{"id":2311,"date":"2020-03-24T22:01:19","date_gmt":"2020-03-24T22:01:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/greenmanpublishing.com\/?p=2311"},"modified":"2020-03-24T22:01:22","modified_gmt":"2020-03-24T22:01:22","slug":"tomatillo","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/greenmanpublishing.com\/index.php\/2020\/03\/24\/tomatillo\/","title":{"rendered":"Tomatillo"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Physalis ixocarpa<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Introduction<\/strong>: The tomatillo has been grown in Central America for around 3000\nyears, but it is often as much a weed of cultivated fields as it is a crop. In\nthis country it is commonly found in parts of the country with large Latino\npopulations, but is becoming increasingly popular in other areas too. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tomatillo means small tomato, and was presumably given because it\nis a relative, though it is quite a bit different. It does have fairly similar\ncultivation requirements, though it is somewhat more independent. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This species is sometimes called the husk tomato because of the\npapery lantern (actually a calyx) that surrounds the fruit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nutritional content<\/strong>: The fruit contains vitamins C and K as well as copper, iron,\nmagnesium, manganese, phosphorus, potassium. It is also rich in niacin and\nfolate. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The fruits contain about 150 calories per pound, which is quite a\nbit more than the tomato.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Crop use<\/strong>: The tomatillo is a pretty easy plant to grow and can be quite\nproductive for the amount of work it requires (which isn\u2019t much). It isn\u2019t very\nimportant from a nutritional standpoint, but does have some culinary interest. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ease of growing:<\/strong> In suitably warm climates tomatillo is very easy to grow; in fact\nit often volunteers and grows itself like a wild plant. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Climate<\/strong>: The tomatillo\nis a sub-tropical plant and does best in a warm, humid climate (it will happily\ntolerate temperatures in the 90\u02dds \u00b0F). However I have also read reports of it\ngrowing and producing well in cool, wet England, so it is obviously more\nadaptable than we usually give it credit for.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

About Tomatillo<\/strong> \u00a0

Seed facts<\/strong>
Germ temp: 60 (65 – 70) 75\u00b0F
Germ time: 5 – 14 days
Days to germinate: 5 – 14
Germination %: 75
Seed viability: 4 – 7 years
Weeks to grow transplants: 6 – 10 \u00a0

Planning facts<\/strong>
Hardiness: Tender
Growing temp:
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Day: 65 (70 – 85\u00b0F) 90 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0
Night: 55 to 65\u00b0F
Plants per person: 2 \u00a0

Planting<\/strong>:
Start: 4 – 6 wks before last frost
Plant out: 2 – 4 wks after last frost
Direct sow: 2 wks after last frost \u00a0

Harvest facts<\/strong>
Days to harvest: 60 – 80 from transplant
Yield: 1 – 8 lb per plant
Yield per sq ft: 4 oz \u2013 1 lb
\u00a0 <\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Soil<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

pH 6.0 – 7.0<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tomatillos aren\u2019t as hungry as tomatoes, but will be most\nproductive in a well-drained, moisture retentive loam, with lots of organic\nmatter. However they will grow in almost any well-drained soil.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

