BC Living
How to Support BC Wineries Now
Embark on Culinary Adventures: 5 Must-Try Solo Dining Experiences Around BC
You Gotta Try this in April 2024
4 Tips on Balancing a Nutritious Diet with a Side of Indulgence
Choosing Connection: A BC Family Day Pledge to Prioritize Presence Over Plans
Embracing Plant-Based Living this Veganuary and Beyond
Inviting the Steller’s Jay to Your Garden
6 Budget-friendly Holiday Decor Pieces
Dream Home: $8 Million for a Modern Surprise
Protected: Spring into Fun in Kamloops: The Best Events in the City
Travel Light, Travel Right: Minimalist Packing Tips for Solo Explorers
A Solo Traveller’s Guide to Cozy Accommodations
Melodies and Museums: Solo-Friendly Entertainment for the Independent Traveller
Arts Club Theatre Company Celebrates 60 Years
Films and TV Series that Inspire Solo Travel
8 Gadgets and Gear for Your Solo Adventures
A Solo Traveller’s Guide to Souvenir Hunting in BC
Sḵwálwen Botanicals – Changing the Face of Skincare
This vibrant berry with anti-inflammatory properties is an ideal Halloween decoration or semisweet jam
The papery husks of the Chinese lantern plant turn a vibrant orange just in time for Halloween.
Getting into the Halloween spirit at Victoria’s Cannor Nursery/Wildwood Outdoor Living Centre, I couldn’t resist the display of Physalis alkekengi, a.k.a. liv’n lanterns, Chinese lantern plant, strawberry ground cherry or bladder cherry. Similar to tomatillos, this plant produces showy paper-like husks that wrap around ripening fruit – and in the case of P. alkekengi, they turn from green to bright orange just in time for Halloween.
Grown outside, this perennial is hardy to zone 3, reaching 60 cm (2 ft.) in height and blooming in mid summer. It likes well-drained soil and a sunny location . . . in fact, sometimes it likes these conditions a bit too much, as it can spread aggressively via underground rhizomes and self-seeding. Keep an eye on it, or contain it in a pot.
When the husk fades from bright red/orange to a transparent beige/white, the ripe-red fruit (like a large berry) is ready to eat. Very rich in vitamin C and some antioxidants, it is thought to have value as an anti-inflammatory. Use the tart berries to make a substitute “cranberry sauce”: barely simmer a cup of this fruit for half an hour or so with enough water to prevent sticking and then add sugar by the teaspoon to achieve your desired sweetness.
Other than the ripe fruit, however, all parts of this member of the Solanaceae (nightshade) family – including unripe fruit and the husk (calyx) – are poisonous. And it’s wise to avoid eating too much of even the mature fruit at one time, as it’s a strong diuretic and has laxative qualities. Pregnant women should avoid eating the fruit altogether.
To dry the husks for decoration, simply harvest the branches as soon as the lanterns turn bright orange and hang upside down in a cool, dry indoor space.
Here’s some fun pumpkin facts shared by Matt Hall of Victoria’s Cannor Nursery/Wildwood Outdoor Living Centre: