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Gardener972
04-29-2008, 07:11 PM
Someone on Gardenweb said they grew a guava in east Texas. Can that be so? The guavas I've seen at the grocery store were big... like a large orange. Recently we were in Mexico and I bought some guavas at a market and they were very round and about the size of a lime. What's the difference? What type do you suppose grew in Texas?

buffy
04-29-2008, 08:58 PM
I'm guessing that guy/gal was growing Pineapple Guave. It's not a true guava, but taste about like the name suggest. They produce a pretty flower in the spring that's edible. Fruits late summer. The scientific name is Feijoa sellowiana. These will actually do pretty well there in Dallas. They need a good bit of sun to thrive, but otherwise, you can hedge them, prune them, whatever. Easy breezy. I've found them at Lowe's on occasion.

Feijoa - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Feijoa)

P.S. Both my father and I have plenty of these in our garden.

xavierdlc61887
04-29-2008, 09:34 PM
i got a pineapple guava.... 1 gallon size though need to plant it so it can take off....by the way i live in texas 5 miles away from the mexico border :D gotta love that heat :D

Gardener972
04-29-2008, 10:32 PM
P.S. Both my father and I have plenty of these in our garden.

What part of Texas do you live in? What are the conditions of your guava and how big does the bush/tree get?

Richard
04-29-2008, 10:45 PM
Someone on Gardenweb said they grew a guava in east Texas. Can that be so? The guavas I've seen at the grocery store were big... like a large orange. Recently we were in Mexico and I bought some guavas at a market and they were very round and about the size of a lime. What's the difference? What type do you suppose grew in Texas?

Several varieties will grown in Texas, since many will just magically become deciduous when the temperatures drop below 45. A hard freeze can be fatal though.

As for plants called "guava", there are
Psidium guajava -- which produce larger fruits
Psidium cattleianum -- which produce tart fruits about 1 inch in diameter
Acca sellowiana -- the pineapple guava
... to name a few

Gardener972
04-29-2008, 11:34 PM
As for plants called "guava", there are
Psidium guajava -- which produce larger fruits
Psidium cattleianum -- which produce tart fruits about 1 inch in diameter
Acca sellowiana -- the pineapple guava
... to name a few

Thanks! Of those varieties, which one would do the best in a pot (if any) AND fruit, and which one would be the smallest?

Richard
04-29-2008, 11:46 PM
Thanks! Of those varieties, which one would do the best in a pot (if any) AND fruit, and which one would be the smallest?

Psidium cattleianum is the smallest fruit. At the time of its discovery by European peoples, it was not cultivated or liked by native peoples.

To make matters worse, some growers distribute P. cattleianum varieties such as "strawberry guava", "lemon guava", etc. under the botanical name Psidium guajava -- which they are not.

All of the "guava" fruits can be grown in a container -- esp. the more desirable true tropical guavas. They are vigorous plants and produce an abundance of fruit when grown in a 25 gallon or larger pot. The tropical guavas do not come true from seed, but suckers torn off from the base with a "heel" can be easily rooted with a hormone powder or liquid.

Be sure you like the taste of guavas before growing them. A good nick-name for them is pineapple pear -- without the sugar content. One test is to see if you like the taste of the spice tamarind.

Gardener972
04-29-2008, 11:48 PM
There must be a nutrient in guava that my body needs because I crave anything guava. Where would you suggest I get that variety?

Richard
04-30-2008, 12:12 AM
There must be a nutrient in guava that my body needs because I crave anything guava. Where would you suggest I get that variety?

Actually, Psidium guajava fruit contains small amounts of a compound that is mildly stimulating. If I remember correctly (probably not) it envigorates the blood system and not the nervous system.

Everyone who likes guavas enjoys the variety "Thai Pink". There is a good white variety called "White" or "Indonesian White". These are propagated en mass by wholesalers: you might just find one at a Fort Worth nursery with a good selection of fruit trees. As of yesterday, they were for sale at my local Home Depot store here in San Diego. There is also an active CRFG chapter in Texas which can probably help you as well: see "local chapters" under California Rare Fruit Growers (http://www.crfg.org/).

