Gardeners often plant vegetables, fruits, and flowers in their gardens because of the unique benefits that these come with. Depending on what you decide to plant, the features that will get can vary. This is why it can be essential for people to go through the choices carefully. Talking about this, some users often think about growing vegetables in their gardens because these taste a lot better.
There are tons of options that you can select from but two popular choices that you will notice people going with include ground cherries and tomatillo. Both of these are quite similar to each other which is why some users might get confused between them. If you are having the same issue, then going through this article should help you out. This is because we will be using it to provide you with a comparison between the two vegetables, helping you in understanding how they are different.
Ground Cherries vs Tomatillo
Ground Cherries
Ground cherries are flowering plants that are from the nightshade family. These fruits contain a unique chemical that can be quite beneficial for your health. Considering this, people often decide to plant the fruit just for its medicinal properties. Ground cherries grow best when placed in warm temperatures as these are mostly found in the subtropical regions. The fruits have a variety of species that you can select from which might confuse people when planting them.
These can range from about 74 to 90 varieties that all have unique features on them. Though, you should note that the main benefits and characteristics of the plants are shared. The only major differences between them are their size and taste. The fruits can be used in numerous recipes which include cooking them to make sauces while also using them as they are for garnish.
The unique taste of ground cherries makes them very versatile because these not only appear savory but can be sweet as well. The most important thing that determines what the taste of your fruits will be is when you harvest them. This is why it can be essential that people understand when their ground cherries are ripe. The fruit also comes with a papery husk on them that makes them quite similar to tomatillos.
Though, there are major differences between the two plants that make them different. The plants for ground cherries can usually grow from 1 to 3 feet in size depending on how much you take care of them and what variety you decide to grow. The most important thing that you have to do is keep the fruit on sandy or well-drained soil. Excess liquid can easily damage the roots of your ground cherries which is why you should avoid the problem.
Tomatillo
Tomatillos are another type of flowering plant that is also from the nightshade family. This is the main reason why there are so many similarities between the two fruits. Both plants have the same papery husk on them which makes them look similar. Though, the main difference that people will notice is the size of these plants and fruits.
The fruit itself grows a lot larger in size which helps in distinguishing between the two plants. On top of this, the plant tomatillos are considered to be invasive as it easily starts spreading around your garden. This can be amazing for people trying to grow a single harvest but if you have multiple plants in your garden then this can cause a lot of problems.
Luckily, the issue can easily be prevented by growing your fruits using a cage or support. This allows the plant to stay within the area that you have selected for it and grow upwards instead of spreading around the garden. If done properly, then the growth of your tomatillos can be controlled while ensuring that the harvest is still full of fruits.
Overall, both ground cherries and tomatillos have similar uses as even the taste of them is similar. However, the requirements to keep them healthy vary greatly which is why you must choose a plant that will work better in your garden. In some cases, people can also use either one of the fruits as a substitute which can be amazing.