How to Grow Cape Gooseberries USA

Soil & Growing Conditions

Soil pH range

5 6.5

Span reflects genuine variation between the cited authorities, not a single agreed figure.

Growth Stages

Stage	BBCH	Notes
Sowing	0	Sow seed indoors in early spring, or propagate by division in spring (RHS).
Lax branch establishment	3	Develops lax, branching stems that need support as they grow (RHS).
Flowering and fruiting	6	Small yellow flowers with chocolate-brown centres appear in mid- to late summer, followed by lantern-husked orange berries (RHS).
Harvest and cut-back	9	Harvest ripe berries, then cut plants down to ground level to prepare for the next season (RHS).

Quick Facts

Factor	Value
Soil pH	5 - 6.5
Time to harvest	90-150 days
Drainage	Well-drained
Lifecycle	perennial
Edible parts	fruit

At a Glance

Harvest & Storage

When to pick: CTAHR: "Fruit is ready for picking from three to five months after transplanting seedlings to the field. Fruits should be picked when husks turn from green to a straw-yellow color, or they should be allowed to fall and be picked up from the ground at three- to five-day intervals." RHS: cut plant "down to ground level after harvesting the fruit".

Storage

Berries keep 7-10 days if cool and dry; usually marketed in the husk

Diseases

Cucumber mosaic virus

Cucumber mosaic virus (CMV)

Pests

Glasshouse red spider mite (two-spotted spider mite)

Tetranychus urticae

Sources

1. NC State Extension - Physalis (Cape Gooseberry, Ground Cherry)

   Grown as an annual (perennial only in frost-free conditions), reaching about 1-3ft tall with a similar spread, multi-stemmed, spreading and fast-growing. Full sun (6+ hours). Wants soil high in organic matter, well-drained and consistently moist. GROW EXACTLY AS FOR TOMATOES: sow indoors 6-8 weeks before the last spring frost, or buy transplants. The globe-shaped fruit ripens yellow-orange inside a papery husk and DROPS TO THE GROUND WHEN RIPE -- that fall is the ripeness signal. TOXICITY: the unripe fruit and all other parts of the plant contain solanine alkaloids, are poisonous and must not be eaten. Susceptible to most of the common pests and diseases of tomatoes.

2. University of Hawaii CTAHR Cooperative Extension Service - Poha (CTAHR Fact Sheet HC-3)

These 2 sources are specific to this region. The full list of 5 sources behind this guide (GBIF, NC State Extension, Royal Horticultural Society and others) is in the references of our UK guide to cape gooseberries; they describe the plant itself, which is the same wherever it grows.