Ground cherry
Physalis pruinosa
A husked, low Physalis with pineapple-tomatillo fruit that drops when ripe. Related to tomatillo. Unripe fruit is not the treat.
GROW → HARVEST → EAT → DRY → POWDER → CAPSULE → GUMMY — forms are not equivalent. Food first.
Identity
Also called: husk cherry, strawberry tomato
What it is
A husked, low Physalis with pineapple-tomatillo fruit that drops when ripe. Related to tomatillo. Unripe fruit is not the treat.
Edible portions
- ripe fruit inside dry husks
Absence of a portion from this list means it is not treated as food here — not that every other part is toxic.
Growing
- Climate. Annual
- Light. Full sun
- Soil. Average, well-drained
- Planting. Self-sows. Start indoors or sow warm.
- Harvest. Pick from the ground when husks are papery and fruit is yellow/gold.
Preparation and culinary uses
- Fresh, jam, tarts
Next steps
Sources
- USDA PLANTS Database — taxonomy and range (verify current entries)
- No USDA FoodData Central nutrient profile is attached here. That is not a claim that the plant contains no nutrients.
- State cooperative extension growing guides — verify for your region
Honest incompleteness is preferred to fabricated completeness. If a section is missing, no record for it is attached here — not a claim that the plant lacks that characteristic, and not that it was omitted as a secret.
Internal quality class B. Good foundation: enough unique information to exist as its own destination.