Bigger Than Your Head

Bigger Than Your Head

Share this post

Bigger Than Your Head
Bigger Than Your Head
Lo, the Tomatillo

Lo, the Tomatillo

Fredric Koeppel's avatar
Fredric Koeppel
Sep 10, 2008
∙ Paid

Share this post

Bigger Than Your Head
Bigger Than Your Head
Lo, the Tomatillo
Share

... which means "little tomato," a misnomer, as so many things are, because the tomatillo (pronounced "toe-mah-TEE-yo") well,

tomatillo2.jpg

it's not a little tomato. Physalis philadelphica, its formal name -- and the joke current in tomatillo circles ends with the line, "On the whole, I'd rather be in Philadelphica." -- is indeed a member of the Solanaceae, or nights…

Keep reading with a 7-day free trial

Subscribe to Bigger Than Your Head to keep reading this post and get 7 days of free access to the full post archives.

Already a paid subscriber? Sign in
© 2025 Fredric Koeppel
Privacy ∙ Terms ∙ Collection notice
Start writingGet the app
Substack is the home for great culture

Share