Common name: Guavaberry

Guavaberry is one name for this fruiting shrub or small tree native to tropical America, with a natural range extending from Cuba to the Eastern Caribbean and from Central America to northern South America. 

It may reach up to 17 m (55 ft) with a trunk diameter of 30 cm (1 ft), though it is more commonly 5 to 10 m (16 to 33 ft) tall, with a low-branching, short trunk supporting a densely leafy, rounded crown. The bark is light grey or pale brown, mottled and flaking, revealing orange-brown under-bark.

Leaves are lance-shaped, up to 9 cm (3.5 in) long, dull green on top, pale green underneath and with a leathery texture. They are arranged in pairs at the branch ends and remain on the tree year-round.

The flowers are small and insignificant, funnel-shaped with four white petals on the rim and with many white filaments arising at the centre. They are borne at the leaf bases, in clusters of only a few and come into bloom in the rainy season.

Fertilised flowers are followed by small round fruit, about 1 cm (0.4 in) in diameter, that are green when young, becoming orange or dark red when ripe, depending on the variety. They ripen in the dry winter season, coinciding with the festive Christmas season in their native range, and have aromatic yellow-orange pulp surrounding one or more roundish seeds. 

Edible uses

Natural flavouring - Unripe fruit is very sour and becomes less sour and sweeter when ripe. It is used as a flavouring in drinks and foods, including baked goods such as cakes and pastries.

Fruit spread - Ripe fruit is made into jams and jellies...

Non-alcoholic drink - ...and homemade fruit drinks...

Alcoholic drink - ...but is mainly used to flavour a local alcoholic liqueur known as 'Guavaberry liqueur', which is made by steeping the whole fruit in rum and brown sugar in large vats, then straining and ageing the mixture in wooden barrels. The finished product is a dark red liqueur with a distinctive woody, fruity, bittersweet flavour. It is used in mixed drinks and cocktails served in the Caribbean.

Environmental uses

Bee forage - Honeybees can be seen working the flowers, but little information is available on the plant's usefulness for honey production.

General interest

Guavaberry liqueur was first made in the 19th century, after the colonisation of the Virgin Islands.

Climate

Grows naturally in sub-humid to moderately humid subtropical and tropical climates, generally frost-free areas with annual lows of 19 to 25°C, annual highs of 25 to 35°C, annual rainfall of 600 to 2000 mm and a dry season of 2 to 8 months. 

This climate profile excludes cold-tolerant subspecies or varieties reported to originate in south-east Brazil, which occur at elevations up to 1800 m (5900 ft).

Growing

New plants are usually grown from seed. However, seedlings are slow-growing and only start flowering and fruiting when they are about six to eight years old. Vegetative propagation, using air-layering (circumposing) techniques, is worth trying, as it has been used successfully to produce new Guava (Psidium guajava) plants, a close relative of the Guavaberry.

It performs best in free-draining loam and sand soils that are moderately acidic to alkaline, generally with a pH of 5.5 to 8.5, and in sites with full to partial sun exposure. Guavaberry tolerates drought, limestone soils, and salt spray.

Problem features

Birds are known to visit the tree and feed on the fruit. However, there is no record of it as a weed or invasive species.

Books

• Barwick, M., et al. 2004, Tropical & subtropical trees : a worldwide encyclopaedic guide, Thames and Hudson, London

• Kirk, T. K. 2009, Tropical trees of Florida and the Virgin Islands : a guide to identification, characteristics and uses, 1st ed, Pineapple Press, Sarasota, Florida

• Little, E. L. 1974, Trees of Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands, Vol. 2, United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), Washington D.C.

• Lorenzi, H. 2006, Brazilian fruits & cultivated exotics (for consuming in natura), Instituto Plantarum de Estudos da Flora, Nova Odessa, San Paulo

• Martin, F. M., et al. 1987, Perennial edible fruits of the tropics : an inventory, U.S. Dept. of Agriculture (USDA), Agricultural Research Service, U.S. Government Printing Office (GPO), Washington, D.C.

• Morton, J. F. & Dowling, C. F. 1987, Fruits of warm climates, Creative Resources Systems, Winterville, North Carolina

• Parkinson, R. 1999, Culinaria : The Caribbean a culinary discovery, 1st. ed, Koìln: koìnemann, Germany

• Randall, R. P. 2007, The introduced flora of Australia and its weed status, Cooperative Research Centre for Australian Weed Management, Glen Osmond, South Australia

• Reyes, G. 1992, Wood densities of tropical tree species, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Southern Forest Experiment Station, New Orleans, Louisiana