The physalis, also known as the Andean berry or Cape gooseberry, originally comes from the subtropical regions of South America. Today the plant is also cultivated in the south of the USA, in India and in some African countries, B.C. a. South Africa, drawn. The very easy-care plant also thrives in our latitudes and produces plenty of fruit. Only frost does not like the Physalis. With our tips you too can grow physalis in your garden or on the balcony.

Physalis can also be grown in Germany

Grow the Andean berry yourself

Usually the plant is grown from seeds, but you don't have to buy them expensively. All you have to do is buy a bowl of Physalis fruit from the supermarket. Cut them open at home and use a knife to scrape off the flesh on a piece of kitchen paper. There you let it dry, the seeds can finally be collected after a few days and kept in a bag. Sow your own seed from January / March at the latest in small seed pots and prefer the physalis on the windowsill.

The Andean berry loves the sun

The resulting seedlings are isolated (i.e. pricked out) as soon as they have developed two to three more leaves in addition to the two cotyledons. Place the young plants in a single pot and water them regularly. Fertilizing, on the other hand, is not yet necessary. The young physalis plants can finally go outside as soon as there are no longer any night frosts to be expected, i.e. from mid to late May at the earliest. Alternatively, culture in a pot is also possible. The Andean berry needs a location with as much sun as possible, but this should be in a windless corner of the garden or balcony. With regard to the substrate, physalis are quite undemanding, they thrive on almost any surface. It just shouldn't be too nutritious.

Properly care for physalis outdoors

The following points should be observed when caring for outdoors/in the garden:

  • Before planting, dig up the soil thoroughly and work in a little manure or compost.
  • The plants should be at least one meter apart.
  • Install a root barrier if necessary.
  • Water the physalis additionally when it is dry.
  • Fertilizing is usually not necessary.

Cultivate physalis on the balcony or terrace

If you don't have a garden or want to overwinter your physalis, you can also cultivate the plant in a sufficiently large pot. This should hold at least 10 liters. In contrast to physalis planted in the garden, however, potted plants must be watered regularly, and fertilizer is occasionally required from the age of around six to eight weeks. Physalis should not be kept indoors during the growing season as it is too dark for them there - even if the room seems flooded with light to us.

tips

Given that physalis takes about four months from germination to harvesting the first ripe fruits, it makes sense to overwinter the plant and thus speed up the fruit ripening process. Then you can harvest in July instead of September.

Category:

Vegetable garden