Hawaiian Guava - sour fruits (forum)

pelicanparade starts with ...
Hi everyone,

I have a Hawaiian Guava tree that produces extremely sour fruit. I've had it for about 3 years and I'd say the tree could be around 6 years old. Earlier this year was its second fruit bearing season and it produced close to 100 fruits. Unfortunately, we couldn't eat any of them due to the sourness.

I am unsure whether the tree has a deficiency as it is not showing anything physically (the tree is beautiful and thriving). Fertiliser wise, we alternate between manure, dynamic lifter, seasol/powerfeed, and a bit of organic potash. I have tried using epsom salts as I was told this would make the fruit sweeter (not really sure how much to use though so maybe we didn't use enough, same with the potash).

We have a Cherry guava tree as well about 1.5m away and the fruit from that tree is lovely. As a child we had a red flesh guava fruit tree and I remember the fruit being sweet.

Now that this tree is flowering, I want to ensure that we get sweet fruit this season. If anyone has any suggestions, please let me know. :)

Many thanks!


Time: 23rd November 2019 4:25pm

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About the Author pelicanparade
Perth
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Fruitylicious1 says...
He Pelican

If your guava is seedling grown the resulting plant is highly variable when it comes to taste, size , color etc. If it is grafted or marcotted from a superior mother tree it will inherit all the good qualities of the parent plant. So if it is a wild child genetic it is tough to tame it. With regards to Epsom salt and sulphate of potash there's a dosage on the box/packet on how much you can apply according to the age of the tree. Sometimes, try starving it with water and nutrients if pampering it doesn't work. The sugar content might concentrate a bit more if it's starved.
Happy gardening 😎



Time: 10th December 2019 5:31pm

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About the Author Fruitylicious1
TAMWORTH,2340,NSW
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pelicanparade says...
Hi Fruitylicious1,

Thank you for your reply. :) The tree was purchased from a large nursery with a commercial tag "Hawaiian Guava". I assume this to be grafted and not a seedling.

The sulphate of potash packet says 10g per sqm. This sounds like too little to me? Epsom salts says about 1 spoon per square meter. This also seems too little to me. I don't want to add too much either though and end up killing it etc.

When you say to starve it of water, should I just water it once or twice a week? Mind you I am in Perth, sandy soil (manure and soil amendment over the years has helped but still sandy), and hot weather.

The tree itself is really healthy and beautiful, over 2m tall and about 1.5m wide (kept trimmed to this size for the past few years). I'm just disappointed it's not producing sweet fruit like the one we had as a kid. :(

Time: 11th December 2019 3:04pm

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About the Author pelicanparade
Perth
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Fruitylicious1 says...
Hi Pelican

The old recipe for sweetening otherwise fruits of sour trees is: 6 handfuls of sulphate of potash + two teaspoons of Epsom salt or magnesium sulphate with 10 liters of water. Mix the brew and water it in well during flowering before fruit set. If the fruits are set it's too late. If the label says its grafted then it is grafted but, if it does not, it might be a wild oat. Daley's always specify if their trees are grafted, marcotted, or seedling grown. So everybody knows what they are getting. Another sign that is grafted is the visibility of the grafted union between the root stock and the scion. I can still identify the graft union even after 5 years with my trees. Try first the Epsom salt treatment if the fruits are not set yet.
Happy gardening 😎



Time: 12th December 2019 9:36pm

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Original Post was last edited: 12th December 2019 9:45pm

About the Author Fruitylicious1
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Markmelb says...
Your Guava would be a cutting from a good tasting tree ~ mulch well away from trunk ~ worm castings and google Black Grit ~ couple handfuls of that.

Time: 13th December 2019 7:20am

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About the Author Markmelb
MOUNT WAVERLEY,3149,VIC
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