Purple Tomatillo

Tomatillos are annual herbaceous plants, measuring 1.50 to 2 meters high. The stem is hollow, slightly angular and branched. Unlike other types of physalis, the tomatillo has very little pubescence.

The leaves are elongated oval in shape and have a smell reminiscent of bell pepper. Young leaves have slightly crenate edges.

The tomatillo fruit is surrounded by a papery green husk formed from the calyx. When the fruit ripens, it fills the envelope which turns purple then brown and can open it at harvest time.

The fruits can be yellow, red, green but they are most often purple.

The diameter of the fruits can be up to 10 cm. The fruits are ripe about two months after pollination.

The smell of the fruit is quite characteristic of the variety as it is somewhat reminiscent of “well done cheese”. When ripe, the fruit sticks to the fingers because it is covered with a thin translucent viscous film which earned the species its old name “ixocarpa” (“viscous seed” in Greek).