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Physalis philadelphica

Common name:	Wild Tomatillo	Family:	Solanaceae
Author:	Lam.	Botanical references:	170, 200
Synonyms:	Physalis aequanta (Jacq.)
Known Hazards:	All parts of the plant, except the fruit, are poisonous[19, 65].
Range:	N. America and S. America.
Habitat:	Not known in a truly wild situation, it is found as a weed of cultivation.
Edibility Rating (1-5):	4	Medicinal Rating (1-5):	1

Other Possible Synonyms:	From various places across the web, may not be correct. See below.
	P. aequata[G] P. ixocarpa[E,G,H,HORTIPLEX,L]
Other Common Names:	From various places around the Web, may not be correct. See below.
	Mexican Ground-cherry [B], Mexican Groundcherry [P], Tomatillo [H,L],
Systematics:	From a USDA Plants Database
	Order: Solanales. Potato family
Other Range Info:	From the Ethnobotany Database
	Mexico

Physical Characteristics

Annual growing to 0.6m. It is hardy to zone 7 and is frost tender. It is in flower from July to September, and the seeds ripen from August to October. The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs) and are pollinated by Insects. We rate it 4/5 for edibility and 1/5 for medicinal use.

The plant prefers light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils and requires well-drained soil. The plant prefers acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils. It can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade. It requires moist soil.

Habitats and Possible Locations

Cultivated Beds.

Cultivar 'Purple de Milpa': Cultivated Beds.

Edible Uses

Fruit.

Fruit - raw or cooked[2, 50, 105]. A delicious flavouring when used like a tomato and added to soups, stews etc[K]. The plant conveniently wraps up each fruit in its own 'paper bag' (botanically, the calyx) to protect it from pests and the elements. This calyx is toxic and should not be eaten. The fruit can be stored for up to a year if picked before they are fully ripe and left inside their calyx.

Medicinal Uses

Disclaimer

Ophthalmic.

The juice from the berries has been used as an eyewash[257].

Other Uses

None known

Cultivation details

Succeeds in any well-drained soil in full sun or light shade[200].
Cultivated for its edible fruit in the Ukraine[50]. There are some named varieties[183, 200]. 'Purple de Milpa' has small purple-tinged fruits with a sharp flavour, they keep well[200].
Closely related to P. ixocarpa, this is probably the wild species that P. ixocarpa was derived from in cultivation[170].

Propagation

Seed - sow March/April in a greenhouse only just covering the seed. Germination usually takes place quickly and freely. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots of fairly rich soil when they are large enough to handle and plant them out after the last expected frosts. Consider giving them some protection such as a cloche until they are growing away well. Diurnal temperature fluctuations assist germination[170].

Cultivars

'Purple de Milpa': The plant has small purple-tinged fruits with a sharp flavour[200]. This cultivar is said to be the best flavoured form[183]. The fruit will store for months if the husks are pulled back and the fruit strung like garlic[183].

Suppliers

For more details of plant suppliers please see our Suppliers Page which lists many more places to look.

Web References

[B] Data (Latin & Common names, other references) from the BONAP's Synonymized Checklist of the Vascular Flora of the United States, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands.
[G] Data (Common Names, Uses, Distribution) from the USDA/ARS NPGS's GRIN taxonomic database.
[C] Taxon data. from the CalFlora database.
[P] Data. (uses, distribution, wetland) from the USDA'a Plants database.
[HP] Links, Photos, Suppliers from Hortiplex Plant Database

References for Physalis ixocarpa (a possible synonym).

[H] Details of Scandanavian and European Common names in Henriette's names database
[E] Ethnobotany Data (common names, uses, countries) from the Ethnobotany Database.
[G] Data (Common Names, Uses, Distribution) from the USDA/ARS NPGS's GRIN taxonomic database.
[G] Data (Common Names, Uses, Distribution) from the USDA/ARS NPGS's GRIN taxonomic database.
[PHARM] Phytochemical Data (common names, uses, countries) from Dr Duke's Phytochemical Database.
[HP] Links, Photos, Suppliers from Hortiplex Plant Database

References for the family Solanaceae.

[CHINA] Data Very detailed botanical/identification info. from the Flora of China.

See the PFAF Links Pages for other sources.

Also try Photos and info from the The Plants Database which has 14,000 images.

References

[K] Ken Fern
Notes from observations, tasting etc at Plants For A Future and on field trips.

[2] Hedrick. U. P. Sturtevant's Edible Plants of the World. Dover Publications 1972 ISBN 0-486-20459-6
Lots of entries, quite a lot of information in most entries and references.

[19] Stary. F. Poisonous Plants. Hamlyn 1983 ISBN 0-600-35666-3
Not very comprehensive, but easy reading.

[50] ? Flora Europaea Cambridge University Press 1964
An immense work in 6 volumes (including the index). The standard reference flora for europe, it is very terse though and with very little extra information. Not for the casual reader.

[65] Frohne. D. and Pfänder. J. A Colour Atlas of Poisonous Plants. Wolfe 1984 ISBN 0723408394
Brilliant. Goes into technical details but in a very readable way. The best work on the subject that I've come across so far.

[105] Tanaka. T. Tanaka's Cyclopaedia of Edible Plants of the World. Keigaku Publishing 1976
The most comprehensive guide to edible plants I've come across. Only the briefest entry for each species, though, and some of the entries are more than a little dubious. Not for the casual reader.

[170] Dremann. C. G. Ground Cherries, Husk Tomatoes and Tomatilloes. Redwood City Seed Co 1985 ISBN 0-933421-03-6
Only a small booklet but it covers the various species in some depth.

[183] Facciola. S. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications 1990 ISBN 0-9628087-0-9
Excellent. Contains a very wide range of conventional and unconventional food plants (including tropical) and where they can be obtained (mainly N. American nurseries but also research institutes and a lot of other nurseries from around the world.

[200] Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992 ISBN 0-333-47494-5
Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.

[257] Moerman. D. Native American Ethnobotany Timber Press. Oregon. 1998 ISBN 0-88192-453-9
Very comprehensive but terse guide to the native uses of plants. Excellent bibliography, fully referenced to each plant, giving a pathway to further information. Not for the casual reader.

Readers Comments

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Plant information taken from the Plants For A Future - Species Database. Copyright (c) 1997-2003.
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