean two trellis sections away from the plants at less than 45 degrees to the ground.
The growing plants sprawl on these with little attention to training, while the dropped fruits are easily collected from the ground beneath. Fortunately, ripe ground cherries can be stored for several weeks after harvest due to their papery cases, which keep them dry and lightly separated. Ground cherries are fairly easy to grow, as long as you provide them with sufficient sunlight and moisture. It's possible to grow ground cherries indoors, but they might need supplemental grow lights if you don't have a bright enough window.
NC State Extension. Actively scan device characteristics for identification. Use precise geolocation data. Select personalised content. Create a personalised content profile. Measure ad performance. Select basic ads. Create a personalised ads profile. Select personalised ads. Apply market research to generate audience insights.
Measure content performance. Develop and improve products. List of Partners vendors. In This Article Expand. Ground Cherry vs. Growing in Pots. Growing From Seeds. Pests and Diseases. Are ground cherries easy to grow? How long does it take to grow ground cherries? Ground cherries grow quickly and will be ready to harvest in the summer after a spring planting.
Can you grow ground cherries indoors? Featured Video. Article Sources. The Spruce uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read our editorial process to learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
Read More. Your Privacy Rights. To change or withdraw your consent choices for TheSpruce. At any time, you can update your settings through the "EU Privacy" link at the bottom of any page.