Large false groundcherry, coqueret à grandes fleurs

Physalis grandiflora Hooker, Fl. Bor.-Amer. 2: 90. 1837; Chamaesaracha grandiflora (Hooker) Fernald

Herbs annual, erect, 3–9 dm. Roots fleshy. Stems pubescent, hairs glandular and simple. Leaves: petiole 2–5 cm; blade broadly ovate to ovate-lanceolate, 4–10 × 2.5–8 cm, margins entire, surfaces glabrous or slightly pubescent. Pedicels 2–4 per node. Flowers: calyx 5–10 mm, hairy, especially at base, lobes sharply acute to attenuate; corolla cream-white to pale yellow, with darker yellow or yellow-green markings in throat, 2–6 cm diam. Berries globose to ovoid, 10–15 mm diam. Fruiting calyces accrescent, exceeding berries. 2n = 48.

Flowering Jun–Jul. Disturbed or burned areas, usu­ally open forest; 0–600 m; Alta., Man., Ont., Que., Sask.; Mich., Minn., N.Y., Vt., Wis.

Leucophysalis grandiflora has been collected from Alberta to Quebec and the adjacent states in the United States; there are few recent collections from the eastern part of its range. It seems relatively rare, appearing for a short while and then disappearing.