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i had this plant given off an A4A member,

its supposed to be a tomato (berry)

any ideas?

Def in the Physalis group. Looks a lot like my Cape gooseberries but may be a tomatillo (as I've not grown them I don't know what they look like...  :-\

The green 'lantern' fruit give it away as a Cape Gooseberry (or a close relative) -  tomatillo fruit look very similar but their leaves are smaller.

When the fruit fills it will split the paper lantern - they are ripe when they are sticky to the touch.

Ditto the above. Cape Gooseberry or Goldenberry. I'm growing them this year for the first time, but no lanterns as yet. Think they fruit in the autumn. Google the name for more info.

A friend of mine is growing a tomatillo and it looks very much like that, so it could be that saddad is right.

Think the leaves on a tomatillo are quite a bit smaller than a Cape Gooseberry. Google the images for both to check.

It looks like Physalis Peruviana to me, which is a sweet orange fruit. It won't break the husk when it's ripe, but it will turn a deep orange colour inside the husk which should have become dry and papery.


Physalis Ixocarpa, tomatillo, has far smaller leaves with a more pointy appearance, the plants also tend to be very sprawly and branched rather than upright. the leaves also aren't as thick and tend to be a more yellowish green.

As with all members of the Physalis genus, you should not eat the unripe fruit.

Quote from: amphibian on August 01, 2009, 19:47:31
As with all members of the Physalis genus, you should not eat the unripe fruit.

Just to clarify, the unripe fruits are poisonous.