Hawaiian Guava

Hawaiian Guava (Psidium guajava 'Hawaiian') is a tropical guava with sweet, fragrant, pink flesh and a fruit that is easy to eat straight from the tree. It grows to about 4m to 5m as a bushy evergreen with oval, ribbed leaves, and it suits warm gardens where frost is rare.

Why you'll love it

• Pink, fragrant flesh. The fruit has a sweet, musky perfume and soft pink flesh, a lovely change from supermarket fruit.
• Fast to settle in. Guavas grow quickly in warm conditions and shape easily with pruning.
• Pretty white flowers. Fluffy white flowers with a brush of stamens appear in spring and summer and attract bees.
• Peeling bark. Mature trunks shed smooth, mottled bark, so the tree looks good even out of fruit.

Where it works best

Backyard fruit tree. Plant 3m to 4m from fences and other trees so the crown has room and the fruit ripens in full sun.

Large pots. A pot 50cm or wider keeps it to about 2m to 3m with regular pruning, and lets you move it under cover in cold winters.

Informal screen. Plant 2.5m apart for a loose fruiting screen in a warm, sunny spot.

Growing Hawaiian Guava in Australia

Position and climate. Full sun and shelter from cold wind. This is a tropical guava, so it is frost tender and does best in tropical, subtropical and warm temperate gardens. In cooler places grow it in a pot and shelter it in winter.

Soil. Well drained soil enriched with compost. It tolerates a range of soils but sulks in waterlogged ground.

Water and feed. Water well through the first summer, then deeply in dry spells, especially while fruit is forming. Feed in spring and early summer with a fertiliser suited to fruit trees.

Pruning. Prune after harvest to keep the tree at a picking height of about 3m. Fruit forms on new growth, so regular pruning brings more fruit, not less.

What to expect when it arrives

We sell Hawaiian Guava in 200mm pots in packs of 6. They arrive as young, leafy plants ready to pot on or plant out once nights are warm. Protect small plants from frost in their first winter. Our growers do not hold every size all year, so a size can show as on backorder at times. An order for a backorder size is confirmed with you before anything ships.

Plants are delivered Australia wide, with delivery from $29.95. Every plant is covered by our 30 day healthy plant guarantee.

Plant care guides and related reading

• Browse more fruit trees for the home garden
• Browse tropical plants
• Plants for warm subtropical gardens
• Fruit trees for every season: planting tips

Common questions

Do guavas need fruit fly protection?

Yes. Fruit fly attacks guavas, so net the tree when fruit sets or pick slightly early and ripen indoors.

Will it survive frost?

Young plants are damaged by frost and mature trees are only lightly hardy. In frosty districts keep it in a pot and move it somewhere sheltered over winter.

Is the flesh seedy?

Guavas contain many small hard seeds in the centre. You can eat them or scoop them out for juice and puree.