Growing Food: A Guide to Food Production

Rainfall: one or more varieties of guava can be found to grow in most rainfall
zones, though ideally they should receive about 1000–3000 mm/a. They need plenty
of water to grow well.
Pruning: suckers and shoots from the tree base should be removed regularly.
Altitude: from 0–1500 m; commercial plantations are normally below about 1000 m.
Pests: fruit flies (Oriental and Mediterranean), Guava flies (especially in Trinidad
and the West Indies), mealy bugs, thrips and scale insects can all cause major
damage. Root-knot nematodes can cause some damage and can be partially
controlled with heavy fertilisation, irrigation and spraying nutrients on the leaves.
Diseases: Wilt is a serious problem in some parts of India, Bacterial disease is the
major problem in the Caribbean. The alga Cephaleuros virescens causes fruit and
leaves to rot, especially in wet areas; controlled to some extent with fungicides.

YIELD
Mature, grafted or layered trees of local, unimproved varieties each produce about
400-800 fruits per year, weighing a total of 60–120 kg.
The same type of trees of improved types yield about 1000–2000 fruits per
hectare per year, weighing 150–300 kg. Seedling trees normally produce half or less
that of grafted or layered trees.

UTILISATION

• from the fruit for making jam, jelly, paste, preserves, juice and nectar. In the
  West Indies and elsewhere guava cheese is made by evaporating the fruit pulp


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  dyeing material and for tanning.

  
  

LIMITATIONS

• growth of guava trees may become so uncontrolled that they become a weed, in


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  Vegetative propagation on the other hand requires specialist knowledge of
  grafting or budding.

  
  

258 TONY WINCH

Guavas are mainly grown for local consumption. The seed is normally removed

with sugar.

Commercially, guavas are used mainly for making jellies. The fruit, juice and

nectar are canned.

The leaves are sometimes used in traditional medicine to treat diarrhoea; also for

Very few, though under certain circumstances, usually in tropical conditions, the

Fiji for example.

Guava trees are sensitive to low temperatures and frost.

Propagation by seed gives unpredictable, varied trees with low production.