Flora of North America species comparison

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Physalis crassifolia

Physalis philadelphica

thick leaf ground cherry, yellow nightshade groundcherry

Mexican ground-cherry, Mexican ground-cherry or husk-tomato, tomatillo
Habit Herbs perennial, becoming suffrutescent, rhizomatous, rhizomes often just below soil surface, vertical, stout, puberulent, hairs divergent, to 0.5 mm, some glandular, appearing ± glabrous without magnification. Herbs annual, taprooted, glabrous or sparsely hairy, hairs simple, appressed, mostly 0.5 mm.
Stems

erect, branching from near base and at most nodes, branches widely spreading, distinctly zigzag, slender, 1–4(–10) dm.

erect, branching mostly at distal nodes, branches spreading, sometimes streaked with purple, 1.5–10 dm.
Leaves

petiolate;

petiole mostly as long as blade;

blade broadly ovate to deltate, 0.8–3.3(–4.5) × 0.8–3.3(–4.5) cm, base cordate, sometimes slightly unequal, margins entire to unevenly coarsely dentate, sometimes thick and slightly succulent.

petiolate;

petiole 1/2 to as long as blade;

blade ovate to ovate-lanceolate, 2–7 × 2–4 cm, base rounded to attenuate, margins dentate to entire.
Pedicels

8–24(–33) mm, (11–)14–30(–35) mm in fruit.

3–6 mm, 3–8(–11) mm in fruit.
Flowers

calyx (3–)4–7(–8) mm, lobes 1–3 mm;

corolla pale yellow with yellow or greenish-brown smudges or tinge, campanulate-rotate, 8–14 mm;

anthers yellow, not twisted after dehiscence, 1.5–3 mm.

calyx 5–7(–10) mm, lobes 2–4 mm;

corolla yellow with 5 blue-tinged spots or smudges, campanulate-rotate, 7–15 mm;

anthers blue, strongly twisted after dehiscence, 3 mm.
Fruiting calyces

loosely enclosing berry, 10-ribbed, 14–30(–40) × (10–)15–20(–25) mm.

filled, or burst, by berry, 10-ribbed, 20–30 × 20–30 mm.
2n

= 24.

= 24.

Physalis crassifolia

Physalis philadelphica
Phenology Flowering year-round in areas without frost, mostly Mar–Apr. Flowering year-round in areas without frost.
Habitat Gravelly or sandy slopes, washes, roadsides, mesas, canyons. Dis­turbed sites, fence rows, edges of cultivated fields, road­sides.
Elevation 100–1700 m. (300–5600 ft.) 0–200 m. (0–700 ft.)
Distribution
from FNA
AZ; CA; NV; UT; Mexico (Baja California, Baja California Sur, Chihuahua, Sinaloa, Sonora) [Introduced in Australia]
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
AZ; CA; ID; IL; MA; MD; MN; MO; NM; OR; PA; TN; TX; VA; VT; WA; WV; BC; SK; Mexico [Introduced in North America; introduced also in Australia]
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

In Physalis crassifolia, the corolla limb is widely flaring and reflexed when the flower is fully open, and the flowers are more nodding than fully pendent. Some herbarium specimen labels indicate that plants flower the first year. Physalis greenei Vasey & Rose, not validly published, has been misapplied to some representatives of P. crassifolia. Physalis crassifolia is widespread in Arizona, but it is restricted in California to south-southeastern counties as far north as Inyo, in Nevada to Clark and Lincoln counties, and in Utah to Washington County.

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

Physalis philadelphica is native to Mexico and, possibly, the southwestern United States; it is cultivated for its fruits, which are used in Mexican-style salsa. It frequently escapes cultivation and can become established in disturbed habitats. Considerable morphological diversity has been documented in this species (M. Y. Menzel 1951; W. D. Hudson 1986); the measurements given here reflect only wild-growing populations in the flora area. The mature berry is pale green to purplish or purple-streaked. Seeds can remain viable in the soil for several years.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Source FNA vol. 14. FNA vol. 14.
Parent taxa Solanaceae > Physalis Solanaceae > Physalis
Sibling taxa
P. acutifolia, P. angulata, P. angustifolia, P. arenicola, P. caudella, P. cinerascens, P. cordata, 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. longifolia, P. missouriensis, P. mollis, P. neomexicana, P. pubescens, P. pumila, P. solanacea, P. virginiana, P. walteri, P. ×elliottii
Synonyms P. crassifolia var. cardiophylla, P. crassifolia var. versicolor, P. versicolor
Name authority Bentham: Bot. Voy. Sulphur, 40. (1844) Lamarck in J. Lamarck et al.: Encycl. 2: 101. (1786)
Web links 
Unless otherwise noted, all data comes from the online version of the Flora of North America, who have made most of their content available via a Creative Commons license (CC BY 4.0).



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