New Plants For The Garden – Ground Cherries
Hey, everyone! I hope all is going well. Today, I wanted to talk about a new plant that we are incorporating into our garden. It is something that we have never tried before, but have heard some good things about and it is something that I am really hoping works out. This plant called a ground cherry.
From the reading that I have done on them, they were a fruit that was grown by early colonists that came to the Americas. They were used and preserved in things like pies and jellies, but this is something that I have never heard of before. They grow in a husk and will fall off when they are ready. The husks will get dry in appearance and the fruit will be yellowish in color. After reading all of this about them, it intrigued me and I really thought it would be an interesting thing to try.
Last year, I ordered some seeds from Baker’s Creek to try them out. Well, to put it simply, there is a reason why I am writing about it this year instead of last year. Haha! Last year, I was unsuccessful in getting the seeds to start by directly sowing them into the ground. This year, I decided to get them started indoors and then move them outside and it made a world of difference. After planting them, I was able to get about five plants started and ready to move outdoors (there were six, but the root ball on one of them was not as developed and fell apart upon planting).
Since then, they have all been growing very well and have started producing. It is something that is definitely different than what I was expecting. I was expecting it to taste either really tart like a cherry or very sweet. Well, it was neither! It was the size of a cherry, had the consistency of a tomato, appearance of a tomillo, and had a faint sweetness to it, but not a lot of flavor.
To be honest, I was kind of expecting more out of it flavor wise. I am really interested to see how it would hold up as a preserve or in a pie. Maybe that would help draw out some of the flavor, but regardless, it is something different and adds some diversity to what is grown on my homestead. I have to do some more research as to the benefits/nutrients that they provide, but I think this will be something that I will grow again next year.
Thanks for stopping by!
@tipu curate .5
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They looks a lot like these orange colored lantern plants that come out around this time of year for Halloween. Good luck with them.
Sorry, it has taken so long to respond.
Yes they do kind of look like that now that you mention it. Haha! At least the variety I grew oddly has kind of an orange juice flavor. I am hoping a jam will really help bring out its flavor.
Also, thank you for the tipu @dfinney! I really appreciate it!
Ground cherries are in my top 5 must have garden plants! They are simply amazing!!
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I apologize for the last response.
They are quite good and are very different from what I am used to, so I think they will be a keeper for next year. Except the only thing I am going to do different is that I will plant more than 5 plants! Haha! Thanks for stopping by.
Ground cherries are awesome. They're also nice and viney and make a good trellis. I remember them growing at a place I wooffed at in New Zealand. We all loved them, but had to watch out for the "plant police" as they were considered "noxious" for being non-native.
Sorry for the late response @stortebeker.
Interesting. Do you know what variety it was or what the flavors of them were? I am just curious how they might be different from the variety I grew.
Also, I am curious about what they would do if they found the plant on a property. Would they destroy it or fine the homeowner?
No idea about the variety, but it sounded a lot like the one you described: orange-yellowish berries of about 1-2 inches in diameter.
Knowing New Zealand, they would probably remind you politely several times to remove it, or if the bush is close to the fence, they might poison it "accidentally". There is this post I wrote about my mom's cherry trees that befell a similar fate:
https://steempeak.com/aotearoa/@stortebeker/wonders-of-whakatane-nativism-a-destructive-form-of-environmentalism