Floral Friday : Feijoa

The Feijoa, or Pineapple Guava or Guavasteen, (Feijoa sellowiana) is an evergreen shrub or small tree, 1-7 m in height. It comes from the highlands of southern Brazil, parts of Colombia, Uruguay,Paraguay and northern Argentina. They are also grown throughout Azerbaijan , Georgia, Russia(Sochi) and New Zealand.

 

It is a warm-temperate to subtropical plant that will also grow in the tropics but requires some winter chilling to fruit. In the northern hemisphere it has been cultivated as far north as western Scotland but does not fruit every year, as winter temperatures below about -11°C will kill the flower buds. A lot of feijoa are grown in New Zealand, where the fruit is a popular garden tree and the fruit is commonly available in season.

The crisp, spicy-sweet tasting petals of Feijoa flowers are edible.