New Hanover Ground Cherry. Very sweet and juicy variety. (Free shipping)

Ground cherries are also known as Physalis, Cape gooseberry, or husk cherries.

These plants are related but different from tomatillos and tomatoes. They don't taste like tomatoes at all. Most varieties of ground cherries are tangy than sweet, and most tastes more like a vegetable than a fruit. This is not the case with New Hanover Ground Cherry. This variety is exceptionally sweet and juicy without any sourness. It has a very fruity tropical flavor and is very juicy despite its small size. It is hard to describe the taste, but New Hanover Ground Cherry reminds me of a juicy ripe mango with a bit of pineapple (without the sourness). It is among my favourite fruits. The berries are small yet burst with juicy sweet juice when you bite into them. They have very fine seeds that give the fruit a nice crunch and texture. If you are looking for a variety of groundcherry to grow, consider this one. If you have never tried this fruit, give this a try. It is head and shoulders over other common varieties of ground cherries. It beat all other ground cherry varieties at a tasting at the American Institute of Wine and Food. 

This variety starts off slow but once they start to bear, expect one or two dozen every day. Very productive. The green husks turn brown and fall off the plant when ripe. To eat the fruit, peel away the husky paper-like covering to reveal the orange fruits underneath. Do not eat fruit that is still on the tree or if they are green (once in a while heavy rain will dislodge unripe fruit). Only ripe fruit can be eaten, but they are easy to tell as they fall off the plant when ripe (hence the name, groundcherry). They will reseed very readily. For ease of harvesting, I grow these in large pots (5 or 10 gallon) and grow them on a cemented area. This makes it easy to harvest fruit that has fallen off the tree, and prevents accidental reseeding, but you may want to spread a ground sheet around the base for ease of harvesting if you grow this in-ground. The plants grow to around 2 to 3 feet in height and width. They are very easy to grow and I did not have to use any spray on them all season. This variety was preserved by the late Katie Hoffman Slonaker (1903- 1983) in New Hanover, Pennsylvania, until becoming a part of the Roughwood Seed Collection. 

Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds sell 50 seeds for $4 (They sell out very quickly). 
My price: 150 seeds for $4.