Ugni Species, Chilean Guava, Strawberry Myrtle

In Texas, you have to make sure this plant only gets morning sun and is put in the coolest part of the yard. Afternoon sun will make shor...Read Moret work of this plant. The berries are so delicious that I will baby this plant even though it is way out of its heat zone down in Central Texas. This plant, unlike many other fruiting plants, will produce in partial shade. Dont even try planting this on alkaline soil. It needs a neutral to slightly acidic soil. Great for pots!!!

We planted a chilean guava in our garden in Gulf Harbour, North Auckland, New Zealand and it's now about 2 years old. Today I picked a bo...Read Morewl full of the fabulous fruit and stewed them gently. I then poured off all the water, added a cup of sugar and stirred it till it disolved. The taste was divine and I think it would also be great added to stewed apples.
However, the one down side is that the seeds become rock hard and would break your teeth if you tried to bite on them!!

This is another plant I really enjoy growing. The Chilean Guava is fairly easy to grow given the correct conditions. Here in Montana, it ...Read Moremust be grown inside as a houseplant although it loves to go outside during the summer months. When put outside in summer, it likes partial shade here as we are very high up in elevation and the leaves tend to burn otherwise. It likes somewhat acidic soil, fairly constant moisture and misting and a good feeding once in a while. I bought mine a few years back and it is now about 3 feet tall, dense and somewhat wide. The blooms are beautiful. Sort of a pinky-white colour and they resemble heather flowers. At least to my eye they do. It actually reminds me of a Manzanita plant. The plant is self fertile as far as I can tell but I have since taken cuttings from the original plant and have a few of them now and this seems to help with fruit production. The fruit is a medium sized berry and looks kind of like a tiny pomegranate or perhaps a cranberry. The taste is out of this world though! I love to eat them right off the shrub. Tastes like guava, strawberry and pineapple all mixed together. Yummy. I highly recommend this plant. It is easy to grow, very attractive and produces delicious fruit. Makes a great houseplant and conversation piece.

I have two large guavas, one on either side of a north facing barn door. We are zone 8b with slightly acidic soil. They are tough as na...Read Moreils with no special attention, about 10 feet high and across with dense foliage, and look good all year round. I raid them frequently for their foliage in flower arrangements, and the flowers are interesting too.

Some years I have made guava jelly, which is an old southern treat, if I have the time. If you are like me and like plants that look good all year long with no fuss, this is the one for you--just make sure you give it the space it needs.