Physalis grisea

Herbs annual, taprooted, villous, hairs simple, jointed, 0.5–1 mm, intermixed with stalked glands to 0.5 mm and sessile glands. Stems erect, branching at most nodes, branches spreading, 1–6 dm. Leaves petiolate; petiole 2/5–4/5 blade; blade gray-green, drying orange or with orange patches, broadly ovate, 3.5–11 × 2.5–10 cm, base broadly rounded to slightly cordate, margins coarsely dentate with fewer than 10 teeth per side. Pedicels 4–6 mm, 5–12 mm in fruit. Flowers: calyx 3–5 mm, short-pubescent, lobes 1.5–2.5 mm; corolla yellow with 5 large, dark purple-black spots, campanulate-rotate, 5–8 mm; anthers blue or blue-tinged, not twisted after dehiscence, 1–2 mm. Fruiting calyces loosely enclosing berry, sharply 5-angled, 20–35 × 15–25 mm. 2n = 24.

Phenology: Flowering Jun–Oct.
Habitat: Open areas, meadows, pastures, disturbed woodlands, stream bottoms, cultivated sites.
Elevation: 50–200 m.

Distribution

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B.C., Ont., Ala., Calif., Conn., Del., D.C., Ga., Ill., Ind., Iowa, Maine, Md., Mass., Minn., Mo., N.J., N.Y., N.C., Ohio, Pa., S.C., S.Dak., Tenn., Vt., Va., Wash., W.Va.

Discussion

Physalis grisea can be distinguished from P. pubescens by the often larger leaves that have a distinctive gray-green color and usually exhibit orange patches on dry­ing. The orange-yellow fruit of P. grisea is sweet, and the species is offered in seed catalogs as “strawberry tomato.” Most herbarium specimens of P. grisea from outside of cultivation probably represent short-lived populations derived from garden escapes; the geogra­phic distribution given here is likely to change over time (the only Oregon population is historical). The name P. pruinosa Linnaeus has been misapplied to P. grisea (M. Martínez 1993).

Selected References

None.

Lower Taxa

None.