Gardener972
04-30-2008, 12:18 AM
Fort Worth Nursery? I'm not familiar with that and am not finding it. More info?

chong
04-30-2008, 03:03 AM
This nursery in Richardson has tropical fruit trees. The could have guavas.
Bruce Miller Nursery
(972) 238-0204
1000 E Belt Line Rd
Richardson, TX 75081


When I was doing some work in Dallas, I used to see myrtle in landscapes there. They look so much like guava trees. So, they should grow there. But to be sure, ask the nurseryman.

chong
04-30-2008, 03:31 AM
I just received four of these plants from this eBay Seller, last Saturday. Although she has only one left on this auction, I believe she has more. So, if you want more, instead of paying right away, send her a message that you would like to buy more. Shipping for one is 8.00$, additional is only $1.50 ea.

LEMON GUAVA - but how sweet it is! Live plant - eBay (item 260234875746 end time May-04-08 16:30:39 PDT) (http://cgi.ebay.com/LEMON-GUAVA-but-how-sweet-it-is-Live-plant_W0QQitemZ260234875746QQihZ016QQcategoryZ42353QQssPageNameZ WDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem)

The plants I got were 8-inches to 10-inches tall. Given proper care, fertilizer, warmth and humidity, they could fruit next year.

Richard
04-30-2008, 12:48 PM
Fort Worth Nursery? I'm not familiar with that and am not finding it. More info?

"a Fort Worth nursery". Last summer I met a woman at the CRFG Fruit Festival who lives in Fort Worth. She was describing the varieties of fruits available from one of the local nurseries, which included fruiting bananas and loquats. If you can locate a nursery that is willing to special order plants, then they can obtain the 'Tropic Pink' and 'Tropic White' Psidium guajava from the wholesaler La Verne Nursery (http://www.lavernenursery.com/).

The 'Lemon Guava' chong (http://www.bananas.org/member-chong.html) mentions is a variety of Psidium cattleianum which you can learn more about at Species in GRIN for genus Psidium (http://www.ars-grin.gov/cgi-bin/npgs/html/splist.pl?10034). It is agriculturally cultivated for juice.

chong
04-30-2008, 01:13 PM
"a Fort Worth nursery". Last summer I met a woman at the CRFG Fruit Festival who lives in Fort Worth. She was describing the varieties of fruits available from one of the local nurseries, which included fruiting bananas and loquats. If you can locate a nursery that is willing to special order plants, then they can obtain the 'Tropic Pink' and 'Tropic White' Psidium guajava from the wholesaler La Verne Nursery (http://www.lavernenursery.com/).

The 'Lemon Guava' chong (http://www.bananas.org/member-chong.html) mentions is a variety of Psidium cattleianum which you can learn more about at Species in GRIN for genus Psidium (http://www.ars-grin.gov/cgi-bin/npgs/html/splist.pl?10034). It is agriculturally cultivated for juice.

Richard,
The "Lemon Guava" that I got from eBay is Psidium Guajava, not P. Clattleianum. The Seller just calls it "Lemon" because it ripens lemon yellow, skin is textured, sized and shaped like the citrus Lemon. If I were to make an educated guess, it is more of the "White Indian" variety. If it were a P. Cattleianum, I wouldn't have bought it. Here's the photo in the ad.

http://www.bananas.org/gallery/watermark.php?file=9365 (http://www.bananas.org/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=9145&ppuser=567)

Richard
04-30-2008, 02:28 PM
Richard,
The "Lemon Guava" that I got from eBay is Psidium Guajava, not P. Clattleianum. The Seller just calls it "Lemon" because it ripens lemon yellow, skin is textured, sized and shaped like the citrus Lemon. If I were to make an educated guess, it is more of the "White Indian" variety.

LOL! That's definately a white Psidium guajava!

