Physalis Fruits

physalis fruits sometimes used as an English name to refer to the various fruits borne by plants of the genus Physalis. These fruits are enclosed in a papery husk or calyx, resembling a Chinese paper lantern, which accounts for the occasional use of ‘Chinese lantern’ as a name (at least for P. alkekengi, the species which is familiar as an ornamental).

Of the eight or so species, distributed round the world in temperate and tropical zones, the following are most prized for their fruits and have their own entries:

• cape gooseberry, P. peruviana;

• ground cherry, P. pubescens;

• tomatillo, P. ixocarpa.