66 



BULLETIN 77, HAWAII EXPERIMENT STATION 



PASSION- FRUIT 



( Passiflora edulis ) 



Description: The passion-fruit is a medium-sized oval fruit from 

 2 to 3 inches in length. There are two varieties common in Hawaii, 

 the purple passion-fruit (Passiflora edulis) and the yellow passion-fruit 

 (Passiflora edulis var. flavicarpa). The brittle shell encloses a juicy, 

 yellow pulp and many small seeds. Although the shell dries up and 

 becomes wrinkled after the fruit has matured, the pulp remains in good 

 condition for several weeks. 



History: The passion-fruit is a native of Brazil but has been car- 

 ried to all parts of the world. In many places it is grown only as a 

 hot-house plant. Its unusual flowers inspired the Spaniards to name 

 it the passion plant (47, p. 149). In Australia, where the purple passion- 

 fruit is very popular, it is cultivated on a large scale (50, p. 242). In 

 Hawaii, the purple variety is commonly called "lilikoi" because the first 

 seeds of this variety, which were brought from Australia by Mr. Eugene 

 Delemar, were planted in the district of Lilikoi on East Maui (73). 

 Although both purple and yellow varieties of the Passiflora edulis are 

 locally called water-lemons, that term is correctly used only for the 

 Passiflora laurifolia, which is grown to a limited extent in Hawaii. 



Nutritive value: Analyses of the juice of the purple passion-fruit 

 showed it to have a high sugar content and low calcium and phosphorus 

 content. It is a fair source of iron. 



The flowers and seeds of some varieties of passion-fruit are re- 

 ported to contain a small quantity of an alkaloid (30) ; but tests carried 

 out by Raymond Nikaido under Dr. L. N. Bilger, of the Chemistry 

 Department, showed the juice of the yellow passion-fruit to contain 

 only faint trace of alkaloids. 



They also attempted to account for the unusual keeping qualities 

 of the passion-fruit juice by observing the growth of bacteria before 

 and after partial or complete neutralization of the acid with sodium 

 hydroxide, and by testing for the presence of such substances as salicylic 

 and benzoic acid, which were proved absent. It was concluded that the 

 keeping qualities of the juice are due to its natural high acidity. Table 

 2 shows the acidity of the purple passion-fruit juice to be 2.3 percent 

 calculated as citric acid; the acidity of the yellow passion-fruit was 

 found to be 3.9 percent. 



No tests to determine the vitamin value of passion-fruit juice or 

 pulp are reported in the literature, and no tests have been made in the 

 station laboratory, except for vitamin C. The juice of the yellow 

 passion-fruit was found to be an excellent source of vitamin C. 



Supply: The passion-fruit ripens during the summer and fall, some 

 as late as January. It is occasionally found in Honolulu markets. 



Use: The fruit is prepared for use by cutting it in two and remov- 

 ing the pulp with a spoon. It may be eaten fresh out of the shell, or 

 used to flavor candy, cake icing or frozen desserts. The distinctive 