Gardener972
04-30-2008, 02:31 PM
Richard,
The "Lemon Guava" that I got from eBay is Psidium Guajava, not P. Clattleianum. ... If it were a P. Cattleianum, I wouldn't have bought it. http://www.bananas.org/gallery/watermark.php?file=9365 (http://www.bananas.org/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=9145&ppuser=567)

Why wouldn't you have bought the P. Cattleianum? What's the difference?

Richard
04-30-2008, 02:36 PM
Why wouldn't you have bought the P. Cattleianum? What's the difference?

It has sour fruits about 1" diameter with a lot of seeds. It is grown mainly for juice. Commercially, the juice is used in condiments such as sweet & sour sauce.

As you see though, sellers incorrectly name guava fruits all the time. I have seen Pineapple guava (Acca sellowiana) sold as Tropical Guava (Psidium guajava).

Gardener972
04-30-2008, 02:39 PM
OK, thanks for the heads up. So, which variety should I get for growing and fruiting in a pot? AND who will sell the correct one? I might add that the guava I had in Mexico was about 1 1/2 to 2 inches diameter and very thin, smooth skinned. It was also sweet.

Richard
04-30-2008, 03:15 PM
OK, thanks for the heads up. So, which variety should I get for growing and fruiting in a pot? AND who will sell the correct one? I might add that the guava I had in Mexico was about 1 1/2 to 2 inches diameter and very thin, smooth skinned. It was also sweet.

You had a tropical guava (Psidium guajava), a white variety. As I posted below, all guavas can be grown to fruit in a 25-gallon or larger pot. The pineapple guavas usually need two varieties in the same pot for cross pollination. To obtain a tropical guava like the one you had in Mexico, make sure the seller knows you are looking for the white-fleshed tropical guava that produces fruit at least 2 inches in diameter.

chong
04-30-2008, 03:20 PM
Why wouldn't you have bought the P. Cattleianum? What's the difference?

Richard is right on. The P. Cattleianum, either the Lemon or Strawberry, have similar fruit structure. They have thin meat(pulp) and larger seeds that are packed in the middle, similar to pomegranate. The meat can be sweet when picked at the proper stage of ripeness. But the texture becomes another issue. I had both the lemon and the strawberry types. And they fruit quickly (12" height), but I didn't like the taste, and worse, the texture.

Any standard P. gaujava, is great to me. I bought guavas from the Taipei Costco, when I was inspecting the construction of the store, the size of big Pummelo. They were not very sweet, but sweet, nevertheless. And very little acid.

Oh! and the guava from Taipei Costco, if you imagine the fruit in the photo that I attached earlier, make it about 8" in dia, that's what the Taipei guava looked like. Even the color and texture is the same. Nice and meaty, and very few seeds.

Richard
04-30-2008, 03:30 PM
... Oh! and the guava from Taipei Costco, if you imagine the fruit in the photo that I attached earlier, make it about 8" in dia, that's what the Taipei guava looked like. Even the color and texture is the same. Nice and meaty, and very few seeds.

:woohoonaner:

I suppose the heat and humidity are big factors in the size. One of my colleagues from Venezula always comments that my 3" white tropical guavas are small.

buffy
04-30-2008, 03:36 PM
Dude, Pineapple Guava will grow well all day long in Dallas. I live in Longview, which is 2 hours east of you. All the fruits these guys are talking about will require some work and care. The Pineapple Guave can be abused. No container required. Find a sunny spot in the yard and plant some. That said, do heed their warning and purchase 2-3 plant to ensure cross pollination.

chong
04-30-2008, 04:16 PM
Dude, Pineapple Guava will grow well all day long in Dallas. I live in Longview, which is 2 hours east of you. All the fruits these guys are talking about will require some work and care. The Pineapple Guave can be abused. No container required. Find a sunny spot in the yard and plant some. That said, do heed their warning and purchase 2-3 plant to ensure cross pollination.

That has been my experience, also. I've seen them in a few yards in Vegas, Central MS, even Reno, and of course, mine in Seattle that's been in a pot for over 18 years.

Though I have several of them, I am not too enthused about having to wait to pick the fruits after they fall on the ground. Picking them before will be quite a disappointment. Also, after having grown up around regular guavas, big and small, sweet and sour, round or pear-shaped, it really takes a while for me to develop a taste for Feijoa (Acca).

