<em>Feijoa sellowiana</em>, Brazilian guava: planting, growing and harvesting its fruit

Description and botany

Feijoa is a large evergreen bush that offers attractive foliage and unusual flowering, followed by edible fruits. Its true scientific name is Acca sellowiana, but in French it is commonly called Goyavier du Brésil because it comes from South America and belongs to same family as true guava. In the wild it is found in southern Brazil, Uruguay, Paraguay, Colombia and northern Argentina.

Although three species exist – Acca sellowiana, Acca lanuginosa and Acca macrostema – mainly first is cultivated; it was formerly named Feijoa sellowiana. Around twenty horticultural varieties can be found, obtained by hybridization. Feijoa is grown for its fruits in Florida, California, New Zealand and Australia, but fruits are generally sold locally rather than exported, as they keep poorly after harvest and deteriorate quickly. Feijoa pulp is also used in some natural cosmetics for its exfoliating properties.

Contrary to what one might expect for an exotic bush, Feijoa has good hardiness, able to withstand down to –10 °C, which makes it easy to grow under our climates. Subjected to lower temperatures (down to –15 °C), Feijoa may lose leaves and stop fruiting, but bush itself should not be damaged.

Acca sellowiana : Botanical illustration

Feijoa belongs to family Myrtaceae, which includes nearly 6,000 species. These are trees and bushes, often native to Australia or South America, some producing essential oils used for their scent or medicinal properties. Examples from this family include myrtle, eucalyptus, clove, Callistemon and Melaleuca. True guava (Psidium guajava) is also part of this large family.

Feijoa was named in honour of Portuguese naturalist João da Silva Feijó (1760–1824). The species name sellowiana refers to Friedrich Sellow, a German botanist who collected specimens in South America. In French it is often nicknamed Goyavier du Brésil. It is also sometimes called pineapple guava or Montevideo guava.

This is a bushy, well-ramified bush with a fairly broad, rounded habit. It grows rather slowly at first, for 4 or 5 years while establishing. It reaches up to 6–7 metres in height at maximum, and can live for more than 50 years. Feijoa has brown bark that flakes in small plates, revealing a beautiful red colour on younger wood. Young shoots are covered with a silvery down.

Feijoa bears attractive foliage, dark green–grey in colour. Leaves are simple, not divided, of ordinary, elliptical shape with a well-marked central vein. They generally measure between 6 and 8 cm long and are thick and leathery. On their underside they are silvery and downy. Leaves are opposite, arranged two by two on stems. Feijoa foliage is quite dense, making it an effective screen and interesting for informal hedging. It is also evergreen, remaining decorative in winter.

Roots of Feijoa are fairly superficial, remaining close to soil surface.

Feijoa puts on a fine spring flowering in May–June. Flowers are solitary and measure about 3.5 cm in diameter. They generally have four petals, though some can have three, five or six. Petals are fleshy, white on outer face and reddish-pink inside. Their edges are folded upwards, partly hiding inner pink side. Flowers usually have four sepals. At centre of petals is a cluster of long, bright red stamens, whose yellow tips (anthers) carry pollen. These stamens are very numerous, often between 80 and 100 per flower. Among them is a long red style (female reproductive organ that will receive pollen).

In its natural habitat some birds eat the petals and pollinate the flower at same time. And even for humans, Feijoa petals are edible. They have a sweet, slightly sugary flavour with a hint of cinnamon. They can be added to salads or used to decorate dishes. If harvesting petals, we recommend doing so gently and taking only petals so remainder of flower can develop into fruit.

Feijoa requires cross-pollination to produce fruit, which means a single bush generally cannot fertilise itself. To obtain fruit, plant at least two young plants in garden. However a few self-fertile varieties exist, such as Acca sellowiana ‘Coolidge’.

Acca sellowiana flowering (photo Christer T Johansson), and its fruits (photo Didier Descouens)

In autumn Feijoa produces oval, green fruits with rough skin, resembling small avocados and measuring about 6–7 cm long. They have white or cream flesh and contain pips. Generally harvested in November; they then fall from bush when ripe. Flavour is sweet, evoking pineapple, banana and strawberry. Fruits can be eaten raw or used to make jam or compote, for example. They can also be made into tarts and cakes, sorbets, or included in fruit salad.

Main varieties of Feijoa

Acca sellowiana

This is the type species as it occurs in the wild. It is prized for its foliage, for its beautiful pale pink-white flowers with red stamens, and for its pleasant-to-eat fruits. We recommend planting at least two young plants to encourage fruiting.