They don\u2019t need a lot of nitrogen and too much can result in lots\nof vegetative growth and few fruits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Soil preparation<\/strong>: If your soil is less than perfect the plants will benefit from\nthe addition of 2\u02dd of compost or aged manure. You might also put a handful of\nfertilizer mix in each planting hole. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Planning<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Where<\/strong>: These plants need the same conditions as\nthe tomato: as much sun as possible, good air circulation and a warm sheltered\nsite.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When<\/strong>: Tomatillo is usually started indoors like\ntomato 4 – 8 weeks before the last frost date (the length of time they take to\ngrow will depend upon how warm they are). However if you have a long growing\nseason, or a fast maturing variety, it is possible to direct sow them. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Planting<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Planting<\/strong> indoors<\/strong>: Plant the seed in a flat\n1\u02dd apart and \u00bc – \u00bd\u02dd deep (they like to be covered.) Prick them out into another\nflat when their first true leaves appear, spacing them 2\u02dd apart. You can also\ngrow them in cell packs or soil blocks. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Harden off<\/strong>: Before transplanting outside you must harden the seedlings off,\nso they become accustomed to somewhat less than ideal conditions (see Tomato<\/strong> for how to do this). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Transplanting outside<\/strong>: Bury most of the stem when transplanting and roots will form all\nalong its length. If the plants are very leggy you should pinch out the lower\nleaves before planting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If the weather is cool at transplanting time, you can warm up the\nsoil with cloches or black plastic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sowing outdoors<\/strong>: The seed should be planted \u00bc – \u00bd\u02dd deep, after the soil has\nwarmed up. Pre-germinating the seed inside may help to speed things up. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Direct sowing these widely spaced plants isn\u2019t a very efficient\nway to use precious bed space. It is much better to start the seeds in a\nnursery bed and only plant them out when they are good sized transplants. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Spacing<\/strong>: Tomatillo plants can get quite big, so space them 24 – 36\u02dd apart\neach way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Support<\/strong>: These tend to be quite sprawling plants and some people grow\nthem in tomato cages to keep them under control. If you have space its easier\nto let them run wild at the edge of the garden. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Care<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Generally tomatillos are independent, almost weed-like plants and\ndon\u2019t need a lot of attention.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Water<\/strong>: Tomatillos are quite drought tolerant, but will be much more\nproductive if watered regularly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fertilization<\/strong>: If your soil isn\u2019t very fertile, give them a feed of compost tea\nor liquid kelp when the flowers first appear. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mulch<\/strong>: This is helpful to conserve moisture and keep down weeds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Control<\/strong>: The tomatillo is a sprawling vigorous plant\nand in the right climate it can really spread. When a stem touches the ground\nit will commonly root, so you can easily end up with a jungle of tomatillo.\nAvoid having it root where you don\u2019t want it to by moving the growing shoots\npromptly. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Frost<\/strong>: You can extend you harvest season by protecting the plants from\nearly fall frosts. Cover them with fleece frost blankets\/row covers, or\nwhatever you have available (cardboard, bed sheets, a layer of straw).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Problems<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pests<\/strong>: Tomatillos have a lot of potential enemies in the form of\nhornworms, fleas beetles, cucumber beetles, Colorado potato beetle, aphids,\nnematodes, stink bugs and more. However I have found them to be relatively\nuntroubled.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Disease<\/strong>: Tomatillos are attacked by the same diseases as tomatoes, but\naren\u2019t usually as susceptible. These include early and late blights,\nanthracnose, mosaic virus, southern bacterial, verticillium and fusarium wilts\nand of course damping off (which can infect almost anything). Powdery mildew is\na common problem where air circulation is poor (as always).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Harvesting<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The fruits are ready to harvest one to two months after flowering\n(depending upon the variety). When the fruit is ripe the husk will turn yellow\n(or purple or brown) and will be completely filled by the fruit (to the point\nwhere it often splits open.) <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tomatillos will ripen off the plant, so you can pick the fruit while\nit is still green (so long as it fills the husk). Some people say slightly\nunripe fruit is actually better for salsa.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You will often find ripe fruit in their papery husk, sitting on\nthe ground. These are still edible and will stay good to eat for quite a while.\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Storage<\/strong>: The fruit can be kept for a couple of weeks at room temperature,\nsitting in their husks. They can also be made into salsa and canned. You can\nfreeze the puree as you would that from tomatoes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Seed saving<\/strong>: Just remove the seeds from the ripe fruit before you eat them\nand process as for tomato. The fruit is more variable however, so save seed\nfrom the best flavored plants. I have always believed tomatillos to be\nself-pollinating like tomatoes, however when I looked online I found many sites\nclaiming that they are self-incompatible and needing cross pollination (the\ninternet nearly always provides contradictory information, so this wasn\u2019t a big\nhelp). As it makes sense to have at least two plants anyway, this isn\u2019t a big\nissue. The flowers are very attractive to bees and I have never had any problem\nwith fruit set.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Unusual growing ideas<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Volunteers<\/strong>: If any fruits fall to the ground and rot, you will most likely\nget volunteers the following year and forever after (it does this much more successfully\nthan the tomato). These will be just as good as their parents so can be allowed\nto mature and bear fruit. If they like your garden you may never have to think\nabout planting them again<\/p>\n\n\n\n

