This summer we’ve been growing both Tomatillo and Tamarillo plants, and never again will we confuse the “little tomato” from the very different “tree tomato”.

We sowed the soft, bushy tomatillo (Physallis ixocarpa) in spring, and we had fruits from mid-summer – sweet little green balloons that ripened to butter yellow, then popped open like Cape Gooseberries and fell to the ground.

The tree tomatoes – or tamarillo (Cyphomandra betacea) – stand two meters tall with clusters of fruit that  slowly ripen to a beautiful deep red.

The taste of these two very different tomatoes can be described as “unusual, interesting or an acquired taste”. Why not visit our gardens while they’re in fruit and try for yourself?