• Flowering time June, July
• Height at maturity 4 m

See the product sheet

Feijoa sellowiana Coolidge

This variety is self-fertile and does not require other young plants to set fruit. It is very suitable for fruit production. In autumn it produces ovate green fruits with a flavour reminiscent of guava and pineapple.

• Flowering time July, August
• Height at maturity 4 m

See the product sheet

Feijoa sellowiana

These seeds let you try sowing Feijoa. It is an economical option requiring more time and care, but you will have the satisfaction of seeing your bush grow from germination.

• Flowering time July to September
• Height at maturity 2,50 m

See the product sheet

Planting feijoa

Where to plant?

Plant your Feijoa in full sun. It needs warmth and plenty of light to produce generous flowering and fruiting. Also place it sheltered from cold winds. Ideally install near a south-facing wall. Mild temperatures, possibly a greenhouse, are necessary for fruits to reach ripeness. You can plant Feijoa in a large container, which allows bringing it indoors in winter.

It will appreciate rich, fertile, loose, light soil. It also likes well-draining substrates that do not retain too much moisture in winter. It is fairly drought-tolerant. If soil is heavy, compact or clayey, try to lighten it and improve drainage, for example by adding organic matter. Feijoa prefers slightly acidic or neutral soils. In general, Feijoa is not very demanding about soil type and will succeed in any good garden soil.

This is a bush suited to seaside gardens. It likes mild temperatures and can tolerate sea spray and salt. Feijoa’s superficial root system has advantage of holding soil and limiting erosion, which is useful on slightly sloping or unstable ground or by the sea.

Feel free to include Feijoa in an informal hedge. Its dense, evergreen foliage will provide an effective screen.

When to plant?

We recommend planting in spring (April-May), although planting is also possible in autumn if you live in a mild-climate region.

How to plant?

We recommend planting at least two young Feijoa plants to obtain fruit, as they require cross-pollination (unless growing self-fertile varieties).

1. Start by digging a large planting hole, two to three times size of root ball.
2. Add well-rotted compost to enrich soil.
3. Remove Feijoa from its pot and gently tease root ball to loosen roots and stimulate them.
4. Plant, taking care not to bury the collar.
5. Backfill soil around Feijoa.
6. Water generously.

You can also install a stake to support Feijoa and help it grow upright, especially if garden is exposed to winds.

Also consider forming a watering basin around the trunk to facilitate watering and infiltration of water to its base. Water regularly during weeks following planting.

You can plant it in a large pot or container so you can easily bring it indoors in winter. Use a well-draining, fairly rich substrate, for example potting compost mixed with some well-rotted compost and coarse sand. Place pot in full sun, preferably sheltered from wind.

Care

Feijoa is fairly drought-tolerant, but prolonged lack of water will harm fruiting. If growing for fruit, be more vigilant with watering. Likewise, during planting year, do not hesitate to water regularly. Afterwards, Feijoa will appreciate occasional watering during prolonged drought. Note if grown in a pot, watering must be much more frequent than in open ground, as potting mix dries out quickly.

Feijoa likes rich soil, which is why we recommend adding well-rotted compost each year. Place it at the plant’s base and incorporate superficially into soil by a light fork-over. You can also lay a layer of organic mulch so soil stays cool longer and to protect the bush from cold. As Feijoa’s root system is superficial, remaining close to soil surface, spreading a layer of mulch will really protect its roots from heat, drying out, or cold in winter.

If you live in a cold area and Feijoa is in open ground, we recommend wrapping it in a winter fleece and placing a thick layer of mulch at its base. If in a pot or tub: in October you can bring it under cover, into a conservatory or an unheated greenhouse, and put back outside in spring, around May. Feijoa is relatively hardy but cold can harm flowering and fruit production. Feijoa fruits less well when grown in cool regions, because low temperatures damage flower buds, preventing development of fruits.

If growing Feijoa in a pot or tub, remember to repot on average every two years, or to top-dress.

Feijoa is known to grow slowly, but will grow faster in rich, moist soil than in poor, dry growing medium. So do not hesitate to add compost, mulch, and to water occasionally when necessary.

Feijoa is rarely attacked by diseases and parasitic organisms. However, it can be affected by scale insects. You can get rid of them using black soap diluted in water.

→ Learn more about diseases and parasitic organisms affecting Feijoa in our care sheet!