(which could be a good or bad thing depending upon how much you\nlike them.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dry gardening<\/strong>: Tomatillo is independent enough to grow without any irrigation,\neven in quite dry climates. They may not get as big as irrigated plants, but\nthey will be big enough. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dry gardening requires that the plants be spaced further apart, to\ngive each one more root room. See Tomato<\/strong> for more on this.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Containers<\/strong>: Tomatillo does well in a container, so long as you give it good\nsoil, plenty of water and a deep pot (it can grow to be a big plant, so a 5\ngallon pot isn\u2019t too big). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Varieties<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are only a few commonly available varieties at the moment,\nbut new ones keep appearing. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Purple\nDe Milpa<\/strong>: This is considered to be one of the\nbest flavored. It is almost a wild plant and often volunteers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cisneros<\/strong> – Produces the biggest fruit of any common variety,<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Purple<\/strong> – Large purple fruit for purple salsa verde (or should I say\nsalsa morado!)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Toma\nVerde<\/strong> – Yellow green fruit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Kitchen use<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The tomatillo is important in Mexican cooking, for its use in the\nclassic salsa verde, as well as other dishes (it\u2019s good roasted). It is not\nusually eaten out of hand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Salsa Verde<\/strong> \u00a0
12 tomatillos
1 medium onion
\u00bd cup clime juice
5 cloves of garlic
\u00bc teaspoon sugar (optional)
1 to 2 finely chopped jalapeno peppers
1 tsp salt \u00a0

Chop all the ingredients and mix thoroughly in a bowl. That\u2019s all there is to it. It is better is left overnight before eating. \u00a0 <\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Related\nspecies<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ground Cherry <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Physalis<\/em> <\/em>peruviana<\/em> <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Also known as cape gooseberry, this species is a close relative of\nthe tomatillo and is cultivated in the same way. The fruit looks like a small\ntomatillo, but it has a pleasant sweet\/sour flavor and is good enough to be\neaten raw.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Like the tomatillo the ground cherry enjoys hot weather, but it is\nsignificantly hardier and in milder areas (zone 8 and higher) it can be grown\nas a tender perennial. It will often survive for several years and be more\nproductive after its first year. In areas with colder winters it must be grown\nas an annual though. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This species is naturalized in some areas of the country and in a\nfew it is actually considered an invasive species. If it likes your garden it will often\nvolunteer from fallen fruit. Once you have an established plant you it can be multiplied by taking (and rooting) soft cuttings. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Harvest<\/strong>: Like the\ntomatillo, the fruit comes wrapped in its own husk and may be picked before it\nis ripe. They sometimes fall from the plant before they are ripe and lay on the\nground, which is presumably where the common name comes from. Unlike the\ntomatillo the fruit doesn\u2019t completely fill the husk. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Kitchen use<\/strong>: The ripe\nfruit is soft, yellow and sweeter than the tomatillo, so is more commonly eaten\nas a dessert. They can be eaten raw, or cooked in preserves and sauces. They\ncan also be frozen whole to preserve them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Varieties<\/strong>: <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Goldenberry<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Giant<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yellow husk <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Strawberry\nGround Cherry <\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Physalis\npruinosa <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

This annual is used like the above.\nSome people say it has better flavor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Aunt Mollys Ground Cherry <\/strong>– This Polish variety is the most commonly available type. It\nproduces small sweet fruit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Goldie<\/strong> – Has bigger fruit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Golden Ground Cherry<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

P. pubescens <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Another annual that is used like the above.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cossack Pineapple<\/strong> – An\nEastern European variety.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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