How to Grow Ground Cherries

A tomato relative in a husk

Ground cherries (Physalis species), sold as husk cherries, are close relatives of tomatoes and tomatillos in the nightshade family. University of Minnesota Extension describes the fruit as about the size of a cherry tomato, hidden inside a papery outer husk, with a sweet, mild flavor.

Because they are tomato kin, you grow them like tomatoes: start seed indoors, then transplant into the garden after all danger of frost has passed, in full sun and warm soil. They are frost-tender and want the same warm season a tomato does.

The plants sprawl low and wide rather than growing tall, so give each one generous space or a low cage; a sprawling ground cherry can cover a surprising footprint. Otherwise their care is undemanding.

Ripeness you read off the ground

The single most important thing to know about ground cherries is how you harvest them. You do not judge ripeness by color on the plant, and you mostly don't pick them at all. University of Minnesota Extension advises picking ground cherries when the husks are dry and the fruit begins to drop from the plant.

So the routine is to walk the patch every few days and gather the fallen fruit off the ground, which is exactly where the name comes from. A fruit that has dropped inside its dry, papery husk is ripe and sweet; one still firmly attached usually isn't ready.

Peel back the husk before eating. Fruit collected this way stores for a while in its husk, which is part of why they keep well after gathering.

Self-sowing and volunteers

Ground cherries are prolific self-seeders. University of Minnesota Extension notes that, like tomatillos, they self-seed in the garden and the sprawling plants can create lots of 'volunteer' plants if fallen fruit isn't cleaned up.

That is either a feature or a nuisance depending on your plans. If you love them, letting a few fruits rot in place seeds next year's crop for free. If you want to keep the bed tidy or rotate it, rake up and remove dropped fruit at season's end.

Either way, expect surprises: volunteer ground cherry seedlings can appear well away from last year's plants and for more than one season. Treat them like any warm-season seedling — thin, move, or pull as needed.

Sources

Reviewed 2026-07-18. We cite university Extension, government, and established horticultural sources — and never invent pesticide rates or dangerous treatments.

• University of Minnesota Extension — Growing tomatillos and ground cherries in home gardens — Tomatillos and ground cherries (Physalis species) are relatives of tomatoes in the nightshade family; ground cherries are about the size of a cherry tomato and are hidden inside a papery outer husk; pick ground cherries when the husks are dry and the fruit begins to drop from the plant; the plants sprawl and both tomatillo and ground cherry self-seed, creating lots of volunteer plants if fallen fruit isn't cleaned up.
• University of Illinois Extension — Ground Cherry (Physalis) Hort Answers — Ground cherry is in the nightshade family alongside tomatoes and peppers; the plant produces small fruits enclosed in leafy husks and is grown as a warm-season plant.

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