From Plant Resources of South-East Asia No 2: Edible fruits and nuts, PROSEA Foundation
by G. Verhoeven
Taxon
Physalis peruviana L.
Protologue
Sp. Pl.: 184 (1753).
Family
SOLANACEAE
Chromosome Numbers
2n = 24, 48
Vernacular Names
Cape gooseberry (En). Indonesia: ceplukan, cecendet badak. Philippines: lobo-lobohan. Thailand: gusboeri (Bangkok).
Origin and Geographic Distribution
The
cape gooseberry occurs naturally in the Peruvian and Chilian highlands.
During the last 200 years it has been cultivated and become widely
naturalized elsewhere in tropical highlands; it is also grown in the
subtropics and in mild temperate areas. The plant is common in
South-East Asia but not cultivated much.
Uses
The
orange-yellow to pale brown berries are eaten fresh or gathered to be
mixed whole or sliced in fruit salads and fruit cocktails. However, the
fruit is more often stewed for use in pies, puddings, chutneys and ice
creams; the stewed fruit may also be canned or processed into jam or
jelly.
In several countries the leaves are used medicinally and in Mexico a decoction of the calyces is used to cure diabetes.
Production and International Trade
Fruits
are gathered for home use and occasionally sold on local markets.
Commercial production is found mainly in subtropical and mild temperate
zones, in particular in South Africa, Australia and New Zealand. Some
fresh fruit is imported into Europe from Kenya, Madagascar, Colombia
and the Far East.
Properties
Unripe
fruit is said to be poisonous. The berry contains a sweet/sour juice
with a slightly tart flavour and can be eaten whole. The husk is bitter
and inedible. The berry contains 0.8% citric acid. It is rich in
vitamins A and P and contains about 30 mg vitamin C and 2.8 mg B12 per
100 g edible portion, and much pectin.
Description
Perennial
herb, 0.5—2 m tall, with purplish, ribbed, spreading branches and
creeping rootstock, densely pubescent. Leaves subopposite, ovate, 5—15
cm x 4—10 cm, cordate at base, acuminate at apex, entire or shallowly
toothed, petioles as long as blades. Flowers solitary, pendent,
axillary; pedicel 1 cm long, longer in fruit; calyx 5-toothed; corolla
2 cm in diameter, slightly 5-lobed, yellow with 5 large dark
brown-purple spots within; anthers purple; stigma subcapitate. Fruit a
globose berry, 1—2 cm in diameter, orange-yellow, glabrous, enclosed in
the densely pubescent, ovoid, inflated bladdery calyx (husk); pulp
juicy. Seeds numerous, yellowish, very small.
Growth and Development
Cape
gooseberry is perennial in the tropics, but annual in subtropics and
temperate regions. Seed germination rate is poor. Plants are
self-pollinating.
Other Botanical Information
In
countries such as Australia cape gooseberry seed is traded under
cultivar names. These cultivars, such as 'Golden Nugget' and 'New Sugar
Giant', are often large-fruited but the taste is rather bland. The
small-fruited types have the best flavour and are preferred for jam and
preserves.
The genus Physalis
L. includes about 100 annual and perennial herbaceous species with
husk-covered fruit, but the taxonomy and nomenclature are not yet well
established. Many species are weeds of cultivation, mainly in America,
some worldwide. Examples of such weeds in South-East Asia are Physalis angulata L. and Physalis minima L. — species with edible fruit.
Ecology
The
ecological requirements are not unlike those for tomato, but the
temperature range appears to be somewhat cooler: the plants are not
killed by slight frost. They also flower and fruit best in fairly cool
weather; high temperatures are detrimental to flowering and fruiting.
Hence, in areas with a seasonal climate (also in the subtropics) the
crop is timed to fruit in the cool season. In Indonesia plants are
found at altitudes ranging from 700—2300 m, but the crop grows best
above 1500 m. The overcast skies in many highlands and the shade of
open forest in naturalized stands suggest tolerance to low light
levels, but fruiting seems to be best in full light.
Ample rain and
rich alluvial soil lead to lush growth and delayed fruiting. The fruit
is spoiled if wet conditions prevail during the harvest season.
