Info on Cape Gooseberries please

Can anyone give me any info on the Cape Gooseberry - Physalis peruviana? I'm growing this for the first time in shivvering Ireland and got a good germination rate and healthy plants but the seed packet didn't say much about the best way to keep them. I am growing most of them in containers because I garden in a bog made worse by a monsoon season that has lasted for - ooh around six months. Although I've had a few fruits ripen, a lot seem to fall off before the husks are full. The plants I did manage to find a dry(ish) place in the garden for are really huge and haven't ripened at all unlike the potted ones - which are smaller plants.
Does this make sense?

Imp, I've grown Cape Gooseberry off and on for about 12 years now. In my climate (Zone 5, USA), about the time the fruit starts to ripen, the weather starts to get cold, so I only get a few fruits. I do from time to time put them in containers and bring into the house, which helps me get a few more fruit.

The past few years, I try to start the seed really early, so that I have a decent sized plant ready to go outside when the weather warms up.

You might try growing this under a mini-greenhouse to generate more heat. There are many inexpensive approaches, but using PVC on rebar with plastic clipped on is likely the least expensive, provided you can find the clips in Ireland. If you have large plants outside, perhaps covering them this way might give you a chance to get fruit from them. I don't know what your climate is like, but if you can keep the plants alive over the cool season/winter, you could see fruit production next year. I understand from my reading that in climates that do not freeze them out, they are perennial and can get large, limited by the brittleness of the stems.

All of the different Physallis that I have grown will drop fruit if they do not get sufficient moisture.

Hope that helps. I love the taste of the fruit. It's a shame this one does not get sold commercially around here. I would buy it.

Wow! thanks Krowten, that's really helpful. I shall put the pots in the greenhouse ASAP. They are hardy plants I know because I had so many of them I had to chuck them outdoors when it wasn't really safe to do so - around mid April when the last frosts here can be as late as end of May. I was really impressed by their germination rate - they are certainly the easiest fruit I have ever grown from seed. I love the taste too but have only had one or two as a decoration on a dessert plate in a posh restaurant - I always wanted more. I don't think they will be perennial here in Ireland. Even though I've got a heated greenhouse there isn't a lot of day light hours during the winter months - but who knows, I will try to keep them going over the winter and hope for a better harvest next year. BTW they are quite a novelty here.
Once again thanks :-))

Imp, There is also another common ground cherry with a shorter growing season that is quite good. You might find it easier. I forget the species name at the moment, but the common name of Goldie by Thompsen and Morgan is one of them. Different taste but excellent. I grow them every year as an annual (they self seed)

Physalis pruinosa I think. I'll give it a go. I saw these adverrtised but plumped for the Cape Gooseberry instead but a plant that needs a shorter growing season would be ideal for me. Thanks

We have wild Physalis I've seen from N. Carolina mountains through Florida. The fruits do seem to fall off just as they're ripenings (but fully mature). I've picked up the tastiest sitting on the ground still surrounded by their husk/globe whatever it is. The last part I've seen skeletonized or partially decomposed but the fruits are still great.

Wish I had your climate LOL. My cape gooseberries here seem to fall of before they are rip. Never mind, I've had a handful of ripe ones so far.
:-)) Rosie

'riksha is correct. There are many species of Physalis in the states as well as around the world.

Check out this informative link:

http://plants.usda.gov/java/profile?symbol=PHYSA

Ignoring the tomatillo side of the family, I think this family has a lot of potential as a fruit crop, with some effort towards improvement and selective breeding. I've heard that ground cherries are sometimes offered in grocery stores in Britain as well. It's only a matter of time.