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sharp leaf ground cherry, Wright groundcherry

common groundcherry, ground-cherry, long leafed tomatillo, long-leaf ground-cherry, wild tomatillo

Habit Herbs annual, taprooted, sparsely pubescent to ± glabrous, hairs simple, appressed, antrorse, to 0.5 mm. Herbs perennial, rhizomatous, rhizomes deeply buried, stout, glabrous or sparsely strigose, hairs simple, antrorse, to 0.5 mm.
Stems

erect to decumbent, branching at most nodes, branches spreading and sometimes decumbent, 1–5 dm.

erect or erect to decumbent, branching frequently at distal nodes or several-branched from base, branches spreading or ascending, 1–6 dm.

Leaves

petiolate;

petiole mostly 1/2–2/3 blade;

blade narrowly elliptic-ovate to lanceolate, (1.5–)2.5–6.8(–8.3) × (0.7–)1–2.5(–5.4) cm, base attenuate to rounded, margins coarsely, deeply, irregularly dentate, teeth acuminate.

petiolate;

petiole 1/5–2/5 blade;

blade ovate to ovate-lanceolate or broadly lanceolate, 2.5–10(–13) × 0.5–6(–7) cm, base truncate to rounded, margins entire to coarsely dentate or irregularly crenate-dentate with only a few teeth.

Pedicels

(13–)20–34(–40) mm, (20–)25–35(–39) mm in fruit.

5–18 mm, 12–35 mm in fruit.

Flowers

calyx (3–)4–5(–6) mm, lobes (1–)2–4 mm, (acute to acuminate);

corolla pale yellow to nearly white with green or darker yellow tinge, rotate, 5–15 mm;

anthers usually blue-tinged, rarely all blue or yellow, not twisted after dehiscence, 1–3 mm.

calyx (5–)7–12 mm, sparsely strigose with short, antrorse hairs, lobes 3–6 mm;

corolla yellow with 5 purple-brown smudges, campanulate-rotate, 10–20 mm;

anthers yellow or blue-tinged, not twisted after dehiscence, 2–4 mm.

Fruiting calyces

nearly filled by berry, 10-ribbed, 15–25(–30) × 13–20(–22) mm.

loosely enclosing berry, 10-ribbed, 20–40 × 15–30 mm.

2n

= 24.

= 24.

Physalis acutifolia

Physalis longifolia

Phenology Flowering (May–)Jul–Nov.
Habitat Disturbed areas along streams and roadsides, gravel and sand, cultivated fields, parks.
Elevation 100–2000 m. (300–6600 ft.)
Distribution
from FNA
AL; AZ; CA; GA; MS; NM; TX; Mexico (Baja California, Baja California Sur, Chihuahua, Sinaloa, Sonora)
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from USDA
North America; n Mexico [Introduced in Australia]
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Corollas of Physalis acutifolia are nearly rotate with a very short floral tube and somewhat reflexed, widely flaring limb when fully open. Unless it is in flower, P. acutifolia is difficult to distinguish from narrow-leaved P. angulata, which has corollas that are more campanulate-rotate, without a reflexed limb.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Varieties 3 (3 in the flora).

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Key
1. Stems erect to decumbent, branching at base; leaf blades glabrous.
var. texana
1. Stems erect, branching at distal nodes; leaf blades glabrous or sparsely strigose.
→ 2
2. Leaf blades narrowly ovate-lanceolate to lan­ceolate; anthers yellow.
var. longifolia
2. Leaf blades ovate to ovate-lanceolate or broadly lanceolate; anthers blue-tinged.
var. subglabrata
Source FNA vol. 14. FNA vol. 14.
Parent taxa Solanaceae > Physalis Solanaceae > Physalis
Sibling taxa
P. angulata, P. angustifolia, P. arenicola, P. caudella, P. cinerascens, P. cordata, P. crassifolia, P. fendleri, P. grisea, P. hederifolia, P. heterophylla, P. lanceolata, P. longifolia, P. missouriensis, P. mollis, P. neomexicana, P. philadelphica, P. pubescens, P. pumila, P. solanacea, P. virginiana, P. walteri, P. ×elliottii
P. acutifolia, P. angulata, P. angustifolia, P. arenicola, P. caudella, P. cinerascens, P. cordata, P. crassifolia, P. fendleri, P. grisea, P. hederifolia, P. heterophylla, P. lanceolata, P. missouriensis, P. mollis, P. neomexicana, P. philadelphica, P. pubescens, P. pumila, P. solanacea, P. virginiana, P. walteri, P. ×elliottii
Subordinate taxa
P. longifolia var. longifolia, P. longifolia var. subglabrata, P. longifolia var. texana
Synonyms Saracha acutifolia, P. wrightii
Name authority (Miers) Sandwith: Kew Bull. 14: 232. (1960) Nuttall: Trans. Amer. Philos. Soc., n. s. 5: 193. (1836)
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