Passiflora edulis is best known as passion fruit. It originates from tropical regions in Central and South America. This evergreen exotic looking climber produces edible green fruits that ripen purple. The deliciously sweet and fresh tasting exotic egg-shaped fruits are approx. 5 cm long and 4 cm wide. The plant, which is not entirely hardy in our climate (hardy till 5°C), produces an abundance of beautiful large white flowers with purple/pink stripes. This plant is self-pollinating and only produces flowers in the 2nd year after sowing. These flowers produce the edible fruits. The fruits can be halved and then scooped out. The taste is deliciously fresh, sweet and sour and exotic. Use the fruits in exotic fruit salads, at breakfast, in ice cream, in drinks, in sorbets, as a snack and in all kinds of desserts. Passion fruit can also be used in all sorts of exotic dishes.
This lushly growing and flowering climbing plant can easily become 8 metres wide and is therefore very suitable to grow along a fence, trellis or similar. Give this plant a firm support and place it in a sunny and sheltered spot. This passion fruit is very popular with bees, butterflies and other useful insects. This plant is not completely winter hardy and is best grown in a cold greenhouse or large pot or tub so that it can overwinter inside, for example, in a cold greenhouse or shed sheltered from frost. It is hardy to about 5 C°. Semi-hardy perennial. Height: 400 - 500 cm.
Pre-soaking: 24 hours
Indoor sowing: year round
Germination: 1 - 12 months
Germination temperature: 20 - 30°C
Sowing depth: 2 - 5 mm (shallow)
Plant distance: 50 - 75 cm
Plant position : sunny - half shade and sheltered
Harvest period: September - October
Flowering period: July - October
First roughen up the seed casings by using sandpaper. Then soak the seeds in lukewarm water for 24 hours before sowing. This makes germination easier and possibly a bit faster. Sow in small pots of about 5cm Ø 1 seed per pot. Use good moist sowing and cutting soil. Keep the seeds moist but not too wet. Put them in a warm place with a temperature as constant as possible. Make sure there is enough light because passion fruit is a light germinator. If necessary, use a propagator with a heat mat and lid. A constant temperature of 26°C will facilitate and possibly accelerate germination.
Remove the lid as soon as the seedlings emerge. After a few weeks, when the seedlings are big enough to handle, repot them into slightly larger pots. From mid May, as soon as there is no more chance of night frost, harden off the seedlings for about 10 - 14 days by putting them outside during the day. From the end of May, beginning of June, as soon as the nights get warmer and the days longer, the seedlings can be put outside in large pots or tubs or in a cold greenhouse or conservatory. Choose a sunny, sheltered spot with good, permeable soil and good, firm support. A south or south-west facing spot is best. Leave about 50 - 75 cm space between the plants. Keep well moist and weed free.
Passion fruit is not hardy (hardy till 5 C°) and is best grown in large pots or tubs. It must be protected against frost. So in winter put the plants in a frost-free greenhouse, conservatory or shed. The sown plants only flower after two years. To get fruit, the flowers have to be pollinated by hand. The fruits can be harvested from September once they are completely purple. If the passion fruit plant grows along a fence, trellis or a wall, new shoots have to be tied up. Passion fruit doesn't need to be pruned regularly, but can be trimmed to keep the plant tidy. This can be done after flowering in the autumn. Remove dead shoots. Prune back excessively long shoots after flowering. Passion fruit can also be propagated by taking half-hardy cuttings in the spring.
