The commercial importance of Physalis was started in Colombia in 1985. Cape gooseberry grown through the plains and hills. In temperate region it grows as a annul while in tropical and subtropical grow as perennial due to absence of frost.
The fruit is a berry, globose, smooth glossy, yellow-orange in color containing juicy pulp with numerous very small seeds. The fruit is covered by bladder like structure of persistent calyx called husk.
The fruit diameter about 12.5 to 25.0 mm and the weight ranges from 4-10 g, which contain about 100-300 seeds per fruit. It is a good source of carotene and ascorbic acid.
The fruit can be eaten fresh when ripe or in a variety of processed forms. Cape gooseberry is extensively used as medicinal herb for treating diseases such as cancer, malaria, asthma, hepatitis, dermatitis and rheumatism and it is an attractive fruit for international markets due to its important nutritional properties as well as medicinal properties.
Cape gooseberry
