solid ground cherry tree plants make an excellent , and more unusual , addition to any home garden . They are a favourite in children ’s gardens , although adults will also love the sweet caramelized pineapple flavour that you just ca n’t find out in any other fruit ! Learn all about why I jazz the ground cherry and how to grow ground cherry in your own garden .
Have you ever grown ground cherries ? If you have n’t , I ’m not surprised . They are n’t as well - cognise of a yield as blueberries , snort , and apple . They are , however , delicious to corrode and reasonably darn playfulness to grow in a home garden .
Here ’s how to mature them !
A ground cherry plant flowering before it fruits.
What Are Ground Cherries?
Ground cherry are native from Central America to Northern Mexico . The plant areknown for their habit of growing close to and spreading along the ground .
background cherry works have large , dark immature leaves with an abundance of small-scale , unaccented yellow heyday that develop into golden - orange , cherry - sized fruit when ripe . Both the plant and the fruitresemble tomatillos , and each fruit Charles Edward Berry build up in a papery chaff call a calyx .
Important Note : Many parts of the background cherry plant life , including the calyx , are toxic to citizenry . If ingested , they can do gastrointestinal upset . Once the yield is mature and aureate in coloring , it is safe ( and delicious ) to feed .
Where to Find Ground Cherries
These plants are primarily grow as a garden crop , although you may also sometimes see them for cut-rate sale at farmers ’ market .
After taste them , it would n’t surprise me if you wondered why they are not sold as a yield staple beside the blueberry bush , blackberries , boo , and strawberry at the grocery store . After all , they taste like to a tomatillo with touch of pineapple flavour .
It ’s not because they do n’t last or send well . Ground cherry last in their paper husks for up to 3 months!They have built - in ego - storage and protection .
You wo n’t encounter ground cherries as agrocery store staplebecausethey are unmanageable to harvest in large quantities . The ripe fruit will strike to the soil when ready for crop . This happens over many weeks , so the harvest is spread out .
Farmer have to get down to primer grade and plunk up a handful of fruit from each flora every day for week to get the harvesting . This prepare for a fantastic garden fruit flora because , of form , we want yield to be ready for harvest over a longer geological period of time , but it does n’t work for mass product .
What Are Some Other Names for Ground Cherries?
Ground cherries can be erroneously call several other names as well . The confusion around the name ‘ earth cherry ’ is a great cause why we refer to botanical Latin names for plants when clear up exactly which plants we are peach about .
In this case , flat coat cherriesrefer toPhysalis pruinosa . Thesecool - time of year annuals are also called husk cherry , strawberry dry land cherries , and Aunt Molly ’s .
There are many more “ ground cerise ’ relation that I am NOT denote to . Here is a sampling of plants that can sometimes be mistaken for earth cherry :
Cape Gooseberries ( Physalis peruviana )
Although ground cherry are closely related to mantle gooseberries , they are not the same flora . mantle gooseberries are gravid and have more of a citrus flavour than earth cherry do .
Also , mantle gooseberries should not be confused with the true gooseberries , which are of the genusRibesin the family Grossulariaceae .
Tomatillos ( Physalis ixocarpa )
Although related to the flat coat cherry tree , the Mexican husk tomato ( a.k.a . tomatillos ) is not sweet-smelling . Tomatillos are modest , spherical ( often dark-green ) fruits used to make gullible salsa .
Formosan Lantern Flower(Physalis alkekengi )
These pretty and long - last dried flowers are not a good fit for many gardeners to get because they can be invasive and are not comestible , as they are poisonous plants .
Ground Cherry Nutrition
After get earth cherries for a gazillion long time ( OK , maybe it ’s really more like 15 years ) , I was shocked to see thempackaged and marketed as a “ superfood ” .
Golden Berries are made from … Physalis peruviana ( cape gooseberries),NOTPhysalis pruinosa .
The packaging on these superfoods say they are a great informant of essential minerals , vitamin ( including vitamin A and C ) , antioxidant , and fibre .
How fabulous ! But no matter what the marketing says , my experience is that they grow well , try out great , and are fun for everyone to harvest . And let in any garden - grow food on your plateful ismydefinition of a superfood .
How to Grow Ground Cherries
The most common complaint I discover about primer cherry is that the seed are toilsome to germinate . However , I ’ve never really had any issuesgerminating ground cherry red . I take up them just like I startgrowing love apple , but since they are slower to raise into gravid transplant , I jump them a few weeks earlier than I would bulge out my tomato plant .
They are sincerely easy to turn .
How to Harvest Ground Cherries
They produce fruit for many weeks over the grow time of year , so you’re able to continuously pluck and enjoy them unfermented during the summertime . When refrigerate , they will last for a calendar week to 10 days , allowing you to enjoy your harvest well into the dusk .
They have a born preserving shuck that allows the Berry to fall from the plant and stay protected on the land for a week or more .
Of course , that depends on who else is out looking for tasty garden treats to nosh on .
Ground Cherry Recipes To Make At Home
Ground cherry tree are such a treat in the garden ; it ’s hard to imagine that any would last long enough to need a recipe for them . Then again , they are so fertile that you might have far too many fruit to eat them all refreshing .
If you get a bounty of ground cherries , you are in for a delightful experience . When cooked , ground cherry red get a bit of a pineapple caramel flavour that is out of this world !
I made a few small pots of pickle one twelvemonth and when I tasted it , I thought my head would blow up from joy .
Who could find fault me ? I mean , the ample , fresh , fruity electronic jamming I made was gobbled up instantly and I started growing many more plant each twelvemonth after that just so I could make more as well as try my manus at making a ground cherry tree pie , a decadent treat that is beyond compare .
If you would care a few more ideas for ways to employ up your primer cherries , here are a few musical theme :
How to Save Ground Cherry Seeds
If you want to store your ground cherry red seeds so that you may plant them next year , watch the sameprocess to extract and preserve the seedsas you would with tomatoes .
I hope you ’ll try growing flat coat cherries for yourself so that you may see what a well - kept garden craw secret they are !
Ground Cherry FAQ
Yes , they can be eaten raw once they ’re ripe . However , the outer papery calyx is toxic , so verify to eat only the fruit .
Yes ! While they ’re native to Central America , they can grow inzones 4–8 . They ’re considered warm - season fruits , and you may have greater chances of develop them from seed by set about them indoors on aheat matin early saltation .
No , ground cherries belong to thePhysalisgenus , while tomatoes are classified asSolanum . However , they are part of the greater nightshade family , Solanaceae .
