Chinese Lanterns

Morning all, I bought a pack of chinese lanterns the other day and am after advice on how to go about propagating them. Should i grow them in a seed tray and then transplant them into the garden? Can i sow them now? I don't have a greenhouse so i would have to maybe use a seedtray on the windowsill can anyone offer some help??

Rgards,
Kris.

 

Hi Kris

Its too late to plant them not enough time for them to grow properley and develop even if you had a greenhouse they will end up dieing , leave till the spring , keep the seeds in the fridge for now .

You can easily grow on the windowsill late March early April

Sory


Spruce

 

Hi Kris. I have never grown them from seed. But I have one in a pot that was given to me by a friend.

The full name is Physalis alkekengi var franchetii. So you can Google them under Physalis alkekengi or P. franchetti. This site gives a few comments PlantFiles: Detailed information on Chinese Lantern Plant, Strawberry Ground Cherry Physalis alkekengi

Its normal to sow most seeds in spring, then they have a whole season to grow and prepare for winter. But Physalis is perfectly hardy and pretty tough, verging on the invasive, which is one reason I keep mine in a pot. So I see no problems in sowing some now. I would be inclined to sow some now and keep some back to sow next spring as the others have suggested, in the event of failure.

I have never seen the seeds, but they appear to be fairly tough from the comments. So it might be worth while soaking them for a day or two first, and I would then sow in a small pot. I like to use small pots rather than shallow seed trays when you don't want a huge number of plants. The extra depth of the pot holds more moisture and gives more space for the root run.

So sow some in a small pot of moist compost. sprinkle a bit more moist compost on top - unevenly. This means that some seeds are uncovered and some covered - giving them a range of conditions. Put in a polybag to hold in the moisture and keep out of the sun until the seeds start to germinate. Until the seeds have germinated the sun is of no benefit and simply dries up the compost. There should be no need to water the pot till some time after the seeds have germinated. Shortly after germination I would remove the polybag, and give them some fresh air (ie carbon dioxide).

 

I planted a pack earlier this year, they germinated very easily, they have been in 3 inch pots all summer (somehow they got seriously over looked) but they survived and I have just potted them up into litre pots and the root systems are vigorous and have formed runners which I am hoping will fill out nicely for autumn planting ( I have no space for them at the moment!) Thanks for the info, I will be careful where I plant them out!

Mrs Chopper

 

I've not heard of the name chinese lanterns and didn't realise you were talking about Physalis.
I planted one last year and removed it in the spring - it's way too invasive for my small garden.

 

I had a free pack of Chinease Lantern seeds in Amateur Gardener last year,I set them in the greenhouse ,two survived,in pots and hear is my first ever Chinease Lantern,there are loads of flowers so I am expecting lots of lanterns.
I will plant them out in the garden then.

 

Thanks for all your info guys really appreciated. i have a an isolated little border where i am going to plant them so the invasive habit won't be a problem as like i say the border is kind of self-contained.

Regards,
Kris.

 

Invasive? I'll say. I planted one about 3 years ago, only too late was I advised that they 'take over' so, after one flowering, I carefully removed them and had a completely physalis-free garden - this year, somehow, they've popped up again .... 40' from where the original was planted