Description

Cherry Guava, Strawberry Guava, Psidium P. cattleyanum Purple
What you get – 15 fresh seeds

This is a beautiful compact, evergreen bushy shrub to 3 – 6 m in height, native to Brazil, with smooth, rounded branches. Its leaves are smooth, glossy, leathery and about 5 – 8 cm long. The white flowers with fluffy stamens are borne close to the stems, they bloom in late spring, but sometimes the tree blooms a second time in late autumn. The fruit is round 2.5 – 4 cm in diameter (the size of a small plum),darkest pruple, with a very thin skin.

The flesh is golden, juicy, and believed to have the finest flavour of any guava, very morish… Cherry guavas will grow in a wide range of soils but need good drainage. They dislike low temperatures and will not tolerate very heavy frost but are hardier to cold than the common guava.
Most of my trees are golden with red blush, but I have one that is very dark purple. These seeds are off that tree, the fruit is sweet and moreish. One of my favorite fruit in the garden and we often get 2 crops per year from the trees here.

Psidium cattleyanum is a small, highly-branched tree that reaches a maximum height of 13 meters, although most individuals are between 2m and 4m. P. cattleyanum has smooth, grey to reddish-brown bark, with oval to elliptical leaves that grow to 4.5 cm in length. It bears fruit when the plants are between 3 and 6 years old. This fruit has thin skin that ranges from yellow to a dark red or purple, is ovular in shape, and grows to around 4 cm in length. Its flowers grow either individually or in clusters of three, and each flower has five petals.

P. cattleyanum reproduces through setting seed and through cloning. Clonally produced suckers tend to have a greater leaf area. Though native to Brazil, it is now distributed throughout many tropical regions. It was introduced in Hawaii as early as 1825 to create an agricultural market for its fruits, but it has yet to be a commercially viable product. It is now highly prevalent in tropical rain forest ecosystems due mainly to accidental transportation and its invasive plant properties.

P. cattleyanum has modest economic impacts in Hawaii due to its edible fruits and beads that are made by tying individual fruits together.   Additionally, its seeds have many health benefits, including antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and antimicrobial properties in addition to a high amount of Vitamin C.

Easy to grow but can take months to come up.
Plant seeds immediately in a pot in a warm spot and wait, can take months to germinate.
This is both purple and red/yellow varieties

Grow Notes..  Cherry Guava, Strawberry Guava, Psidium P. cattleyanum

1) Soak seeds overnight

2) Plant 1/4 inch deep into 50% sand and potting mix fines (sieve if necessary)

3) Keep moist and warm in a sheltered part of the garden

4) Water as normal

5) Have patience

6) Guavas can require and few changes in temp and moisture before they germinate.

Can take until the following spring, but usually have good results even if a little slow.