Tweet
[Apologies if this ought to go in a different section...]
I wanted to share with you all something that has grown really well in my garden this year and last: Physalis pruinosa, also more commonly known as goldenberry, or ground cherry, or husk tomato or cape gooseberry (this lack of concordance of names illustrates why learning the Latin names is a good idea!). I've been so very impressed with how well these plants produce their sweet little golden yellow fruits. They're about the size of grapes and they are enclosed in a papery husk. When they're ripe, they just fall off the branch. Since they are enclosed in the husk, I have found that bugs don't always (or even often) tear into them if they've been sitting on the ground a little while, even for a few days. I'm in USDA climate zone 6A, by the way; where I live, the plants don't overwinter. However, a large part of my goldenberry patch this year grew from fruits that never got harvested last year- the ones that just decomposed right where they fell. Oh, and some of them I'm certain sprang up from where I spat out some seeds. The fruits are chocka with tiny little tan-colored seeds. They are also high in vitamin C, apparently (so I've read; I can't say that I've assessed this myself). One can eat them fresh off the plant, or one can dehydrate them into a form of raisin. In the raisin form, they are quite tart, but still delicious.
I call to your attention a few salient features of this botanical gem:
I can imagine one establishing a small patch of goldenberries and having it come back year after year. In fact, although the plant and its fruits are uncommon in the States, it is more common in Australia where, in places, it has gone feral. I remember grabbing a few along the side of the road in rural NSW several years ago... The point is that it can be a fairly low-maintenance way of adding a little extra something to one's Retreat diet post-SHTF (or pre-SHTF, for that matter!). Just get a patch started, and it'll be there when you need it.
I'm doing a bit of an experiment with one of my plants this year. I've got it in a 10gallon pot and I'm going to prune it back and overwinter it indoors this year and see if I can get it to go again next Spring. This can be done with peppers and eggplants, by the way-- I have a pepper plant that's at least 6 years old, and it still produces quite well.
A note of caution is in order: there are some close relatives to this plant whose fruits are not good to eat. Physalis alkekengii, a.k.a., Chinese Lantern, is one that comes to mind readily. These close relatives look similar enough that, to some, they might appear identical. You wouldn't want to get your goldenberries mixed in/up with an inedible (= mildly toxic) relative. Also, it bears mentioning that the unripe fruits of the goldenberry are liable to make one sick if ingested. You just have to wait until they're more yellow than green in color. A little bit of green is ok, as long as you don't eat half a pound of such.
I wanted to share with you all something that has grown really well in my garden this year and last: Physalis pruinosa, also more commonly known as goldenberry, or ground cherry, or husk tomato or cape gooseberry (this lack of concordance of names illustrates why learning the Latin names is a good idea!). I've been so very impressed with how well these plants produce their sweet little golden yellow fruits. They're about the size of grapes and they are enclosed in a papery husk. When they're ripe, they just fall off the branch. Since they are enclosed in the husk, I have found that bugs don't always (or even often) tear into them if they've been sitting on the ground a little while, even for a few days. I'm in USDA climate zone 6A, by the way; where I live, the plants don't overwinter. However, a large part of my goldenberry patch this year grew from fruits that never got harvested last year- the ones that just decomposed right where they fell. Oh, and some of them I'm certain sprang up from where I spat out some seeds. The fruits are chocka with tiny little tan-colored seeds. They are also high in vitamin C, apparently (so I've read; I can't say that I've assessed this myself). One can eat them fresh off the plant, or one can dehydrate them into a form of raisin. In the raisin form, they are quite tart, but still delicious.
I call to your attention a few salient features of this botanical gem:
- It is fairly easy to grow from seed-- not any more difficult than peppers or tomatoes;
- Good source of Vitamin C;
- Sweet (in a post-SHTF scenario, consider how dear sugar will be, and you'll recognize the importance of this point);
- Produces prolifically, even (actually, especially) in poor soils;
- New plants "volunteer" the following Spring (I've read that the plants will live outdoors in warmer climate zones... like z9 or z10, but I can't say from any experience);
- Fruits store well fresh and store even longer in "raisinified" form
I can imagine one establishing a small patch of goldenberries and having it come back year after year. In fact, although the plant and its fruits are uncommon in the States, it is more common in Australia where, in places, it has gone feral. I remember grabbing a few along the side of the road in rural NSW several years ago... The point is that it can be a fairly low-maintenance way of adding a little extra something to one's Retreat diet post-SHTF (or pre-SHTF, for that matter!). Just get a patch started, and it'll be there when you need it.
I'm doing a bit of an experiment with one of my plants this year. I've got it in a 10gallon pot and I'm going to prune it back and overwinter it indoors this year and see if I can get it to go again next Spring. This can be done with peppers and eggplants, by the way-- I have a pepper plant that's at least 6 years old, and it still produces quite well.
A note of caution is in order: there are some close relatives to this plant whose fruits are not good to eat. Physalis alkekengii, a.k.a., Chinese Lantern, is one that comes to mind readily. These close relatives look similar enough that, to some, they might appear identical. You wouldn't want to get your goldenberries mixed in/up with an inedible (= mildly toxic) relative. Also, it bears mentioning that the unripe fruits of the goldenberry are liable to make one sick if ingested. You just have to wait until they're more yellow than green in color. A little bit of green is ok, as long as you don't eat half a pound of such.
Comment