North American Fruit Explorers mailing list at ibiblio

[Lee Poulsen <wlp@ampersand.jpl.nasa.gov>]

>Having grown up in Florida, I think the watermelon flavored flowers we ate
>on one bush were feijoa flowers, but I have never ever seen a fruit, nor
>know anyone who has.  Someone came into the Florida nursery where I was
>working in '89 and said they were from Cal. and they grew grafted feijoas
>there.  Apparently they were crazy about them, and were disappointed at the
>Florida nurseries offering only generic bushes.  But if NONE of them crop
>anyway, what does it matter?  I know they have to have X pollination.  They
>seem very mysterious.  Donna
>

I planted a grafted 'Coolidge' variety that I ordered from a nursery 
in Calif. about 15 years ago at my parents' house in Austin, Texas, 
and after a couple of years it started bearing fruit and has borne 
fruit ever since. Although I had seen 2 or 3 seedling bushes growing 
around some old buildings in the center of town, I don't believe 
there were any in my parents' subdivision after I first planted it. 
So I don't think it was being pollinated by anything else. The 
'Coolidge' variety is supposed to be self-pollinating. Since my 
mother absolutely loves the fruit now, I've since planted a couple 
more varieties, about 5 years ago, that are supposed to be the 
best-flavored, but are supposed to require cross-pollination. They 
seem to handle the occasional winter arctic blast without any 
problems that I've seen.

-- 
--Lee Poulsen
wlp@radar-sci.jpl.nasa.gov

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