Physalis ixocarpa (syn. Physalis philadelphica)
Green tomatillo, tomatillo, Mexican green tomato, miltomate: it is the soul of salsa verde, the Mexican sauce for which there is truly no substitute. Domesticated by the Aztecs long before the tomato, it produces a tangy fruit wrapped in a papery husk that must be removed before cooking—and whose slightly sticky surface rinses clean simply with lukewarm water.
Characteristics:
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Generous plant: an annual herbaceous plant growing 1.50 to 2 meters tall, highly productive.
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Husked fruits: up to 10 cm in diameter, they gradually fill their papery husks as they ripen.
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Short cycle: 75 to 85 days from sowing to harvest.
Precautions:
- Do not eat the immature fruits or foliage: like all nightshades, they contain alkaloids.
- Important point: the tomatillo is self-sterile. You must plant at least two plants to obtain fruit; a single isolated plant will produce nothing.
- Frost-tender plant, destroyed by the first frosts.
Sowing advice:
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Exposure: full sun and warmth.
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Soil: rich, loose, moist and well drained. Like the related tomato, it is a hungry plant: adding compost at planting benefits it. It is sensitive to standing water.
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Method: sow in pots under cover from March, or directly in the ground when nighttime temperatures reach 18 °C and daytime temperatures reach 25 °C. Cover the seeds with a thin layer of substrate or sand and keep them moist until germination. See how to sow your seeds.
Planting advice:
- Transplant after the frosts, spacing plants 80 cm to 1 m apart, and provide sturdy support: fruit-laden stems bend easily.
- Remember to plant at least two plants side by side to ensure cross-pollination.
Care advice:
- Water regularly at the base without wetting the foliage. Mulch to retain moisture.
Harvesting advice:
- Harvest when the fruit completely fills its husk and begins to split it open, while it is still a rich green: this is when its acidity is perfect for salsa. If overripe, it becomes yellowish and bland.
Beneficial companion plants:
Benefits for biodiversity:
- Since it is self-sterile, it depends entirely on pollinators to produce fruit: growing it creates another reason to welcome bees and bumblebees into the vegetable garden.
- Its yellow flowers with dark centers are visited throughout the summer.
Uses:
- An essential base for salsa verde and Latin American sauces, also delicious roasted, in ratatouille or soup.
Harvesting your own seeds:
Crush a few fully ripe fruits in a little water, leave them to ferment for two to three days, then rinse them: the healthy seeds will sink to the bottom. Dry them before storing. Please note that tomatillos cross-pollinate easily between varieties: isolate your seed plants if you also grow the purple variety. See how to save your seeds.
Commitment to Quality: at SemiSauvage - Permaculture, we grow and select our seeds with respect for all living things as our guiding principle. Based near the Volcanoes of Auvergne, we choose reproducible, non-hybrid varieties, tested for their germination rate, carefully sorted and packaged, with no chemical treatment. Our conviction: to give gardeners back the ability to resow, year after year, seeds that truly belong to them.
Add a touch of authentic Mexican flavor to your vegetable garden with these green tomatillo seeds.
