Guava

Genuine Guava ( Psidium guajava ), Fruit whole and cut open

The guava ( Psidium ), also called guavas, are a genus of the myrtle family ( Myrtaceae ). This genus has a purely Neotropical distribution.

  • 6.1 Notes and references

Description

Appearance, bark and leaves

Psidium species are woody plants and grow as evergreen shrubs or small trees. The bark is gray and smooth. The bark of the branches is hairy. The opposite, stalked leaves have a simple leaf blade with Fiedernervatur.

Flowers

The flowers are solitary or in pairs in the leaf axils two bracts. The relatively large, hermaphroditic flowers are four to fünfzählig double perianth ( perianth ). The bell - shaped flowers to pitcher cup ( hypanthium ) is fused with the ovary. The four or five sepals are unequal. The four or five petals are white. In many circles, a total of many stamens with anthers ellipsoid. The ovary is under permanent four-, five - or multilocular. There are numerous ovules in each ovary chamber. The lineal style ends in a broad scar.

Fruit and seeds

The spherical to pear- shaped, fleshy berries contain many seeds. On the berry the tough sepals are visible. The well-developed placenta is fleshy. The seeds have a hard seed coat and a curved embryo with a long hypocotyl and two short cotyledons ( cotyledons ).

System

Carl Linnaeus introduced in 1753 the genus Psidium with the type species Psidium guajava L. Species Plantarum, 1, p 470. Synonyms for Psidium L. are: Guava Mill, Calyptropsidium O.Berg, Corynemyrtus ( Kiaersk. ) Mattos, Mitropsidium burret. The genus Psidium belongs to the tribe Myrteae in the subfamily Myrtoideae within the Myrtaceae family.

The genus Psidium include 98-150 types:

  • Psidium acranthum Urb. It occurs only in the Dominican Republic.
  • Psidium acunae Borhidi: It occurs only in Cuba.
  • Psidium acutangulum Mart. ex DC. ( Syn: Psidium persoonii McVaugh ): It is distributed in tropical South America.
  • Psidium albescens Urb.
  • Psidium amplexicaule pers.
  • Psidium apiculatum Mattos
  • Psidium appendiculatum Kiaersk.
  • Psidium araucanum Soares - Silva & Proença
  • Psidium arboreum Vell.
  • Psidium australe Cambess. : Psidium australe var argenteum ( O.Berg ) Landrum
  • Psidium australe Cambess. var australe
  • Psidium australe var suffruticosum ( O.Berg ) Landrum
  • Psidium salutare var decussatum ( DC.) Landrum
  • Psidium salutare var mucronatum ( Cambess. ) Landrum
  • Psidium salutare var pohlianum ( O.Berg ) Landrum
  • Psidium salutare ( Kunth ) O.Berg var salutare
  • Psidium salutare var sericeum ( Cambess. ) Landrum

Use

Some species provide fruit.

More images

Strawberry Guava ( Psidium cattleianum Sabine, Syn: Psidium littorale Roddi ):

Unripe fruits

Ripe fruits

Harvested fruits

Note

Despite the similarity Feijoa ( Acca sellowiana ) does not belong to this genus.

Swell

  • Jie Chen & Lyn A. Craven: Myrtaceae: Psidium, pp. 331 - text the same online as printed work, In: Wu Zheng -yi, Peter H. Raven & Deyuan Hong (eds.): Flora of China, Volume 13 - Clusiaceae through Araliaceae, Science Press and Missouri Botanical Garden Press, Beijing and St. Louis, 2007. ISBN 978-1-930723-59-7 (Sections Description and dissemination )
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