Yeah all plants I’ve grafted on were established in ground plants. Like I said it was random that all of mine failed while 75% took that I did at my parents house. Identical methods and weather (one day apart from one another). Someone else told me you want (when cleft grafting) a long cut for maximum cambium contact. The only difference is while they are the same age, my moms feijoa is a good bit larger. (I moved mine after a year so it stunted them slightly).
I would probably watch that as many times as i referred to your blog on the taste of different varieties which is countless at this point
I don’t believe the species of fruit fly that attacks feijoa in Australia is present here. A quick google suggests that it’s the Queensland fruit fly Bactrocera tryoni that attacks feijoa. Fortunately, B. tryoni is limited to just certain parts of Australia and nearby countries and hasn’t made it to the US.
We do have SWD Drosophila suzukii and some parts of have Mediterranean fruit fly, but I don’t think either species attacks feijoa.
Australia is a bit drier than most places in the US
I think most of the posters here on this topic are either in the PNW or in the South, both areas with high rainfall. And at least in the south, most of that rainfall occurs in the warm months. For reference, where I am it’s often considered a drought if we go more two weeks without rain. We get about 130 cm of rain each year–and keep in mind we have a much colder winter so evaporation rates are far lower, adjusting for a more subtropical climate we get the equivalent of 150-200 cm or rain each year.
Granted, the folks growing feijoa in California have a different perspective, one that’s probably much more similar to the typical Aussie.
But dude, could you imagine what Australia would be like if it weren’t so dry? Apparently it only recently dried out due to a change in the circumpolar current. You’d have forests like the daintree covering most of Queensland, and red cedars, myrtle beach, bunya bunya and hoop pine, tree ferns, palms, wollemi, podocarps, and similar species would still be dominant over most of SE Australia rather than just Eucalypts, Acacias, and more Eucalypts…
I visited Bill Merrill,while he lived in Fremont,California and tried the Feijoas.Here is a video about them.
I thought i was bill Murray at first from ghost busters lol
I look forward to watching your video
I thought I would add a few comments to this string, since I have grown feijoas (pineapple guavas) for decades in California. I just moved to Utah (7a) and plan to grow them here, now that they have some fairly cold-hardy cultivars available. So far mine is weathering the winter just fine in a protected location. Some brief observations:
- The feijoa is an attractive plant, winter and summer, and is fairly easy to grow. I think most varieties are self-fertile, but bear more heavily with another variety nearby. That said, on a large plant you get so many fruit it is hard to use them or give them away.
- For fresh eating, they can be collected off the ground as they fall, otherwise most are underripe. They have a little give to the flesh when ripe–the hard ones are not ripe yet.
- The fruit vary in size and shape according to variety. The flavor is sprightly and tropical. When ripe, it has translucent white flesh–underripe it is opaque white and a bit sour, though can be palatable. If it has any brown, it is damaged or overripe, and quickly develops and off taste. The skin on most varieties is too thick and sour to eat, so I cut or bite them in half and scoop the flesh out with a spoon or, more simply, with my teeth. I understand some of the newer varieties have thinner, edible skin.
- I have tried jam, but when cooked it tends to develop an unpleasant plastic-like taste. This can be remedied by adding ginger or other spices, but it is not the best fruit for preserves.
- Many people don’t realize that the flowers are edible. The white flower petals when they are fully developed become soft like tiny pillows and have a delicious taste, almost superior to that of the mature fruit. The fruit will pollinate and develop even when you eat the flower petals. Hence, you get two crops: the flowers in the spring, and the fruit in the fall.
This is great info! Which varieties would you recommend for 7a? And are there any you’d recommend to avoid (cold hardiness, taste, etc)?
Feijoa is like many other fruits: ripeness can be told by degree of firmness and ease of separation from the plant. If, during manual squeezing or a bending sideways of the fruit on the stem, the fruit comes off in hand, it is ripe enough for harvest and further ripening indoors. This harvest method will help prevent bruising, especially of larger, prized fruit.
Unfortunately, the fruit is all the same color, no help there. If your crop is more than a couple hundred fruits, hand-test the most promising ones and let the rest fall.
I have found that bubble-wrapping the best fruits prevents squirrel predation and reduces bruising if fallen.
Has anyone had the fruit of “seedling” feijoa from Restoring eden or one green world yet?
i love feijoa! that is the plant i have the most of. they are so cold hardy, i never have to worry about them in the winter and this past winter was the coldest so far (15F). i have 26 trees and plan on getting more. i wish they grew faster and get nice and big so they can protect my other subtropicals. i have heard that they are drought tolerant and salt tolerant, but i live in an area that gets plenty of rainfall and i’m far enough from the beach where i won’t get salt water inundation so i don’t know if these are actually true. i have the some of the grafted NZ varieties and plan on putting them in the ground this spring, and i am looking forward to their fruit.
The feijoa plant may be drought-tolerant, but for the best fruit crops, regular watering post-bloom is recommended. If, during a dry, hot spell, a shake of the bush causes many leaves to fall, it needed more water. On my bush, fruit has formed and ripened on otherwise leafless branchlets, but dense leafing is better for overall plant health.
I’ve seen potted Feijoas nearly die from not watering. They need water in summer
Where do you y’all find your named feijoa varieties? Scion exchanges or online or something?
I have two mature feijoas around 10ft tall, they make decent fruit but they’re not named varieties and definitely not as large as that Unique one, holy moly! Would love to find some named ones to graft on.
Also how much maintenance do you all put into yours? For more fruit, is summer pruning a better window than early spring pruning?
One Green World ships many varieties of named feijoa.
Fruitwood nursery and Marta both sell scions, you can attempt grafting varieties onto your plants. Neither offer “unique” unfortunately
Are there any favorite cultivars, cold tolerance aside? It would get overwintered in a heated greenhouse… no way to survive zone 6 outside. So I’m curious about the varieties you love best.
Feijoa mostly blooms at the junction of 1-year old wood (bark is beginning to form) and last year’s new growth (green stem). Feijoa is relatively late to bloom (May-June at temperate latitudes) and potential blooms are not evident in early spring. In summer, avoid pruning junctions that have bloomed.
Some plants are naturally dense and only require pruning if they become out-of-bounds (too tall, in walking areas, etc). Plants that have leggy new growth (over 12 to 18 inches between branchings) can have the new growth at that length range pinched off; new branches will form at that point. That will result in more bloom points in the long run.
Since 7a is out of the usual range for feijoa’s, it’s a little premature to recommend a variety, and I have only tasted fruit from older named varieties or from ornamental plants (i.e. seedlings not bred for fruiting characteristics). What I plan to try in my 7a zone is one of the newer varieties bred in New Zealand, which are reputed to be more cold hardy and to have good flavor and thin, edible skin. That is what I would recommend. If I am successful, I’ll have a report in a couple years. Even if mine freezes, I’m determined to try it in an even more protected location.
One characteristic I failed to mention is that in most varieties, there is a little bit of grittiness to the fruit, a little like what you would expect in a pear. This varies a bit depending on variety and stage of ripeness, but is almost always present. It is not an unpleasant characteristic. This is really a worthwhile fruit, and easy to grow and care for in the right setting.