Passionfruit Vines

How to choose a passionfruit vine

Match the type to your winters. Black Passionfruit is the classic purple black fruit with rich, tangy pulp, and it is the type that copes with cooler temperate gardens. Sweetheart Passionfruit is a black type as well, with sweet pulp for eating fresh.

The Panama types are bigger in every way: larger leaves, stronger growth and larger fruit, with a milder, sweeter pulp. Passionfruit Panama Red has red skin and Passionfruit Panama Gold has golden yellow skin. Both are vines for the subtropics and tropics, or for a warm, frost free wall further south. In a mild climate with room for two vines, planting a black and a Panama type spreads the harvest.

Where passionfruit grows

Passionfruit wants full sun, shelter from strong wind and deep, well drained soil with plenty of organic matter. A north or west facing fence, a pergola or a set of wires on a shed wall all work. Black passionfruit grows from the subtropics to warm temperate regions and takes light frost once established; young vines need protection. Panama types are frost tender. Poorly drained soil leads to root rot in every type, so mound the bed in heavy clay.

They share a fence happily with other climbers if each has its own space, and they are an easy first crop among the fruit trees and vines of a home orchard.

Planting and spacing

Plant in spring, once the soil has warmed and frost has passed. Space black types 2.5m to 3m apart and Panama types 3m to 5m apart. Put the support up first: horizontal wires or sturdy mesh, because a vine in fruit is heavy. Dig in compost and aged manure, plant at the same depth as the pot, water in and mulch. Tie the main stem up to the top wire, then pinch the tip so side shoots run along it. Fruit hangs from the laterals that grow from those arms.

Care basics

Water deeply and regularly, especially from flowering until the fruit is full; dry spells cause fruit to shrivel or drop early. Feed in spring and again in summer with a fertiliser made for fruiting plants or citrus, spread wide because the roots are shallow and far reaching. Go easy on high nitrogen feeds, which push leaf over flowers. Prune in spring, after frost, by thinning tangled growth and shortening laterals by about a third to let in light and air. If your vine is grafted, remove any shoots from below the graft as soon as they appear, since rootstock growth can take over and sucker. Vines are at their most productive for five to seven years, so plant a replacement before an old one fades.

Common questions

How long does a passionfruit vine take to fruit?

Usually 12 to 18 months from planting, sooner in warm climates with steady water and feeding.

Why does my vine flower but not set fruit?

Cold or wet weather at flowering, few bees, and too much nitrogen are the common causes. Hand pollinating with a small brush on a dry day often helps.

How do I know when passionfruit is ripe?

Ripe fruit colours fully and drops from the vine. Collect it from the ground every day or two; lightly wrinkled skin means the pulp is at its sweetest.

Can passionfruit grow in a pot?

Yes, in a very large container with a trellis, though the vine will be smaller and needs more frequent water and feeding than one in the ground.