18 BULLETIN 74, HAWAII EXPERIMENT STATION 
DESCRIPTION 
The plant is a coarse perennial with a more or less fleshy root, 
woody stem, and green four-angled branches. It climbs by means 
of tendrils. 
Leaves. — The leaves are alternately arranged, 6 to 8 inches long, 
yellowish green, ovate or elliptical, cordate at base and margin 
entire; leafstalk angular, contains 3 pairs of nectaries or glands, and 
the stipules are relatively broad. 
Flowers. — The flowers are very attractive in color and fragrance; 
4 to 5 inches across; flower stalk short and bearing 3 large green 
bracts near the base of the receptacle ; calyx segments 5, broad, thick, 
spongy, greenish outside and white or pinkish within; petals 5, red 
above, white or pinkish below; corona (a crownlike structure) con- 
sisting of 4 or 5 whorls or circular rows of rays, the 2 or 3 inner 
whorls very short and white blotched with red, 2 outer rows con- 
sisting of coarse stringlike rays forming a fringe, reddish at the 
base, the remainder cross striped with purple and white, and the 
outer halves of the ra} T s more or less crooked from having been 
folded in the bud; stamens 5, rising above the central column, an- 
thers broad and pivoted on the filament from the upper side. The 
ovary of the pistil is mounted on a gynaphore (a stalk raising the 
pistil above the stamens) and the style is divided into 3, sometimes 
4 or 5 parts, each of which terminates into a rather large, globular 
or reniform stigma. 
Fruit. — The fruit is oval-oblong or elliptical, 9 or 10 inches long, 
often weighing 4 or 5 pounds; skin thin, light green or yellowish 
green when ripe; rind about 1% inches thick, central cavity con- 
taining many seeds, each surrounded with a subacid purplish or 
yellowish, juicy pulp of pleasing flavor. Seeds flattish oval in 
outline, three-eighths inch long and of a brownish color. 
BELL-APPLE 
The bell-apple {Passiflora laurifolia) (fig. 6) has several other com- 
mon names, as " sweet-cup ", " waterlemon ", " Jamaica honeysuckle ", 
" Pomrae d'or ", and some have called it the " yellow granadilla fruit " 
(13, p. 2Jf8) . These names tend to cause confusion. The entire, ellip- 
tical leaves, unusual for Passiflora, are somewhat like those of the 
well-known laurel which was probably the guide for the specific name, 
as given by the botanist Linnaeus, who named it. 
DESCRIPTION 
The bell-apple plant is a handsome and moderately vigorous 
climber which is most valuable for covering unsightly structures. Its 
bright green foliage, beautiful flowers, and pendular. golden fruit are 
very ornamental. In Brazil and parts of the West Indies, where it is 
apparently indigenous, it is cultivated mainly for the fruit, which 
has an agreeable subacid flavor. The plants are easily propagated by 
seeds and by cuttings. In Hawaii, as in India and Ceylon, the plants 
blossom freely but mostly drop without setting the fruit, possibly be- 
cause of insufficient pollination (9, p, 267). 
