Physalis alkekengi

Physalis alkekengi
Physalis alkekengi fruit with the red husk
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
(unranked):	Angiosperms
(unranked):	Eudicots
(unranked):	Asterids
Order:	Solanales
Family:	Solanaceae
Genus:	Physalis
Species:	P. alkekengi
Binomial name
Physalis alkekengi L.

Physalis alkekengi (Bladder cherry, Chinese lantern, Japanese lantern, or Winter cherry; Japanese: hōzuki), is a relative of P. peruviana (Cape Gooseberry), easily identifiable by the larger, bright orange to red papery covering over its fruit, which resemble Chinese lanterns. It is native from southern Europe east across southern Asia to Japan. It is a herbaceous perennial plant growing to 40–60 cm tall, with spirally arranged leaves 6–12 cm long and 4–9 cm broad. The flowers are white, with a five-lobed corolla 10–15 mm across, with an inflated basal calyx which matures into the papery orange fruit covering, 4–5 cm long and broad.

Cultivation

It is a popular ornamental plant, though can be invasive with its wide-spreading root system sending up new shoots some distance from where it was originally planted. It has escaped cultivation various places around the world.^[1] It has food and medicinal uses,^[1][2] but because its side effects include miscarriage and abdominal pain, it must be used in moderation.^{[citation needed]} Like a number of other species in the genus Physalis, it contains a wide variety of physalins.^[3][4][5]

Image gallery

Bouquet of Chinese lanterns in a vase

Orange fruit still showing in December at the Cambridge Botanical Gardens, Cambridge, England

References

1. ^ ^{a b} "1. Physalis alkekengi Linnaeus". Flora of China. http://www.efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?flora_id=2&taxon_id=200020559. 
2. ^ Azadeh Montaserti, Maryam Pourheydar, Mozafar Khazaei, and Rostam Ghorbani (Winter 2007), "Anti-fertility effects of physalis alkekengi alcoholic extract in female rat", Iranian Journal of Reproductive Medicine 5 (1): 13–16, ISSN 1680-6433, http://www.bioline.org.br/request?rm07003 
3. ^ Matsuura, T; Kawai, M; Makashima, R; Butsugan, Y (1970), "Structures of physalin A and physalin B, 13,14-seco-16,24-cyclo-steroids from Physalis alkekengi var. Francheti.", Journal of the Chemical Society. Perkin transactions 1 5: 664–70, ISSN 0300-922X, PMID 5461642 
4. ^ Qiu, L; Zhao, F; Jiang, Zh; Chen, Lx; Zhao, Q; Liu, Hx; Yao, Xs; Qiu, F (Apr 2008), "Steroids and flavonoids from Physalis alkekengi var. franchetii and their inhibitory effects on nitric oxide production.", Journal of natural products 71 (4): 642–6, doi:10.1021/np700713r, PMID 18348534 
5. ^ Kawai, M; Yamamoto, T; Makino, B; Yamamura, H; Araki, S; Butsugan, Y; Saito, K (2001), "The structure of physalin T from Physalis alkekengi var. franchetti.", Journal of Asian natural products research 3 (3): 199–205, ISSN 1028-6020, PMID 11491395 

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