396 CALIFORNIA FRUITS I HOW TO GROW THEM 



THE FEIJOA 



Along with the guava should be mentioned the Feijoa Sellowiana, 

 a member also of the myrtle family. In habits of growth it is much 

 the same as the guava and while the foliage is not so handsome, being 

 of a generally silver gray effect, the flower is very showy. In May it 

 sends forth a great profusion of blossoms, which may be called red, 

 white and blue, unless one desires to be perfectly accurate, in which 

 case the blue would have to be changed to purple. The petals are un- 

 usually thick and fleshy and are very sweet to the taste. The highly 

 perfumed fruit, about one and one-half to two inches or more in length, 

 comes in November. The flavor is delicious, like the strawberry, but 

 lacking the acid. The seeds are very small, almost unnoticeable ; quite 

 a contrast in this respect to the guava. F. W. Popenoe, Altadena, Los 

 Angeles County, has published an excellent monograph on this fruit. 



Mr. Coolidge gives this appreciative sketch of the plant and fruit: 



For eight years I have been watching a fruit which was introduced sup- 

 posedly as a tropical or semitropical fruit, but we find it does not belong 

 to this class at all. Feiioa, comiri~ from Uruguay and Southern Brazil, is a 

 fruit of extreme hardiness. I have in mind one plant that has stood a tempera- 

 ture of four degrees above zero without any injury whatever. I know of other 

 plants growing on the desert that have endured a week's temperature of 115 

 degrees without any injury, so we can safely class it as a hardy fruit. So far 

 nothing but seedlings have been grown, and these vary greatly as to bearing 

 qualities and size of fruits, but there are individual plants growing in our 

 section that fruit regularly and produce fruits of a good size. Within a few 

 years we will have plants of the feijoa producing fruits on the average as large 

 as an ordinary hen's egg. The fruit ripening in December gives it a status 

 that no other fruit of its character has. I have kept the fruits in good condi- 

 tion for four weeks after picking. It is one of our finest ornaments with its 

 grayish green persistent foliage and charming "white and red flowers. 



THE GRANADILLA 



The granadilla is the term applied to the edible fruit of a species of 

 passion vine (Passiflora edulis) which is quite hardy, and is growing 

 in different parts of the State. The fruit is about the size of a small 

 hen's egg, purple exterior when ripe, the thin, brittle shell inclosing a 

 mass of small seeds covered with a brilliant yellow pulp, mildly acid, 

 and of very agreeable flavor. Very good jelly has been made of the 

 fruit. Another passion vine with large pink flowers is very widely dis- 

 tributed in California, and bears a large, yellowish-brown fruit with 

 edible pulp. 



THE JUJUBE 



The jujube (zyziphus jujube), from the fruit of which the delicate 

 paste of the confectioner is, or should be, made, was introduced by 

 Mr. G. P. Rixford in 1876, and is fruiting regularly and freely in sev- 

 eral parts of the State. The plant is easily grown from seed or cuttings. 

 The orange-red berries are produced three years from planting, and 

 ripen in November and December. They are edible fresh or dried. 

 As yet the fruit has not been turned to commercial account. 



