Herbs perennial, rhizomatous, rhizomes deeply buried, stout, hispid, hairs simple or 2- or 3-branched, divergent and antrorse, jointed, 0.5–2 mm. Stems erect to decumbent, branching at most nodes or infrequently and only at distal nodes, branches ascending, 1.5–4 dm. Leaves petiolate; petiole 1/10–2/5 blade; blade elliptic-ovate to ovate-lanceolate, 3–8(–10) × 2–4(–5) cm, base rounded to attenuate and narrowing to petiole, margins entire to sinuate, rarely shallowly, irregularly sinuate-dentate. Pedicels hispid, 8–46 mm, 15–55 mm in fruit. Flowers: calyx 6–12 mm, lobes 2.5–6 mm; corolla yellow with pale brown, ochre, or green tinge or smudges, campanulate-rotate, 9–17 mm; anthers yellow, rarely blue-tinged, not twisted after dehiscence, 1–3 mm. Fruiting calyces loosely enclosing berry, 10-ribbed, 20–40 × 15–30 mm. 2n = 24.

Distribution

c, sc United States.

Discussion

Varieties 2 (2 in the flora).

Varieties hispida and pumila are quite distinctive in the field but are often difficult to distinguish in the herbarium.

Selected References

None.

Lower Taxa

Physalis pumila var. hispida, Physalis pumila var. pumila

Key

1	Stems erect; plants hispid throughout, hairs simple and 2- or 3-branched.	Physalis pumila var. pumila
1	Stems erect to decumbent; plants hispid on pedicels and calyx, hairs simple, rarely with a few branched hairs.	Physalis pumila var. hispida