Guava

Tree facts

Scientific name

Psidium guajava

Origin

Tropical America (Mexico to northern South America)

Tree size

10–20 ft; easily kept as a large shrub

Growth rate

Fast

Sun

Full sun

Soil

Grows in most well-drained soils, including sand and limestone

Soil pH

5.0–7.5

Pollination

Self-fertile; one tree is enough

Cold hardiness

Young trees are damaged near 30–32°F; mature trees take brief dips to about 27–28°F

USDA zones

9b–11

Years to first fruit

2–3 for a grafted, layered or cutting-grown tree

Season

Jul–Oct

Water

About every 7 days once established, without rain; more in heat, in pots and while young

Feeding

About every 60 days, Mar–Sep

Pruning

Feb, Mar, Nov

Taste

Sweet and musky with a perfume all its own; pink types are often richer, white types milder

Nutrition

Exceptionally high in vitamin C, with good fiber

Is guava safe to eat? Edible and toxic parts

What you can eat

• Ripe fruit, raw, skin and seeds included
• Firm green-mature fruit, eaten crisp in Asia

Toxic parts and cautions

• Good to know: The small seeds are hard. People with dental work may want to scoop or strain them.
• Good to know: Fruit flies often lay eggs in ripening guavas. Pick promptly, bag fruit on the tree, and pick up fallen fruit.
• Good to know: Guava is an invasive weed in Florida and Hawaii; birds spread the seeds. Don't let fallen fruit sprout in natural areas.

Pets: Ripe guava is fine for dogs in small amounts. Too much can upset the stomach.

How to eat and enjoy guava

• Fresh, whole or sliced
• Pastelitos de guayaba, guava pastries (Cuba)
• Guava paste with cheese
• Jelly, jam and juice
• Crisp white guava with chili salt (Thailand and Mexico)

Guava varieties (10)

• Barbie Pink

  A pink-fleshed guava with sweet, aromatic fruit.

  Taste: Sweet, aromatic

• Beaumont

  A large, pink-fleshed Hawaiian guava grown mainly for juice and processing.

  Origin: Hawaii · Taste: Tart-sweet · Size: Large

• Hong Kong Pink

  A guava with thick, sweet pink flesh.

  Taste: Sweet

• Lucknow 49 · also Sardar

  A popular Indian guava with large, round fruit and sweet white flesh.

  Origin: India · Taste: Sweet · Size: Large

• Mexican Cream

  A small guava with creamy white to pale yellow, very sweet flesh, on an upright, compact tree.

  Taste: Very sweet · Size: Small

• Red Malaysian · also Malaysian Red

  An ornamental guava with red leaves, red skin and pink flesh.

  Taste: Mild

• Ruby Supreme

  A pink-fleshed Florida guava with sweet, low-acid fruit.

  Origin: Florida · Taste: Sweet, mild

• Thai Maroon

  An ornamental guava with deep red-purple leaves and skin and red to pink flesh.

  Taste: Sweet, mild

  Grown as much for its color as its fruit.

• Thai White

  A large, crisp, white-fleshed guava, eaten firm and crunchy like an apple.

  Taste: Crisp, mildly sweet · Size: Large

• White Indian

  A white-fleshed guava with a sweet, mild flavor, good for eating fresh.

  Origin: Florida · Taste: Sweet, mild

Pests and diseases to watch for

• Anthracnose

  Black, sunken spots on flowers, young leaves and fruit; blossoms turn black and drop. Ripe fruit gets dark spots that spread and rot.

  What to do: Prune out dead twigs and blackened panicles.

• Whiteflies

  Clouds of tiny white flies when a branch is shaken; yellowing leaves and sooty mold.

  What to do: Insecticidal soap or horticultural oil on leaf undersides.

• Caribbean fruit fly

  Ripe fruit with tiny puncture marks; maggots inside and soft, rotting spots.

  What to do: Pick fruit slightly early and ripen indoors.

• Algal leaf spot

  Raised, rusty-orange velvety spots on leaves and twigs.

  What to do: Copper spray in summer if it's heavy.

• Scale insects

  Small bumps, waxy or shell-like, on stems and leaf veins; sticky honeydew and black sooty mold below.

  What to do: Scrub small colonies off with a soft brush.

• Mealybugs

  White cottony clusters in leaf joints, under leaves and on fruit stems; honeydew and sooty mold.

  What to do: Blast off with a strong spray of water.