Description: This native perennial plant is up to 4'
tall, but usually only 1-2½' tall. Smooth Ground Cherry branches
frequently, creating a bushy effect. Some of
the lower branches may sprawl along the
ground. The green stems have 4 or more ridges – they are usually smooth,
or have sparse small hairs. The smooth alternate leaves are up to 6" long and
3" across, but are usually much smaller. They are yellowish green to dark
green, and broadly lanceolate or ovate. Their margins are generally smooth, but
they often contain 1 or 2 horizontal waves or broad blunt teeth. The base of
each leaf is often asymmetrical while tapering to a slender petiole. At the
disjunction of branching stems, there occurs a single flower about ¾"
across on a drooping pedicel. The slender pedicel is either green or red, and
hairless or nearly so. The dull yellow corolla spreads outward and has 5 very
shallow lobes. Inside toward the throat of the flower, there are 5 purplish
brown patches and 5 prominent yellow stamens. Each flower is replaced by a
large heart-shaped husk, about 1" long and across when mature, that contains a
spherical fruit a little less than ¾" across. The husk is indented at
its base toward the top, and tapers to a rounded point at the bottom. It is
initially green, sometimes with fine purple lines, but later becomes brown. The
fruit is initially green, but turns yellow or red when mature. The blooming
period occurs from mid-summer to early fall, and lasts about 1½ months.
Buds, flowers, and fruits can be found simulataneously on mature plants. The
root system has fleshy rhizomes, which are responsible for the vegetative
spread of this plant.
Cultivation: The preference is full or partial sun,
and moist to mesic conditions. Growth is best in soil that is fertile and
loamy, with significant organic matter to retain moisture. The leaves may turn
yellow or the entire plant may droop in conditions that are too dry. It is easy
to grow, and can be aggressive.
Range &
Habitat: Smooth Ground Cherry is common in most counties of
Illinois, but uncommon or absent in parts of southern Illinois (see
Distribution
Map). Habitats include moist to mesic black soil prairies, openings in
floodplain forests, thickets, areas along railroads and roadsides, abandoned
fields and pastures, gardens and yards, and miscellaneous waste areas. This
plant favors disturbed areas.
Faunal
Associations: Short-tongued bees visit the flowers for nectar or
pollen, including Plasterer bees, Green Metallic bees, and other Halictine
bees. The caterpillars of the moth Heliothis subflexus (Subflexus Straw)
eat the fruit. Psyllids and other insects feed on this plant, including
Paratrioza cockerellii (Potato Psyllid), Macrosiphum euphorbiae
(Potato Aphid), and Lema trilineata (Three-Lined Leaf Beetle). Various
gamebirds and mammals eat the mature fruit, including the Bobwhite, Ring-Necked
Pheasant, Wild Turkey, Eastern Striped Skunk, and White-Footed Mouse. These
animals can distribute the seeds considerable distances. Mammalian herbivores
usually don't feed on the foliage because of its toxicity.
Photographic Location: The photographs were taken at
the webmaster's apartment complex in Urbana, Illinois.
Comments: The ground cherries can be difficult to
tell apart, and have been the focus of taxonomic wars. Smooth Ground Cherry has
fewer hairs than other ground cherries, and the leaves often have asymmetrical
bases near the petioles. Also, the heart-shaped papery husks enclosing the
fruit are larger and more orbicular than the husks of many other species in
this genus, and they are indented at the top. Some authorities classify this
plant as Physalis virginiana var. subglabrata. It differs from the
typical species by having wider leaves.