The cape gooseberry belongs to the Solanaceae family. The genus
Physalis includes about 100 species characterized by fruits that
bear an inflated calyx (Legge, 1974). Whitson and Manos (2005)
limited the genus to 75 to 90 species. Cape gooseberry is considered
a perennial shrubby herb. In natural, non-managed conditions,
it has been known to reach 1.0 to 1.5 m in height, with its typical
sympodial branching