My Ground Cherry/Cape Gooseberry experiment is going much better now. As the heat has intensified this summer the Ground Cherry growth and production has increased. The Tomatoes seem to be suffering and the fruit taste is getting worse but the Ground Cherries seem uneffected. They appear to be a good transitional fruit/veggie for this time of year in Texas. The taste is still a little strange with the mix of fruit and vegetable but if you store the Ground Cherries a week or two after picking, the fruit taste increases with the sweetness. I believe they store for two months if you keep them in the husk. They will also overwinter or reseed each year according to many reports.
Ground Cherries take over when Tomatoes wane
Lee........got any pictures?
The big ones are nestled in with the squash vines so they dont show up in the pictures well. Here are some small ones that popped up where I apparently dropped seeds by accident.
Here is underneath. Even when they are small they produce quite a bit. I had to constantly pick them off the small bushes so they would grow faster.
Some on one of the big bushes.
You dont pick them. You check the ground for them everyday.They drop when they are ripe and are perfectly preserved in their little husk. If you cant wait, you can tap the bush a little and some will drop.
This message was edited Jun 25, 2010 10:28 AM
Here is what is waiting on the inside.
Never eat them green. If they drop and are still a little green, then put them in a bowl on the counter for a week or so and they will taste even better.
This message was edited Jun 25, 2010 10:26 AM
I forgot to mention that I am having success in full sun and partial shade. I am having good results on my local blackland prairie gumbo clay as well as the nice, well-drained, cow manure enriched garden soil. I have not had good results in pots at all. I have about five in pots and they are all stunted in growth.
I have also had real problems starting them from seed. The sprouts come up okay but then tend to sulk. The starters I put in pots did poorly and the ones I put in the ground did better. The seeds I sowed directly into the ground did the best.
Cool! Thanks for showin' us!
And now will you be making jams or pies with these?
Do you know which variety you have?
I had heard that they are poisonous when in the green stage, is that right?
I believe the variety is Aunt Molly's but some may be Cape Gooseberry.
They are said to be as poisonous as green tomatoes when they are in the green stage.
I plan on just eating them and testing how long they will store for now. As the bushes get bigger, I suspect I will try a pie recipe.
So far the stink bugs, leaf-footed bugs and other tomato pests are confounded. I see them walking on the husk and trying to get in but they are unable. I laugh and try to belittle the insects in front of their comrades. They have to walk back to the Sweet 100 tomato and sulk.
Lee, you paint quite a picture of you there laughing at the bugs and trying to make fun of them because they can't get through the husk, don't push them too hard, or they may just find a way.
No worries. I was dressed up as a caterpillar at the time so they didnt know it was me.
You are a funny guy Lee!!!
jujubetexas, I'm convinced! Ground cherries are for me! Is it too late to plant? Territorial has seed available. You say next year, are they perenial? And I've found a recipe for jam.
The seeds are still popping up so you can try. If you give it some veggie food and good soil, you might be able to get some. They are supposed to produce until the first freeze. In fact, you probably have five months of grow time. I would suspect that you will get fruit within 8-10 week.
I have great seed germination but limited plants that make it to adult size so sow lots of seeds. I would try Cape Gooseberry and Aunt Mollys Ground Cherry. EBAY usually have lots of them too.
They reseed so you should see some next year too.
I'm just trying to plant them in my head....would they go in with the blueberries, etc. Or just leave them in with the tomatoes and such and pull them up at the end of the season?
I'd say don't plant them in your head....
=D
Try the Tomatoes.
This message was edited Jun 28, 2010 2:38 PM