Moisture stress can impose dormancy. Well-drained sandy loams with good
organic matter content are preferred.
Propagation and planting
Propagation
is by seed which germinates slowly and irregularly. Vegetative
propagation, using mature stem cuttings treated with 1% indole butyric
acid (IBA) rooting hormone, produces an early-flowering plant.
Suggestions for the nursery are: a raised seed-bed of virgin soil,
manured well in advance, seed required 70 g/ha (200—300 seeds/g),
dibble in rows, 10—15 cm apart, 0.3—0.5 cm deep, 4—6 seeds per 10 cm,
firm, water slightly, shade or mulch, thin out or prick out and
transplant after 6—8 weeks when 15—20 cm high. Spacing recommendations
range from 0.9 m x 0.45 m to 1.8 m x 0.9 m (2.5—0.6 plants/m2),
depending mainly on the cost of labour and the intended crop duration.
Wide spacings produce larger berries, close spacings high early yields.
Husbandry
A
basal dressing of manure and/or compound fertilizer (e.g. 50—100 g per
plant of 5-13-5 NPK) is applied at planting. Topdressing with sulphate
of ammonia or 5-13-5 NPK mixture at half-grown stage can be beneficial.
Most of the feeding roots are near the surface and cultivation should
be shallow and minimal. Mulching enhances plant growth and yield in New
Zealand, increasing moisture retention, suppressing weed growth and
preventing contact of the fruit with the soil. In dry seasons
irrigation is needed. Plants commence to fruit about 3 months after
planting out and harvesting may continue until frosts interfere (at
high latitudes), until rising temperatures suppress flowering or until
moisture stress imposes dormancy (at lower latitudes).
In the
tropics the plants can be kept in production by severe cutting back
after imposing dormancy, but the yield of successive ratoons drops
sharply and it is generally more economical to start anew, rotating the
fields.
Diseases and Pests
Root
rots occur on poorly drained land. Cutworms, corn ear worms, red spider
mites and powdery mildew can be troublesome. Rootknot nematodes and
virus diseases reduce plant vigour. Proper rotation, ample organic
matter application and mulching minimize ill effects.
Harvesting
Fruit
can be handpicked every 2—3 weeks provided they are not wet from rain
or dew. A more uniform, fully mature product is obtained by shaking the
bushes and gathering the husked fruits which have dropped on the ground.
Yield
A single plant may yield 300 fruits; 7—9 t/ha are obtained in India, and mulched plants produce up to 13 t/ha in New Zealand.
Handling After Harvest
The
fruits may need to be spread out in a thin layer for up to 2 days to
dry until the husks are crisp. This reduces the risk of rotting of both
berry and husk. Preparation for the market includes dehusking and
packing in punnets. Small fancy packs may contain the fruit still
enclosed in the dry husks. The berries travel and store well. Fruits
with intact husks dried at 30°C keep well for 4—5 months, and dehusked
fresh fruit can be stored in a sealed container with dry atmosphere for
several months.
Prospects
South-East
Asia has many highland areas with moderate or low rainfall for
sufficiently long periods to grow cape gooseberry successfully. Labour
is available for intensive husbandry, e.g. hand picking. Moreover, the
product is attractive for the fruit trade as it travels and stores so
well. On the other hand, the fruit is mainly used to fill pies, etc.,
an application for which a housewife wants relatively cheap raw
materials. Also this kind of use does not play an important role in
food habits in South-East Asia. Clearly the economics of the crop and
market-acceptance require further study. Such studies should be based
on cultivars or strains selected for good yield and superior fruit
quality. By combining produce from different highlands, a very long
supply season could be guaranteed to customers in overseas markets.
Literature
Hockings,
E.T. (Editor), 1961. The Queensland Agricultural and Pastoral Handbook.
2nd ed. Vol. 2. Government Printer, Brisbane. pp. 347—350.
Legge, A.P., 1974. Notes on the history, cultivation and uses of Physalis peruviana L. Journal of the Royal Horticultural Society (UK) 99(7): 310—314.
Morton, J.F., 1987. Fruits of warm climates. Creative Resource Systems, Winterville, N.C. pp. 430—434.
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