Flower
Feijoa flowers are made up mostly of bright red stamens.
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| Family |
Myrtaceae |
| Name |
Acca sellowiana |
| Common Names |
Feijoa, Pineapple guava |
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Feijoa is a very popular fruit for the home garden, and with its red pohutukawa-like flowers, many people have come to think that it is a New Zealand native plant.
It, in fact, comes from South America, but we shall adopt it as an honarary NZ native!
The flowers appear in late spring / early summer and are followed by oval shapped fruits that ripen in autumn / winter.
The showy part of the flower is made up of bright red stamens, much like a Pohutukawa, and it is in fact related to the pohutukawa, both belonging to the myrtle family (Myrtaceae).
Birds eat the fleshy edible petals and pollinate the flower.
Most feijoa varieties require cross pollination in order to set fruit.
Even self fertile varieties still require pollen to be transferred (from the same variety) to set fruit.
Seedling grown feijoa plants will not produce fruit that is the same as their parents.
In fact, the seedlings are quite variable, and in most cases only one in 1000 seedlings are worth keeping.
If grown for fruit, it is best to grow one of the named varieties.
The following table lists some of the varieties that are available in New Zealand.
This list is by no means exhaustive.
| Variety |
Season |
Description |
| Apollo |
Mid |
Self fertile, very large fruit. |
| Den's Choice |
Mid |
Medium to large fruit, very sweet. |
| Gemini |
Early |
Small to medium fruit, slightly gritty, acid flavour. |
| Kakapo |
Mid |
Medium fruit, very juicy. |
| Mammoth |
Mid to late |
Medium fruit, good flavour, gritty. |
| Opal Star |
Late |
Medium fruit, acid flavour. |
| Pounamu |
Early |
Medium fruit, very sweet. |
| Triumph |
Late |
Medium fruit, slightly gritty. |
| Unique |
Early |
Self fertile, medium fruit, very juicy, acid flavour. |
| Wiki Tu |
Late |
Large fruit, sometimes empty. |
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