Articles
FLOWER INDUCTION AND FRUIT PRODUCTION OF GUAVA (PSIDIUM GUAJAVA L.)
Undoubtedly, the guava fruit’s distinctive aroma, flavor, nutritive value and its versatility in usage helped in its complete dissemination.
The guava was brought to Hawaii in the early 1800’s by Don Francisco de paula Marin, a seafaring botanist from Spain, who jumped ship and settled in Hawaii during the reign of King Kamehameha I.
The guava belongs to the Myrtle family (Myrtaceae) and thus is related to the common spices (clove, cinnamon, allspice, etc.), eucalyptus, and many other smaller fruits in common usage including strawberry guava, roseapple, surinam cherry and jaboticava.
The guava is an excellent source of vitamin C containing 2 to 5 times more than oranges and 10 times more than tomatoes bred for high vitamin C content.
Some selected strains contain as high as 600 mg of vitamin C per 100 cc of pulp.
It is also a good source of niacin and vitamin A. Compared with other fruits, the whole guava is a moderately good source of calcium, a fair source of phosphorus and a good source of iron.
The iron content of guavas with seeds removed is only about one-fifth that of the whole fruit, indicating that most of the iron is in the seeds.
The sugar content of the fruit expressed as brix is about 10%. The nutritive value of the guava juice has been recognized for some time now, and its usage in infant diet is increasing.
The usage of guava juices and purees in the making of mixed juices, jams, jellies, marmalades, butter, chutney, and bakery products is becoming increasingly popular, and the demand for the products continues to increase.
In Puerto Rico and Florida, a guava paste and canned guava shells are prepared.
Although a great percentage of the guavas now processed are from wild sources, a continued expansion of this industry cannot be based on scavenger operations.
Interest in cultivating guavas in orchards has been increasing throughout the islands, especially with the closing of several marginal sugar and pineapple plantations.
One of the most critical botanical characteristics of guavas is that the flowers are always borne on newly emerging vegetative terminals irrespective of time of year.
Consequently, blossom bud formation and subsequent fruit set can be very erratic during the year, or between years depending on the rainfall pattern, and the availability of fertilizer and water.
However, this characteristic presented a situation where the trees can possibly be exploited by cultural manipulation to flower and fruit when desired.
Those from the temperate regions may not appreciate this fact since under temperate conditions flower buds develop normally only in the