Alkekengi

Alkekengi
Alkekengi officinarum fruit with the red husk
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Solanales
Family: Solanaceae
Subfamily: Solanoideae
Tribe: Physaleae
Genus: Alkekengi
Mill.
Species:
A. officinarum
Binomial name
Alkekengi officinarum
Synonyms
  • Physalis alkekengi L.
  • Boberella alkekengi (L.) E.H.L.Krause
  • Physalis alkekengi var. anthoxantha H. Lév.
  • Physalis alkekengi var. orientalis Pamp.
  • Physalis ciliata Siebold & Zucc.
  • Physalis halicacabum Crantz
  • Physalis hyemalis Salisb.
  • Physalis kansuensis Pojark.

Alkekengi is a monotypic genus of flowering plants in the nightshade family Solanaceae with a single species Alkekengi officinarum. This species is native to the regions covering Southern Europe to South Asia and Northeast Asia.

It is commonly known as the bladder cherry, Chinese lantern, Japanese-lantern, strawberry groundcherry, winter cherry, alchechengi berry, or Klabuster cherry.

It is a close relative of the new world Calliphysalis carpenteri (Carpenter's groundcherry) and a somewhat more distant relative to the members of the Physalis genus.