It looks good and tastes delicious, but unfortunately is rather expensive too. It is cheaper to grow physalis yourself. And, of course, more fun too if you are able to pick the fruit yourself rather than simply buying it from the nearest supermarket.
Physalis – a truly special plant
The physalis is an extraordinary plant in many respects. For a start, it has its own packaging: The cherry-sized fruit is encased in a dome made of lots of thin, green leaves that become light-brown and paper-like as the fruit ripens. This has the effect of making them look almost like small Chinese lanterns. The physalis is also related to the tomato — and wherever tomatoes grow, the physalis will also thrive. It is known by many names, including the Cape gooseberry and the Peruvian ground cherry. Its correct botanical name, however, is Physalis peruviana.
All of these names reveal where the plant comes from: the nightshade plant originates in the Andes in Peru and Chile, but is also cultivated in South Africa — hence the name "Cape gooseberry". It can now also be found in places such as Australia, the USA, India and southern France. And in European gardens. After all, as mentioned earlier, wherever tomatoes are found so too can physalis be planted, nurtured and propagated.
Hardy, however, they are not, so they are often considered to be a one-year plant — although they can actually survive as long as ten years. Regardless of what age they reach, at the start of their career as an exotic highlight the main concern is their cultivation. And you have two options here.
Mastering the art of overwintering physalis
If you want to enjoy your physalis for longer than a year, you should move the plants into pots before the frost season starts or plant them in pots from the outset. Then place the pots somewhere light with a consistent temperature of around 10–15°C. You can also cut the plants back to approximately one-third to encourage new shoots to grow in spring.
Caring for and enjoying physalis
The physalis also likes it warm and bright outside. Most importantly, this plant has a real thirst and should not be allowed to dry out. You must water it if necessary. It is less demanding when it comes to being fed nutrients — it does not usually need fertiliser. On the contrary: if you overdo it with the fertiliser, the physalis will waste its energy on growing new shoots — at the expense of growing fruit.
Under optimum, i.e. mild, conditions, you can expect to harvest the fruit towards the end of the summer (August) at the earliest, or even later than that. You will know when it is the right time to pick the fruit as the shell will turn orange. Please note: They rarely ripen after they have been picked so should not be added to the fruit basket too soon.
The sweet-and-sour fruits, rich with vitamins, can simply be enjoyed raw and will keep for up to two weeks. Thanks to their interesting exterior, they also look good and are ideal as decoration.
