Ground Cherry is a perennial grown for its fruit, ready to harvest about 70 days after planting. It's hardy across USDA zones 3 through 11 and stands up to deer. Its flowers are a modest draw for native bees, even though the fruit is the prize. As a nightshade, give it a fresh bed each year — away from where its relatives just grew — so the soil-borne pests and diseases of the family never get a foothold.
Ground Cherry — the short answer
Ground Cherry: grown in zones 3–11, full sun, pH 4.3–8.2, about 70 days to maturity.
- USDA zones
- 3–11
- Manual horticultural correction (source not retained); NC State Extension and Missouri Botanical Garden, with the remaining rows from other published sources or Growable Ground compilation
- Soil pH
- 4.3–8.2
- FAO ECOCROP
- Sun
- Full Sun
- Growable Ground Plant Database
- Days to Maturity
- 70 days
- UMass-Veg; Cornell
- Frost-kill temperature
- 30.2°F
- FAO ECOCROP
Plant data: Growable Ground Plant Database, compiled from FAO ECOCROP, USDA PLANTS and university Extension sources — each tile names its own row's source, because per-field provenance varies.
Score Ground Cherry on your exact land.
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What Ground Cherry is
Ground Cherry grows as a perennial and reaches around 2.5 feet at maturity. It's also deer-resistant.
How to grow Ground Cherry
Ground Cherry grows in USDA zones 3 through 11 and is ready to harvest about 70 days after planting. Ground Cherry does best in full sun — at least 6 hours of direct sun a day — and soil from pH 4.3 to 8.2, on well-drained ground. It needs around 2,000 growing degree days to mature and a growing season of at least 80 frost-free days, which is why climate matters as much as soil.
USDA Zones
3-11
USDA PHZM 2023
Soil pH
4.3 - 8.2
FAO ECOCROP
Sun
Full Sun
Growable Ground plant catalog
Drainage
well (dry spells)
Growable Ground plant catalog
Frost Kill Temperature
30.2°F
Where cold starts killing growing tissue. Not a winter-survival floor — a dormant perennial takes far colder, which its hardiness zone answers.
FAO ECOCROP
Minimum Growing Temperature
50°F
Below this it stops growing rather than dies — a pace limit, not a survival limit.
FAO ECOCROP
Days to Maturity
70 days
Ground cherry / husk cherry; from transplant; long indoor start.
UMass-Veg; Cornell
GDD Required
2000+
Growing degree-days of accumulated warmth it needs to mature — humid summers reach this faster than cool coastal ones.
Growable Ground plant catalog
Mature Height
2.5 ft
Growable Ground plant catalog
Frost-Free Days
80+
The frost-free stretch it needs start to finish — short-season areas may need an indoor head start.
Growable Ground plant catalog
Start the season right
Plant ground cherry in full sun with at least 6 hours of direct sun, once the soil has warmed and frost risk has passed.
Match the soil
Ground Cherry prefers pH 4.3 to 8.2 (FAO ECOCROP). A quick soil test from your local Extension lab tells you whether to add lime or sulfur to land in band.
Water steadily
Keep the root zone evenly moist through establishment. A 2–3 inch mulch layer holds moisture without waterlogging.
Harvest at maturity
Ground Cherry is ready about 70 days after planting (UMass-Veg; Cornell). Pick when the fruit is full-colored and parts easily from the stem.
Where Ground Cherry thrives
On hardiness alone, ground cherry grows across most of the country — its range (USDA zones 3 through 11) is unusually wide. Zone is only the starting point, though: the soil pH, drainage, and frost dates on your specific land decide how well it actually does.
A USDA zone is a 10°F band of average annual extreme winter minimum, so zones 3–11 spans average winter lows from -40°F to 50°F (USDA PHZM 2023). Across the 50 states and DC, that band covers 48 outright and splits 3 more down the middle — and which side of that line your land sits on changes the answer.
