Chilean guava

Chilean guava: how do you recognise it?

Habit

Compact, dense shrub 1–1.5 m tall and about 1 m wide, with fine, upright branches.

Foliage

Small (1.5–2.5 cm), oval to elliptic, glossy dark green and opposite, aromatic when crushed. Evergreen.

Flower

Nodding, bell-shaped flowers of about 1 cm, white to pale pink, in May and June.

Fruit

Round berries of about 1 cm, red to dark purplish red, ripe in October. Tastes of strawberry with a hint of guava.

Roots

Fine, shallow root system that does not tolerate wet feet.

Flowering: May–June · Harvest and fruit: October–November · Plants: April–May · Pruning: April

Why grow it?

• Evergreen, glossy leaves: a compact, neat shrub all year round.
• Graceful bell-shaped flowers in May and June.
• Edible berries in October that taste of strawberry with a hint of guava.
• The leaves smell aromatic when crushed.
• Suits a pot on the patio and is easy to bring indoors in hard frost.
• Can also be used as a low, clippable hedge or border.

Chilean guava: where does it grow best?

• Sun to half shade: more sun gives more flowers and fruits.
• Humus-rich, loose, free-draining soil: sand or loam, acid to neutral. No chalky soil.
• Normally moist: do not let the soil dry out, but avoid standing water.
• Sheltered from cold, drying wind, preferably against a south- or west-facing wall.
• Allow about 1 m of space per plant.

Light

Sun and partial shade

Soil type

Sand or loam

Acidity

Acid or neutral

Moisture

Normal

Size

1.5 m tall, 1 m wide

Hardiness

Half hardy (to -10 °C): protect it in harsh winters

Goes well with

• Blueberry: Likes the same acid soil and also gives edible berries.
• Heather: Acid soil and sun; stays low at the base.
• Azalea: Same acid, humus-rich soil; flowers in spring.

Chilean guava: when and how to plant it?

Plant in April–May.

1. Plant in April–May, when hard night frosts are no longer expected: the plant can then root well before winter.
2. Dig a hole twice as wide as the rootball and mix the soil with leaf mould and ericaceous compost.
3. In a pot: choose a pot of at least 30–40 cm with drainage holes, put a layer of clay pebbles at the bottom and use ericaceous compost.
4. Set the plant at the same depth as in its pot and firm the soil.
5. Water in straight away, preferably with rainwater, and spread a layer of bark or pine-needle mulch.

Care

Water

Keep the soil lightly moist, especially in a pot and while the fruit sets. Use rainwater if you can: hard tap water turns the leaves yellow.

Feeding

In April and June, an ericaceous fertiliser, following the packet. Not after August.

Mulching

Bark or pine needles keep the roots cool and moist.

Harvest

Pick the berries in October when they are fully red to purplish red and soft. Eat them fresh, in a fruit salad or made into jam.

Repotting

Potted plants are repotted every 2–3 years in spring in fresh ericaceous compost.

Tip: Grow it in a pot with ericaceous compost and water with rainwater: the leaves stay dark green. Bring the pot into a bright, frost-free place in hard frost.

Chilean guava: when to prune it?

Pruning months: April.

When: Light pruning in April, when frost is no longer expected.

How:

• Cut frosted or dead branches back to healthy, green wood.
• Shorten long branches to keep the shape compact; do not remove more than a third of the shrub.
• As a low hedge, trim the new shoots lightly in April.

Caution: Do not prune in autumn: new shoots are easily killed by frost then.

Pruning: when and how · Pruning calendar and basic rules

Propagation

Semi-ripe cuttings

In August–September: take 8–10 cm cuttings from non-flowering shoots, remove the lower leaves and insert them in a mix of sand and potting compost. Keep them moist and frost-free; they root in a few weeks.

Seed

In spring, sow on moist, acid compost without covering, at 15–20 °C. Seedlings grow slowly and bear fruit only after several years.

Chilean guava: how does it get through the winter?

Hardy to −10 °C: protect in harsh winters.

• Moderately hardy: down to about −10 °C in a sheltered, well-drained spot. In prolonged frost it may be cut back to the ground but often regrows from the base.
• Cover young plants and plants in the ground with fleece if frost is forecast and mulch the base thickly.
• In a pot: bring it into a bright, frost-free place (2–8 °C) in hard frost and water sparingly.
• Avoid wet winters: cold, waterlogged soil kills it faster than the frost itself.

Diseases and pests

• Yellow leaves: Yellow leaves with green veins (chlorosis) caused by lime in the soil or water. Use rainwater, ericaceous compost and an ericaceous fertiliser.
• Frost damage: Brown or black leaves after hard frost. Wait until April to prune: the shrub often regrows.
• Root rot: The plant wilts despite enough water and the roots are brown and soft. Ensure good drainage and do not let pots stand in water.
• Aphids: On young shoots in spring. Rinse them off with water or let ladybirds do the work.

Through the year

• January: Keep frost-free. Do not let pots dry out.
• February: Protect plants in the ground from frost.
• April: Plant or move. Prune lightly. Give fertiliser.
• May: Plant. Flowering starts. Water.
• June: Flowering. Feed. Water in dry weather.
• July: Water; the berries form.
• August: Water. Take semi-ripe cuttings.
• September: Take cuttings. Stop feeding.
• October: Harvest. Bring pots indoors if frost threatens.
• November: Mulch the base. Protect from frost.
• December: Dormant. Check the frost protection.

Edible and useful

Berries (October–November)

Here, expect little: a bush usually gives a few handfuls of berries, and even fewer after a cool summer or an early frost. They ripen in October, sometimes into November. Pick them when they are fully red to purplish-red and feel soft; half-ripe berries are hard and astringent. They taste sweet and fragrant, of strawberry with a hint of guava, and you eat them whole, tiny seeds and little crown included. Lovely straight from the bush, over yoghurt or in a fruit salad. In Chile, where they are called murta, they are cooked with quince or made into jam and liqueur.

Storing

Fresh berries keep for a few days in an open box in the fridge. If you only have a few, freeze them spread out on a plate and collect them in a bag, for up to 6 months, until you have enough for a compote.

Caution: Only eat ripe, soft berries from your own bush. Better not to eat berries that were already on a newly bought plant: ornamental plants are sometimes treated with products not approved for food. The shrub is only moderately hardy (to about −10 °C): bring a potted plant indoors in hard frost, or there will be no harvest the following year.

Eating and using is at your own risk: see the terms of use.

Recipes

• Chilean guava with quince (murta con membrillo) (Compote · 4 people · 1 hr 15 min)

Did you know?

• The species name molinae honours Juan Ignacio Molina, a Chilean naturalist of the 18th century.
• Despite the name, it is not a true guava (Psidium) but a distant relative in the same family.
• In Chile the plant is called murta or murtilla and the berries have long been eaten there.