Cold hardiness & minimum temperature

Is Longleaf Ground Cherry (Physalis longifolia)cold hardy? Hardiness zone & min temp

Also called Longleaf Ground Cherry, Common Groundcherry, Wild Ground Cherry.

More about longleaf ground cherry

About Longleaf Ground Cherry

Physalis longifolia · also called Longleaf Ground Cherry, Common Groundcherry · edible

Longleaf Ground Cherry is a perennial North American native in the Solanaceae family, producing small yellow-green fruits in papery husks with a distinctive sweet-tart flavour described as effervescent strawberry when fresh and raisin-cranberry when dried. It tolerates poor soils and drought better than cultivated relatives, naturalising freely in open sunny habitats.

Cold limit: USDA 4–9 · RHS H5 (10–35°C)

What longleaf ground cherry's hardiness rating actually means

Yes — longleaf ground cherry is genuinely cold hardy. Rated RHS H5 and USDA 4–9, it lives outdoors all year and needs winter cold rather than protection from it. Its RHS rating of H5 means: Hardy in most of the UK and in cold winters. On the US scale that maps to USDA 4–9 — the zones where it can be left outdoors year-round.

New to these scales? The USDA hardiness zone map explained covers how the zone numbers work, and you can find your own zone with the zone finder.

Minimum temperature — and what happens below it

Minimum survivable temperature is roughly about −15 to −10 °C. Longleaf Ground Cherry is built for winter — once established it takes hard frost and snow in its stride.

Concretely, for longleaf ground cherry as it gets too cold:

It tolerates winter lows to about −15 to −10 °C once established.
Below its rated zone, the visible damage is browned or blackened top growth and, in the worst case, a killed crown or root.
First-year, newly planted, or container-grown specimens are noticeably less hardy than established garden plants — the roots are exposed.

Can longleaf ground cherry go outside or overwinter — and where?

Plant it out within USDA 4–9 and it overwinters with little or no help.
It does not want to come indoors — a warm winter room actually weakens a hardy plant by denying it dormancy.
The real risks in its range are waterlogging, wind-rock on young plants, and a late hard frost on new growth — not ordinary winter cold.

Work back from your local frost dates with the frost-date calculator: the last spring frost and first autumn frost are what really decide when longleaf ground cherry can be outside. US growers can check USDA zones; UK growers should use the RHS hardiness ratings, which match the H5 figure above.

Longleaf Ground Cherry hardiness — frequently asked questions

Is longleaf ground cherry cold hardy?

Yes — longleaf ground cherry is genuinely cold hardy. Rated RHS H5 and USDA 4–9, it lives outdoors all year and needs winter cold rather than protection from it. An outdoor plant. Longleaf Ground Cherry is hardy across USDA 4–9; it belongs in the ground or a frost-proof container, not on a windowsill, and many types actively need a cold winter to perform.

What is the minimum temperature longleaf ground cherry can survive?

Minimum survivable temperature is roughly about −15 to −10 °C. Longleaf Ground Cherry is built for winter — once established it takes hard frost and snow in its stride.

What hardiness zone is longleaf ground cherry?

Longleaf Ground Cherry is rated USDA 4–9 and RHS H5 — Hardy in most of the UK and in cold winters.

Can longleaf ground cherry survive winter outside?

Plant it out within USDA 4–9 and it overwinters with little or no help. It does not want to come indoors — a warm winter room actually weakens a hardy plant by denying it dormancy. The real risks in its range are waterlogging, wind-rock on young plants, and a late hard frost on new growth — not ordinary winter cold.

What happens to longleaf ground cherry below its minimum temperature?

It tolerates winter lows to about −15 to −10 °C once established. Below its rated zone, the visible damage is browned or blackened top growth and, in the worst case, a killed crown or root. First-year, newly planted, or container-grown specimens are noticeably less hardy than established garden plants — the roots are exposed.