Zones 3–11·Where Ground Cherry growsOpen map →
Where Ground Cherry stands, state by state
Ground Cherry is rated for zones 3–11 — a cold floor USDA puts at -40 to -30°F. Across the 50 states and DC, 48 sit fully inside that band, the line runs through 3 more, and 0 sit outside it — and inside every split state, the same line runs on at county grain.
Fully inside zones 3–11
48 states
3 of 48 shown
State zone extents: USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map (PHZM) 2023. A zone is a 10°F band of average annual extreme minimum temperature, so a state that splits the band contains the boundary — its own page draws the county line, and a parcel report resolves which side your land sits on.
What grows around Ground Cherry
Growing guides for ground cherry
In rotation planning, ground cherry counts as a Nightshade — beds recover best when nightshade crops don’t follow each other in the same spot year over year. (Growable Ground derivation — crop-rotation group from botanical family)
Related plants in vegetable
Good to know
One caution for pet owners — ground cherry is toxic to dogs and cats (mild severity). Keep it out of reach, and call ASPCA Animal Poison Control at (888) 426-4435 in an emergency. (Source: ASPCA.)
Ground Cherry offers low value to bees and other pollinators.
Before you harvest ground cherry, know your soil
Anything you grow to eat takes up what's in the ground it grows in, so it's worth knowing what's documented near you before you plant ground cherry for food. Our free screen reads 9 federal source types across roughly 1.8M indexed sites and shows which sit near your address and which way they drain. It's a screening estimate from public records and proximity — not a soil test — so a nearby record means a soil test is worth it, not that your soil is unsafe.
Your land is one point inside Ground Cherry's range
This page resolves to the species. Your state page draws the county line, and a report reads the parcel — the soil pH, drainage, sun, and frost dates on your exact ground, which no species average can see.
See if Ground Cherry will thrive on your land
Zone averages are a start. Your exact soil pH, drainage, sun exposure, and frost dates shape whether ground cherry actually takes — we score it against the real conditions at your address.
Three things about your exact spot that zone averages miss:
We read public map data for this spot — soil, climate, flood, and parcel records. How we handle your address.
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How we know this about Ground Cherry
The figures above are cited per row, not per site: the pH band names this plant’s own source column, the three temperature figures each carry their own, and days-to-maturity cites the publication that actually lists it. All of it comes from the Growable Ground Plant Database — a compilation over FAO ECOCROP, USDA PLANTS, and university Extension sources, published openly with per-field provenance.
Grounded inUSDA PLANTS Database•USDA PHZM•ASPCA
Frequently asked questions
Can I grow Ground Cherry in my zone?
Ground Cherry grows in USDA hardiness zones 3 through 11 (USDA PHZM 2023). Zone is one factor — soil pH, drainage, and frost dates on your specific parcel also shape whether it takes.
How long does Ground Cherry take to grow?
Ground Cherry is ready to harvest about 70 days after planting (UMass-Veg; Cornell). Your local frost dates and soil temperature move that window earlier or later.
When should you plant Ground Cherry?
Most growers plant ground cherry after the last spring frost, once the soil has warmed, leaving enough of the season for its 80-day frost-free need. Your local frost dates set the exact window — a Growable Ground report reads them for your address.
How much sun does Ground Cherry need?
Ground Cherry needs full sun — a spot that catches at least 6 hours of direct summer sun a day. In more shade it still grows, but usually gives a smaller, later crop. The catch is that a yard rarely gets even light everywhere — a fence, the house, or one tall tree can quietly take those hours. A Growable Ground report reads the real sun-hours across your land, canopy and buildings included, so you can pick the brightest bed before you plant.
What soil does Ground Cherry need?
Ground Cherry prefers soil pH 4.3 to 8.2, on well-drained ground (FAO ECOCROP). Your report scores your parcel's actual soil against that using USDA SSURGO data.
Does Ground Cherry attract pollinators?
Yes — ground cherry's flowers are a modest nectar source for native bees.
Is Ground Cherry safe for pets?
Ground Cherry is toxic to pets (dogs,cats) with mild severity. Keep it out of reach, and call ASPCA Animal Poison Control at (888) 426-4435 in an emergency. (Source: ASPCA.)