Gardener972
04-30-2008, 04:19 PM
Unfortunately, we have a small yard and don't have room to plant guave in ground unless I cut down a tree. What would happen if I only have ONE in a pot? Would it get pollinated or would I have to do it manually? We have a peach, pear & persimmon tree (in ground) and they all get pollinated but I don't know if they're the same as guava.

chong
04-30-2008, 04:45 PM
Unfortunately, we have a small yard and don't have room to plant guave in ground unless I cut down a tree. What would happen if I only have ONE in a pot? Would it get pollinated or would I have to do it manually? We have a peach, pear & persimmon tree (in ground) and they all get pollinated but I don't know if they're the same as guava.

As long as your guava plant can get some sun most of the day, it can thrive. The plant I got from eBay allegedly matures at 10' in height. If you want it shorter, one option is, when it gets to your desired height, air-layer the surplus branches and get more plants. Or, just prune to limit it to your desired size.

It would certainly help if you had 2 plants for pollination, but I've had single guava plants that have fruited for me.

chong
04-30-2008, 04:53 PM
Or you can plant a couple of guavas in separate pots, and this would even limit the trees in size. My Feijoa was in an 8-gallon pot for over 14 years, and the roots kept forming out of the drains holes, and the tree never got taller that 4.5 feet and 2.25 feet in diameter. I now have it in a 50-gallon pot and in less than 4 years it has grown to over 7 feet high and 5 feet in diameter.

Richard
04-30-2008, 05:38 PM
Dude, Pineapple Guava will grow well all day long in Dallas. I live in Longview, which is 2 hours east of you. All the fruits these guys are talking about will require some work and care. The Pineapple Guave can be abused. No container required. Find a sunny spot in the yard and plant some. That said, do heed their warning and purchase 2-3 plant to ensure cross pollination.

Buffy,
Gardener972 wants to grow it in a pot, and they want the white tropical guava.

buffy
04-30-2008, 08:22 PM
Buffy, Gardener972 wants to grow it in a pot, and they want the white tropical guava.

Richard, let's settle this with a knife fight. ;)

Gardener972
04-30-2008, 10:57 PM
Richard, let's settle this with a knife fight. ;)
:eek:

Richard
05-01-2008, 12:41 AM
Richard, let's settle this with a knife fight. ;)

How about a kite fife?

:kiteflyingnanergif:

Dean W.
05-01-2008, 10:47 AM
Richard, let's settle this with a knife fight. ;)

LOL!!!:D

Gardener972
05-01-2008, 11:12 AM
OK, let me make sure I understand you all correctly. I'm looking for the SMALLEST tree to be grown in a POT, one that doesn't need a second tree to pollinate, and that will produce abundant fruit that aren't tiny but also are not giant. I'm gathering that it will be the Psidium guajava (WHITE variety--are there other varieties?), correct?

Richard
05-01-2008, 12:55 PM
OK, let me make sure I understand you all correctly. I'm looking for the SMALLEST tree to be grown in a POT, one that doesn't need a second tree to pollinate, and that will produce abundant fruit that aren't tiny but also are not giant. I'm gathering that it will be the Psidium guajava (WHITE variety--are there other varieties?), correct?

True, Psidium guajava is self-fertile and there are an abundance of varieties. Stick with named varieties like 'Tropical (or Thai) Pink' and 'Tropical (or Indonesian) White', since those grown from seed often taste bad. P. guajava is vigorous like a lemon tree and will not mind being grown in a 25-gallon or larger pot. You will have to perform selective pruning once a year to control its size. You will also have to control root suckers -- which might be a blessing if you have a great tasting variety: you can rip them out, put rooting hormone on them, and distribute the rootings for fun or profit.

Gardener972
05-02-2008, 08:58 AM
One last question... can they be root pruned should they get too large for the pot?

buffy
05-02-2008, 01:33 PM
How about a kite fife?

:kiteflyingnanergif:

Nothing like a good ole Kite Fife to settle a score :)