How Long to Harvest Guavas?

Description

• Guava trees usually grow from 10 to 33 feet tall, with oval, fragrant, stiff, dull-green leaves that are 2 to 6 inches long. The tree bark is smooth, mottled green to reddish-brown and peels away in thin flakes. White flowers are 1 inch wide and have four to five petals from among which numerous yellow-white stamens rise. After pollination by honeybees, fruit begins to form. Guava trees grow quickly. They can reach bearing size in two to four years from seed. Budded guava trees produce fruit within a year of planting.

Fruit

• Guava fruit varies greatly in flesh color, seediness, odor, taste, shape and size. Many cultivars arose in the various areas of the world that grow guava, including Florida, California, India, Australia, Hawaii, the Caribbean, Asia, and South and Central America. The juicy fruits can taste acid, subacid or sweet, and the smell can be mild to pronounced and musky. The rind varies from thin to hard. Next to the skin is a somewhat grainy layer of flesh that ranges from white to yellowish, light pink, dark pink or nearly red. The fruit's pulp is the same color or somewhat darker than the flesh and contains the seeds. In warmer regions, guava flowers bloom and fruits ripen all year round.

Harvest

• Guavas have the best flavor when they are tree-ripened. Their color changes from green to yellow-green and they have a distinct aroma. Protect ripening fruit from bird predation. You can still get good flavor by harvesting mature green guavas and allowing them to ripen at room temperature. It's possible to store the unripe mature fruit for two to five weeks between 46 and 50 degrees Fahrenheit and with 85 to 95 percent relative humidity. Harvest guavas frequently so they don't become overripe, since fruit that has changed color doesn't store well and bruises easily.

Uses

• Home-grown guavas are generally eaten fresh, either in desserts and salads or eaten out of hand. There are specific varieties for juice and canning. The juice is a component of fruit punches and ice cream sodas. Guavas go into sweet products such as puddings, pies, sherbert, ice cream, sauces, cakes, fruit butter, jams and jellies. Savory dishes that incorporate guavas are relishes, chutney and ketchup. Commercial products include guava paste, guava cheese and guava nectar. Guava syrup enhances waffles, pancakes and milkshakes.