NIGHTSHADE FAMILY SOLANACEAE 
PRAIRIE GROUND CHERRY 
Physalis lanceolata Michx. 
Several kinds of Ground Cherry occur in Illinois, some of 
which are quite difficult to distinguish. This species is found on 
dry prairies from South Carolina to Illinois and west to South 
Dakota and NewMexico, 
blooming from July to 
September. 
It is perennial from a 
slender creeping under- 
ground stem. Thebranch- 
ing aerial stem grows 
about 18 inches high and 
is at first erect but later 
spreading. It is sparsely 
covered with short stiff 
hairs. The leaves are us- 
ually entire but may 
have some angular teeth. 
The calyx is 5-cleft 
and after flowering it en- 
larges and becomes much 
inflated, inclosing the 
fruit. The corolla is some- 
what funnel shaped and 
slightly 5-lobed, dull yel- 
lowish with a_ brown 
center, and about five- 
eighths of an inch broad. 
The fruit is a greenish yellow or reddish yellow berry. 
The Clammy Ground Cherry, Physalis heterophylla Nees, is 
probably our commonest species. It occurs in rich soil, especially 
where the surface has been disturbed through cultivation or other- 
wise. The whole plant is quite hairy and somewhat glandular sticky. 
The leaves are large, the blade usually more than 2 inches long and 
more or less coarsely toothed. The calyx is long haired and the corolla, 
nearly 1 inch broad, is greenish yellow with a brown or purple center. 
The ripe yellow berries are sometimes used for making pies. This 
perennial occurs from New Brunswick to Saskatchewan, south to 
Florida, Colorado and Texas. 
296 
eee 
