Ground Cherries

[mr_yan]

I am thinking about adding ground cherries to my garden this year. Has anyone first hand experience with these or other husk tomatoes? All I have is from reading and plant descriptions.

I manage ok with big indeterminant tomatoes (when I have good genetics in the seeds) and bell peppers were good to me last year too. 30 lbs of tomatoes and 11 lbs of peppers.

Can I assume these are like peppers and tomatoes and the flowers will self pollinate?

Thanks

 

[uldis]

Planting
Transplant ground cherries After all danger of frost HAS Passed and the Soil is thoroughly warm. Raised beds are best for Growing ground cherries, especially in heavy clay Soil, Because The Plant Need good drainage. Work a couple inches of compost into the Soil Before Planting. Like tomatoes, ground cherries Sprout Roots Along theire stem, this plant seedling Deeply, leaving Three sets of leaves Above the Soil line. Set the plants 3 feet apart in rows 3 to 4 feet apart.

Ground cherries Produce up to 300 fruits per plant and bear nonstop Until frost. Four to six plants are sufficient for the average-sized family.

Growing Ground Cherries
Mulch lightly to suppress Weeds and Conserve Soil moisture. Ground cherries thrive best with 2 inches of water per week. Spray the plants with diluted fish Fertilizer When they set flower and again two weeks later.


Maby this heps!!!

 

[rockhound]

I like ground cherries so don't take this the wrong way. They grow out as much or more than up, so plant them where you have room, maybe a 3 ft square for each plant to allow for easy picking. I should say "picking up" because the fruit aren't ripe til they fall and don't have the good sweet taste til then either. I like to have a good heavy cardboard, (personal preference) as a mulch because here (z7tn) we have earwigs that love ground cherries and will attack them after they fall so I pick them up every day. They do make a nice jam. If you eat it fresh you can just run them in a blender and sweeten to taste or even sugar free sweetener. Of course if you "can" it follow the recipe on the sure-jell, etc.
Grow them with the same water and ferts as your tomatoes, same family, same bugs too.

 

[mr_yan]

thanks guys. I'm thinking these will need to be in a container on my patio. This should aid in collecting them.

I did have an earwig problem last year though. hmmm