PlantFiles: Chinese Lantern Plant, Strawberry Ground Cherry
Physalis alkekengi

Not sure who planted this, but sure enough, it is growing like an invasive weed in both my neighbors' and my side yards. Their part is popping up in a pea gravel extension of their driveway, and so far they don't seem hell bent on getting rid of it. It's growing along our fence line and into the grass on my side. I can mow mine down if so desired, but I (also??) feel rather benign about it. I have a skeleton of a seed pod from last year as a cherished memento, go figure.

Not that I want to encourage anyone to plant this bully, just wanted to answer a question here. In Paris I had a lovely cocktail garnished with a strange fruit encased in a paper lantern. I've since realized it was this fruit. They called it a "Cockie". It was a very mild tasting cherry like fruit. I ripped this out of my garden for 3 years and tried many chemicals on it. So far it's not appeared this year. Maybe the very frozen winter eliminated it. I never planted it, a seed must have come in from some nursery pot. It popped up in a 6 foot radius despite constant pulling and twice completely digging and changing all of the soil.

I dug up a part of my grandmother's Chinese Lantern from her yard in Nevada. I moved to Oregon to an apartment upstairs and want to continue growing them but it has to be by pot. Can anyone suggest anything to keep this plant alive? I have it indoors right now, but it seems as though they might do ok in my covered sun room/patio. It gets cold in there, but I think it's a little more sheltered than being left outside. I just want some info on how to keep them growing. It rains here on a constant, should I keep them in their pots and put them outside? Keep them in the sun room? Or just keep it inside? any info will help. THANKS!

Bought seeds for this off of eBay. The seeds probably weren't all that great. I tried to start about 30 of them in peat pellets and only ten sprouted. After transplanting them only two survived (and are now flowering). I honestly hope that they're as invasive as some claim because they're in an area that's overrun with creeping charlie.

I'd much rather have these.

I will let the little lanterns fall to the ground this fall and wintersow. Looking forward to having them around my porch. :-)

I got this plant 2 summers ago from a lady friend. She had a patch of it and although she had dug it up, little shoots continued to pop up- and her husband would just mow them off! LOL I put mine in a big pot and it was wonderful. I got a lot of lanterns to dry and display. The second year, they didn't produce as many lanterns and I was bummed. They didn't even come up this year... I figure they may have gotten too wet over the winter. I have a window box with some in it that did survive the winter and they're coming up nicely.

These are extremely easy to start from cuttings! Just snip a stalk and root it in water. I've grown from seed too, but they do take a little longer.

VERY INVASIVE if you plant in the ground- you will never completely get rid of them.

I love mine and will continue to grow them every year.

According to Plants for a Future database, physalis alkekengi are edible!

This took over an entire flowerbed, even coming up between bricks in a small sitting area. I went through and meticulously picked it out, but everywhere I left a bit of root, it came back. Maybe in poorer soil it wouldn't have been so bad, but I don't like things that send out shoots everywhere. Bugs also seemed to be a problem with it, as the leaves had lots of little holes in them. I tried it in a pot, but it didn't do very well. I might try it again, but not in an area that it can run free. Other names include Chinese Lanterns, Strawberry Tomato, and Winter Cherry.

I have read in a couple of books that this plant does well potted, which would eliminate the need to constantly weed it out of your garden. This is the route I am going, and so far so good. The little plants grew quickly once they sprouted, and it looks as though they will need bigger pots soon. I am thinking of planting them INSIDE a sturdy container, then planting the container in the ground, much the same way you would for bamboo to keep it from getting out of control. Hopefully that works, and I dont end up with a menace on my hands. Really I just want the branches and lanterns for drying, so hopefully I get my wish!

I LIVE WHERE IT GETS VERY HOT IN THE SUMMER, AND I HAD TO WATER MY TOMATILLOS EVERY DAY. UNFORTUNATLY THE NEED TO DO MORE WEEDING IS ENEVITABLE. THESE LITTLE PLANTS WERE GROWING ALL OVER THE PLACE. I FOUND IT INTERESTING AS THEY SEEMED TO BE A MINIATURE OF THE TOMATILLOS.

i liked the way it looked so i bought some seeds but i didn't know it could be poisonus anyhow i found out it's only poisonus if the berries aren't ripe a site says you can cook or eat the ripe berrys so i'm not sure how all of that is i am not eating it though! just looks nice.. and i still like it

Mine are growing from seed (the whole lanterns) that I took in last fall; in late October. They dried completely; I neglected to take them in off the front porch, as it was bitterly cold outside; down to -35 on some days (I'm up in the mountain zone.) There they stayed in a plastic flower pot with nothing in it; till I remembered them in April. I took them and crammed them into one pot 8 inch by 6 inch, (10-12 of them) with soil underneath and on top. They have arisen as if nothing happened. I'm glad I took them now; as we had to move mid-winter; in February and March. I will post a picture of them soon.

Caution should be exercised with Physalis: there are some 80 species; and, they are very often confused. Many people lump them together as ground cherries; but, this could get you into trouble. The toxins in the fruit are rendered safe by cooking; and, ripe fruit is safe. The calyces are toxic; so, be certain to clean the fruit thoroughly. Gastroenteritis is the most likely consequence of making an error. The ever popular tomatillo is one of these plants.

In summary, I enjoy the fruit; but, I have to be careful about others (pets, livestock) eating the unripe fruit. Adverse: these really are aggressive, weedy plants.

My sister-in-law just gave me a bowl full of the lanterns and I see the little cherries inside.

This is known as Florida Ground Cherry in Florida.

It is so invasive that once it shows up in your yard, total elimination becomes a continuous, monumental but imposible task.

This and its cousin Physalis peruviana (Cape Gooseberry or Goldenberry), have escaped any and all types of control earning a nickname "Escape Artist".

It appears however, that what Gloriana has is the Physalis peruviana and NOT the Physalis alkekengi. Her description of the color and the taste clearly direct us towards the Cape Gooseberry, a fruit highly prized by the Portuguese. And that is why it is routinely sold in Portuguese markets.

Final verification can come from her local Goanese (Indians from Goa of Portuguese ancestry) population. Their name for the Cape Gooseberry is "Chirputtam" or "Fizalis".

Today, after 9 1/2 autumns of enjoying looking at the Chinese Lanterns in our garden, a neighbour told me that the ground cherry is a delicacy in the Portuguese community. For the first time, I opened a lantern and tasted the bright red fruit. It was sweet and hopefully not poisonous.

What is missing (or what I missed) from the description on your site is more information about the red fruit and the confirmation that it is indeed edible. What a pleasant surprise to find the hopefully edible fruit!

Our lanternplants have been very aggressive and have taken over about 2/3 of a bed while I wasn't looking. We have done nothing to amend the soil; benevolent neglect is the type of gardening we practise. I live in Dundas, Ontario, Canada which is part of the Greater Hamilton Area.

Gloriana

Papery orange lanterns appear in late summer and are excellent in fresh and dried arrangements.