The season of guava continues to elude most people in Florida and the rest of the United States, even though it is a delightful tropical fruit that makes juicy, succulent, juicy guava paste. If you are fortunate enough to live in an area where the fruit grows wild, you will be able to enjoy this tasty treat year-round. But for those who do not live in humid areas or have favorable climatic conditions, there is still hope for you. The leaves can still be plucked from the fruit and added as a delicious accompaniment to any dish.
There are several varieties of guava plants, which range in size from two to four feet. One variety is the smallest, the Musa species, which can only be found growing wild in the Amazon forest. It produces a small crop of the succulent, red fruits that are enjoyed by many people across the world. However, the largest of the bunch, the Solanaceae family, which includes all the members of the same family, including the cactus family and the tree family, are more commonly grown and sold in grocery stores. In this way, you do not need to travel to the Amazon in search of this delightful tropical fruit.
When the guava plant is not growing well or reaching its full potential, the best time to harvest it is from late June to mid-September. This is also the peak month for picking and selling guava products at local farmer markets and the wholesale club warehouses. When the weather is warm and dry, however, guava season usually starts in April and lasts until October. A well established and large group of young plants may have already been picked and sold by mid-March, while the crops from late in the year are still growing and maturing.
There are three conditions that determine when a guava fruit is considered to be fully ripe. The first is the actual time of year – spring, summer, fall. The second is the actual length of time the fruit is exposed to the sun – twelve months from the date of planting until the fruit starts to turn color. Finally, there is the time of day that the fruit is harvested – if it is light and sunny, the longer it will stay green and produce delicious guava juice.
Obviously, when these conditions exist, the best time to harvest guava fruits is during the spring season. At this time, the soil is warm, and the grass has just started to grow. In addition, there is very little rainfall during spring, so the soil can easily soak up the nutrients that are available. When the grass is still green, it is very easy to munch on the seeds, which will provide the plant with all the vitamins it needs to grow. As the season progresses, the grass will become shorter, and the leaves will turn yellow – a sign that it is time to harvest. However, if you find that some of the best guava eating is done while the leaves are still green, you might want to wait until they turn a darker shade of yellow before harvesting them.
When it comes to feeding your plants during the guava season, there are a few things to keep in mind. Because the soil is warm and moist, you may want to use a high nitrogen fertilizer – but you also need to make sure you cut back the pruning back to keep from overfeeding. One thing that many people do not realize about fertilizing their plants is that it degrades the quality of the soil, which means that the nutrients are not able to penetrate it as deeply, which causes the plant to develop uneven leaf quality. This means that in the short run, a fertilized plant will have leaves that are of lower quality than one that is not fertilized.
One final tip: when is guava season starts? It is best to start guava pruning about four weeks prior to the start of the flowering season. Most gardeners think that the flowering season starts in April, but this is not necessarily true, especially if you are growing for the fruit. In fact, the flowering season usually starts in early May. Therefore, if you are planning to harvest any fruit from your garden before the start of the fruiting season, you need to prune the plants at that time.
Of course, the actual timing of when is guava season starts and how long it last can vary depending on the variety of the fruit you are growing. However, most varieties usually harvest about a third of the year – so you should plan to have your plants harvested by late summer or early fall. Some varieties can usually be harvested as early as January. You should plan to have them picked by the middle of May, so plan to have your plants picked by then.
