Annual herb, ascending, mainly subglabrous but sparsely to densely strigose on young growth, flowering calyx and peduncles, the stems up to 40 cm long; hairs usually not clearly multicellular, whitish, to ca. 0.5 mm long. LEAVES: ovate to ovate-lanceolate, 2.5–7 cm long, 1–3.5 cm wide, 2–2.5 times as long as wide; petiole 1–3 cm long, about 0.5 times as long as blade; base attenuate; apex acute; margins entire to repand. FLOWERS: urceolate, 3–5 mm long, 2.5–3.5 mm wide; peduncle 2–3 mm long; calyx ca. 2 mm long, the lobes shorter than the tube; corolla purple or yellow with distinct purple base, 2–3.5 mm wide, the widest point near the middle; anthers purplish, ca. 1 mm long. FRUITING CALYX:  globose to ovoid, 10–12 mm wide and long; berry 4–7 mm diameter; seeds ca. 2 mm wide.  Additional notes: [Margaranthus solanaceus Schltdl., M. lemmoni A. Gray]. —Canyons, grasslands, desert scrub, woodlands of cottonwood, oak, or pinyon-juniper; Cochise, Gila, Graham, Greenlee, Maricopa, Pima, Santa Cruz, Yavapai cos.; 1000–2000 m (3300–6600 ft); flowering Sep–Aug; NM, n Mex.

Wiggins 1964, Martin and Hutchins 1980, Kearney and Peebles 1969

Duration: Annual Nativity: Native Lifeform: Forb/Herb General: Annual, erect or ascendingly branched herbs 20-60 cm tall, branching sympodially, each leaf appearing to have a branch and flower axillary to it, with narrow band of simple, short curved hairs extending from node to node along underside of each petiole, otherwise plants glabrous. Leaves: On slender petioles 1-3 cm long, blades elliptic to elliptic-ovate, 8-25 mm wide, 2-5 cm long, broadly cuneate at base, acute at apex, margin entire to sometimes sinuate. Flowers: Pedicels 2-4 mm long, slender, coarsely puberulent with white hairs; calyx 2-3 mm long, tubular-subcampanulate at anthesis, puberulent, broadly deltoid teeth 0.4-0.6 mm long, erect; corolla tube longer than calyx, inflated upper part 2-3 mm in diameter, purplish at anthesis, bearing a few scattered minute hairs; fruiting calyx globose-ovoid, 10-12 mm long, finely reticulate-veined, greenish. Fruits: Berry 5-6 mm in diameter, glabrous. Ecology: Found on shaded slopes or in streamside alluvial soils from 3,500-5,500 ft (1067-1676 m); flowers August-November. Notes: The flowers on this species are distinctive with their inflated upper portions constricting to a campanulate purplish flower. Ethnobotany: Unknown Etymology: Margaranthus comes from Greek margarites, or margaron, a pearl and anthos, flower, while solanaceus means of or from the Solanaceae. Synonyms: Margaranthus lemmonii, M. purpurascens Editor: SBuckley, 2010

Landrum et al. 2013

Duration: Annual Nativity: Native Lifeform: Forb/Herb General: Ascending, mainly subglabrous but sparsely to densely strigose on young growth, flowering calyx and peduncles, the stems up to 40 cm long, hairs whitish, and about 0.5 mm long. Leaves: Alternate, ovate to ovate lanceolate 2.5-7 cm long, 1-3.5 cm wide, 2-2.5 times as long as wide, on a petiole 1-3 cm long, about 0.5 times as long as wide, with an attentuate base and acute apex, the margins entire to repand. Flowers: Urceolate, 3-5 mm long, 2.5-3.5 mm wide, on a peduncle 2-3 mm long, the calyx is about 2 mm long with lobes shorter than the tube, the corolla is purple or yellow with a distinct purple base, 2-3.5 mm wide, the widest point near the middle, the anthers purplish and about 1 mm long. Fruits: Berry 4-7 mm in diameter. Ecology: Found in canyons, grasslands, desert scrub, woodlands of cottonwood, oak, or pi-on juniper, from 3,000-7,000 ft (914-2134 m); flowers August-October. Distribution: Spread through the lowland deserts of Arizona, into New Mexico and south in Chihuahua. Notes: This species is distinguished by having an urceolate corolla that is 3-5 mm long, which is purplish to greenish yellow. Ethnobotany: Unknown Synonyms: None Editor: SBuckley 2014 Etymology: Physalis comes from the Greek physalis, "a bladder or bubble," because of the inflated calyx, while solanacea means like the genus Solanum.