I have grown 3 or 4 different varieties of physalis peruviana from different seed companies and like this one the best by far. The flavor of ripe berries is similar in all the plants, but these berries are much larger in size and the berries are always ripe when the calyx turns from green to yellow, unlike most physalis bushes, which have a tendency to look ripe and even drop but still have partially green and slightly bitter or tannic fruit when husked. With these plants, all the berries I harvest make good eating, saving me lots of frustration. They also stay on the plant longer and don’t drop as readily, which makes them easier to harvest and less prone to rot and animal predation. The plant itself is also bigger and healthier looking than other forms of peruviana, more upright in form, with bigger, fuzzier leaves. It’s not a particularly ornamental plant, but I still find them attractive enough to be planted along my front walkway. The pineappley-tropical smell walking by the bush with ripe berries is heavenly. They produce quite well for me even in very poor soil and treated with neglect. I will always have these in my garden.

I am in coastal northern california, technically zone 10a, but really more like 8b at the bottom of a canyon with cold air flows and heavy frosting every winter with no sun at all for about 3 months. Still, for me all the physalis peruviana have overwintered just fine and produce well over several years. They also yield fruit over a very long period of time, only stopping in the dead of winter. It’s nice to be able to gather some ripe fruit almost any time of the year. I especially love these added with tomatoes to insalata caprese.