Cape Gooseberries (Physalis peruviana) comes originally from South America as you might guess from its botanical name but it grows extremely well in Ventnor. It is related to the tomato, potato, and other members of the nightshade family and closely related to the tomatillo but not to the gooseberry or Chinese gooseberry.
Also known as ‘Incan Berries’, the latest ’superfood’, they contain vitamins A, C, B1, B2, B6, B12 and are high in phosphorous. They also contain 16% protein which is very high for a fruit.
The fruit is a small round berry, about the size of a marble, full of small seeds. It is bright yellow when ripe, and very sweet, making it ideal for adding to fruit salads, pies and jam making. Each berry is covered in a papery pod, if this is left on they will keep for 30 -45 days at room temperature, possibly longer.
All parts of the plant, except the fruit, are poisonous. It is in flower from July to October, and the seeds ripen from August to November.
It requires well drained soil of any type and will grow in poor soil too. Grow in partially shade or full sun. If the soil is too rich you will get loads of leaves and not so much fruit, so go easy on the feeding and manure.
It is not very cold hardy in this country but can be grown as a herbaceous perennial in milder areas or at the base of a sunny wall, in other words it will look as though it has died in the winter but will regrow in the spring. In colder areas you will have to plant new seeds every year indoors or a greenhouse in April/May.
It is a bushy plant that will reach 1 – 1½ metres tall. It is a good idea to pinch out the top growing shoot to encourage lots of side stems that will all bear fruit when it gets to about 30cms tall. It has beautiful flowers and does make an attractive addition to the garden.
I am having a go at growing two of these for the first time this year, I am going to put one in the ground and one in a pot so I can see how well they grow in containers.
Fruit photo: Flapdragon
Flower photo: Fir0002
Plant photo: Kurt Stueber
Ah, is that what those are called! They’re a staple of dessert-decoration in a certain type of restaurant, aren’t they? I always confidently tell my dining companions they’re kumquats…
Yep, apparently they are used in restaurants as table decorations.
As long as your friends have had a bottle of wine or two I sure they won’t care what they are and they won’t remember.
I think kumquats are the ones that are more like mini oranges and they are a lot bigger than cape gooseberries.
Cape gooseberries are really good, very sweet, Ken one of our Ventnor Permaculture members has been growing them for a few years and gave us all a clump of small seedlings. I have given a couple of plants to my father and my next door neighbour, so we are all growing them for the first time.
Thanks for the writeup, Angie. I’ve been growing these for years in Ventnor, and picking them right through the winter. How many other fruit can you do that with?
In my experience, they often last for months if left in their husks.
Come and see them tomorrow, and I may have some spare plants on offer.
I am trying two other Physalis species this year, so watch this space!
Ken
You are not going to believe this Ken, they are apparently the latest ‘Superfood’. Known as ‘Incan Berries’ in superfood circles, the dried berries are for £8.95 for 250gms. You can now be fashionable and rich.
cool
i am growing some for the first time this year also
i have 7 of them and they are all doing well
i have seen them growing in NZ aswell wildly
i have all mine in pots
i’m wondering if i should bring them inside for the winter?????
Hi Bec
If you are growing them in the South of England they tend to die back in the winter and look as though they are dead but sprout up again in the spring but much quicker and bushier than growing them from seed.
If you are in the North of England or anywhere as cold or colder you will probably have to start off new plants from seed every year.
I do not know if you can keep them going over the winter indoors or in a greenhouse.
No idea what winter temperatures are like where you are so can’t advise.
If anyone has any experience of doing this please let us know.
Angie
I live near Christchurch, in New Zealand. Until recently I lived on the west Coast of the South Island, in New Zealand. In this area, Cape Gooseberries do indeed grow wild. The annual rainfall is around 115″. Winter temps 2-15C. Summer temps 15-25C. A few very light frosts occur each winter.
I am surprised that nobody seems to grow Cape Gooseberries commercially in New Zealand.
Hi Alan
Me too! You would think someone would be jumping on the bandwagon and producing them on a large scale. Here dried berries cost around £8 for 250g and a tray of fresh ones £2 for about 15 – 18 berries. The dried berries are selling for $15 – $20 for 1 lb in the States. There is definitely money to be made growing them. Here they seem to be overtaking goji berries in popularity.
They certainly appear to be easy to grow here, they are not popular with the slugs and snails in my garden either. My plants are in flower now I am hoping that we might get some sun soon to ripen them along with my blueberries, tomatoes and tomatillo. We are having a rather wet spell at the moment here.
Angie
I have grown Cape Gooseberry this year for this first time and they have been tremendously successful. However today I have been in the garden emptying all of my pots in readiness for the winter and unfortunately cut down the CG to base level not realising they would have lasted so much longer. Do you think if I left the remainder in the pot they will return again next year??? (I have a friend in Ireland (Cork) who has also grown them successfully but in the ground and not in pots. Hers did return this year!) Also mine are apparently a salad variety but I am a bit dubious about eating the fruits (they are green and not orange when they “drop” – variety Johnsons “Little Lanterns” if that helps!)
Hi Jan
Glad to hear they have done well for you.
Yes, they ’should’ come up again next year but it might be an idea to save some seed just in case.
Sorry I am not familiar with that variety. Personally I would not attempt to eat them unripe, you can ripen them by taking them indoors or leaving them outside where they won’t get too soggy.
I have grown them this year for the first time and mine are in pots so I won’t know until next spring if they will come up again. None of mine have ripened yet as I have a choice of leaving them where they are in semi-shade and sheltered or moving them into full sun and exposing them to gale force winds which tend to hurl them around the garden.
Angie
Thanks Angie and, as you quite rightly say, I have indeed saved some of the pods in order to dry out the seeds in readiness for next year. My own garden is in the sun from 05:00 thru’ 20:00 during the summer months but, like you, we also suffer from high winds as we face the sea (we live in Hastings, East Sussex and I came across your website purely by chance). Oh well you can’t have it all ways I suppose. I’ll certainly try and remember to let you know next spring / summer whether or not I have been successful! (Although I am in my early sixties this is the first year that I have been able to concentrate on any form of real gardening and this despite the fact that I actually retired in 2002 so wish me luck with my endeavours).
Kind regards
Jan
Hi,
I just got a bunch of seeds for this plant, and I’m trying to grow some. I live in the US. Tennessee, right on the border of zones 6 and 7. I was wondering if you had any advice for growing these from seed?
Thanks,
Nicole
Hi
I was given mine last year as young plants but I am going to try sowing some seed this week. There is a growing guide here that you might find useful: http://www.pfaf.org/database/plants.php?Physalis+peruviana
Hope you do well with them.
Angie