Queen of Malinalco husk tomato

[Nan6b]

There are things that come up as weeds all around my yard, with a lantern-shaped paper husk surrounding a small yellow/gold berry with a lot of seeds. Is it likely to be anything interesting, and is it likely to be edible?

[arnorrian]

There are many similar species in the Physalis. It's better you don't try your luck if you are unsure, as some species are not edible.

Could be a Cape Gooseberry (Physalis peruviana). It's edible.
https://www.cabi.org/isc/datasheet/40713

Or Physalis anguata, which is a host to tomato bacterial spot.
http://tropical.theferns.info/viewtropi ... s+angulata
https://www.cabi.org/isc/datasheet/40711

Or Physalis pubesence.
http://tropical.theferns.info/viewtropi ... +pubescens
https://www.cabi.org/isc/datasheet/116324

[Shule]

Yeah, there are a lot of kinds of wild ground cherries. Ground cherries comprise everything in the Physalis genus besides tomatillos. There are only a few species of ground cherry that we usually eat, though. Some of the others are edible, and some are toxic. Whatever the case, most known edible ground cherry species fall off the vine when ripe (with the possible exception of Physalis alkenkengi, which turns red like a cherry and I'm not sure how you know when it's ripe enough to eat), whereas tomatillos burst the husk when ripe (but will get sweeter if you let them ripen further and fall off).

Never eat a ground cherry that hasn't fallen off of the vine (unless you know it's both edible and not supposed to drop its fruits). Tomatillos don't have to drop off the vine. They just need to burst the husk (although I've eaten some somewhat underripe tomatillos and I didn't die or anything).

If you've eaten green salsa, you've probably eaten green tomatillos without realizing it. Green salsa is normally made out of tomatillos instead of tomatoes.

Tomatillos to me taste like a mix between tomatoes, limes, and potatoes. They taste different from ground cherries, and are a lot bigger than ground cherries. When cooked into sauce, tomatillos taste a lot like tangy, liquidy tomatoes.

Some tomatillos taste different than others, though!

When fresh, they're meaty (kind of pasty) through and through, however. The seeds are all throughout the fruits instead of inside locules. The seeds are tiny and numerous. They can reseed easily.

[imp]

Well, got some seeds for this variety, so it will be one of this year's experiments. Pictures of it are pretty, but pretty doesn't put potatoes on the table.

[Shule]

There are things that come up as weeds all around my yard, with a lantern-shaped paper husk surrounding a small yellow/gold berry with a lot of seeds. Is it likely to be anything interesting, and is it likely to be edible?

If you can get detailed pictures and descriptions of it, that might help experts identify it. I know there are some people who are really into unusual Physalis species who seem like experts on the Internet, but I don't know if any of them are on our site right now.

We've got at least two kinds of wild groundcherries in my area. At least one of them is supposed to be very tasty (not sure if it's subtlely toxic). It turns red, but it doesn't have colorful husks like Physalis alkekengi var. franchetii; I think it's a perennial (and definitely hard to get rid of, according to the person who told me about it). The other in the area, I've seen on the roadside, and it looks a lot like Aunt Molly's as far as I can tell (but wilder). The specimens I've seen are usually suffering from herbicide damage. I imagine they'll grow new plants this year.

[MissS]

There are things that come up as weeds all around my yard, with a lantern-shaped paper husk surrounding a small yellow/gold berry with a lot of seeds. Is it likely to be anything interesting, and is it likely to be edible?

It may be Chinese Lanterns which easily escapes the garden here.

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[Nan6b]

The lanterns are green turning to brown-transparent. I don't have a phone but I'll try to get some pics this summer.

[Nico]

I have also germinated "Queen of Malinalco" plants. Thank you Anneleise !! I really want to see it grow, I think it's a very beautiful and interesting plant, they germinated me in four days. Later I will gladly send you photos.
Nico

[imp]

Oh good, Nico,pictures will be good. Your season is earlier than mine, won't be starting tomatoes and peppers for another 2 weeks or so as it is not going to be warm enough to plant out too quickly here.

Nice to "see" what I can hope to expect from these.

[MissS]

The lanterns are green turning to brown-transparent. I don't have a phone but I'll try to get some pics this summer.

Nan, I've been thinking about your lanterns. Could this be them?

image.png

[Nan6b]

That looks a lot like them. I don't recall them being hairy, but I can't rule it out.

[arnorrian]

I have also germinated "Queen of Malinalco" plants. Thank you Anneleise !! I really want to see it grow, I think it's a very beautiful and interesting plant, they germinated me in four days. Later I will gladly send you photos.
Nico

How are the seedlings progressing?

[Shule]

The lanterns are green turning to brown-transparent. I don't have a phone but I'll try to get some pics this summer.

Nan, I've been thinking about your lanterns. Could this be them?
image.png

I don't know what that is, but it's definitely not a ground cherry. The leaves look like those of a willow or something. What is it? Where did you get the picture?

[Shule]

The lanterns are green turning to brown-transparent. I don't have a phone but I'll try to get some pics this summer.

Nan, I've been thinking about your lanterns. Could this be them?
image.png

I don't know what that is, but it's definitely not a ground cherry. The leaves look like those of a willow or something. What is it? Where did you get the picture?

Okay, I figured it out. The picture appears to be of a species of the Gomphocarpus genus of the Dogbane/Milkweed family. Possibly Gomphocarpus physocarpus. Groundcherries are in the Nightshade family.

[MissS]

Yes Shule, you are right. It is a type of Milkweed.

[Nico]

Hi everyone.
I show you some photos of Queen of Malinalco, they germinated very fast, but they stayed cold, I have them next to the tomatoes in an outdoor greenhouse, it's still cold at night, the tomatoes are growing faster than queen, it seems to be He doesn't like the cold, but it seems that now that it's been a better time, it's taking off.
I will continue to show more photos as they grow.
Nico

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[Shule]

[mention]Nico[/mention]
Those hairy stems are very interesting. I've never seen a tomatillo (Physalis philadelphica) with hairy stems before. I wonder if it's actually a different species or a hybrid with a tomatillo and another species. Whatever the case, it's pretty cool.

[Nico]

Shule, I have no idea. The truth is that there is very little information on the internet about the queen.

[Nan6b]

They look very healthy.

[arnorrian]

[mention]Nico[/mention] Be sure to plant at least three plants together.