Name of Grower:

Nate Blackmore

Zone/Climate/Location:

9b, Coastal Influence Mediterranean Climate, Santa Cruz, California

Genus:

Psidium

species:

longipetiolatum

Common Name:

Mountain Cherry Guava

Variety or Seedling Provenance:

Seeds from Argentina

Cold Hardiness & Winter Damage:

Very cold hardy, no damage in temperatures to low 30s and no damage when frost set on it. I'd imagine it might be good to mid 20s?

Sun Exposure:

Full Sun

Growth Rate:

Fast grower. Grew rapidly when planted in the ground.

Size of Plant:

3.5' Tall x 3' wide

Time to Maturity (Time to Flowering and Fruiting):

3 or 4 years

Size at Maturity:

3.5' tall x 3' wide

Fruit Size:

Fruits larger than a quarter. Decent amount of interior pulp and slightly thicker mesocarp.

Fruit Production (Quality, Quantity, etc.):

Good quality fruit. Flavor is similar to strawberry guava but has a lemony kick that is softer in the way a lemon curd is cut with sugar. First time fruiting and it bear about 3-5 lbs of fruit.

Notes on Fruit Harvest, Handling, Storage, Market Potential:

Seems like it may be best to let the fruit fall before picking it, for maximum ripeness. They do seem to ripen off the plant pretty well though. I think the fruit will last a little over a week on the counter and doesn't seem to bruise super easily due to the thick mesocarp. It's flavor is similar to a strawberry guava but has a subtle lemony kick that is kind of remniscent of lemon curd. All in all, a good fruit tree that seems like it will bear copious amounts and it is much more visually appealing than common P. cattleianum.

Flowering/Fruiting Period (List specific months if possible):

Flowered in July and fruit harvest has reached it's peak in Mid November. Potential for it to flower in spring as well? ~5 month from flower to fruit

Cultural Practice:

In the Ground

Notes:

I have two of these planted out and they both seem to be doing really well, and they particularly appreciate water. The one that is fruiting is planted in a low area that is ultimately a drainage for a small hillside watershed. The tree doesn't seem to mind the heavy winter moisture and appreciates the long lasting soil moisture, rewarding you with big flushes of bright new growth. I'm not entirely sure on how big it will get but I think it's going to be larger than a P. cattleianum. The fruits good and the plant is beautiful, totally recommend it.