Prune Feijoa preferably at end of winter, around March; it is also possible in autumn, after harvest. In any case, this is a bush that tolerates pruning very well. You can leave a fairly natural, ramified habit from the base, producing a bushy effect, or conversely prune as a single-stem standard to form a very straight trunk, without branching, which becomes denser higher up to form a fairly rounded head of foliage. Prune mainly the lowest branches first to showcase the trunk and lighten it. If base of bush is cleared, this will also make it easier to pick fruits fallen to ground for harvest. Also remove dead, damaged or broken branches, and those that cross. As Feijoa is a fairly dense and well-ramified bush, we recommend removing some branches from centre of the crown to ventilate it and allow light to penetrate.

Harvest and uses of Brazilian guavas

Feijoa fruits are generally harvested from mid-October through November. Temperatures need to be mild enough for fruits to ripen. From outside, it is difficult to tell if fruit is fully ripe. When it is, it falls from the tree. You can gently shake branches to collect fruits that detach from the tree and are therefore ready to eat. Once harvested, fruit does not keep for long.

In addition to its pleasant flavour reminiscent of pineapple, guava and strawberry, Feijoa fruit is particularly rich in vitamin C. To eat it, it is usually cut in half and each half eaten with a spoon to scoop out only the flesh, as with a kiwi. Skin is also edible, but not as tasty as the rest of the fruit. Feijoa can be added to smoothies or used to make jams, jellies, tarts or compotes. Finally, you can keep the pips from the fruits to propagate Feijoa by sowing.

→ Learn more in our tutorial : How to harvest and store Feijoa fruit?

Propagation: sowing

To propagate Feijoa, sowing or propagation by cuttings are most commonly used, although it is also possible to graft or to layer it. Propagation by cuttings is carried out in summer, taking heel cuttings from semi-woody shoots. It is fairly tricky to get right, which is why we recommend sowing instead. However, when successful, propagation by cuttings produces fruit more quickly than sowing.

Sowing

Sow in spring. You can sow seeds you have harvested yourself from fully ripe fruit. In that case, rinse seeds before sowing to remove any pulp clinging to them.

1. Fill a pot with a light, free‑draining growing medium, such as a mix of potting compost and sand.
2. Sow seeds.
3. Cover with a thin layer of growing medium.
4. Water with a fine spray.
5. Place the pot in a bright, sheltered spot at around 15 °C.

Seeds take between 3 and 5 weeks to germinate. As soon as seedlings are large enough to handle, prick them out into individual pots. Growth of young plants is fairly slow, and you will have to wait at least four years before enjoying first fruits.

Companion planting in the garden

We recommend pairing Feijoa with other exotic and unusual fruit trees. You can thus create an exceptional orchard, planting it for example alongside fig trees, sea buckthorns, kiwis, nashis…Also enjoy the kaki (Diospyros kaki), a tree which, as well as its delicious fruit, offers superb autumn colours! You can also plant young goji plants (Lycium barbarum). Not forgetting the strawberry tree, a very handsome bush offering decorative bark and rounded red fruits resembling strawberries. Also consider citrus trees, such as mandarin, yuzu or lemon trees.

You can pair Feijoa with other original or exotic fruit trees. Feijoa (photo Arn), Asimina triloba (photo Agnfieszka Kwiecień), Kaki (photo Chris Light), Kiwi (photo Lazaregagnidze) and Fig tree

For a very exotic, transportive atmosphere, you can quite happily plant Feijoa alongside banana trees, palms, and yuccas. These plants, with their impressive silhouettes, will help structure the garden and add height. In front of them you can plant lower-growing species such as euphorbias, lantanas or wallflowers. For lightness, you can incorporate a few grasses such as Carex comans ‘Bronze Form’ or Imperata cylindrica ‘Red Baron’.

For a Mediterranean ambience, for example in a seaside garden: Oleander (photo Challiyan), Opuntia microdasys (photo Stan Shebs), Feijoa (photo KENPEI), Chamaerops humilis ‘Cerifera’ and Agave mediopicta ‘Lutea’

If you live by the sea, use Feijoa to create a Mediterranean-style garden. This bush has the advantage of tolerating sea spray and salt well, and the mild coastal temperatures are particularly favourable to its establishment and to good fruit production. You can plant it alongside agaves, Opuntia, Helichrysum, santolina… You can also use it in an informal hedge with Griselinia, oleander and Elaeagnus. For more ideas of bushes, consult our advice sheet “10 perfect bushes for a seaside garden”