What Are the Common Varieties of Passion Fruit? A Detailed Guide

Passion fruit, scientifically known as Passiflora edulis, is juicy, sweet and sour, and nutritious. It gets its name because its pulp can give off the rich aroma of more than a dozen fruits such as banana, pineapple, strawberry, lychee, lemon, mango, sour plum, and others, and it enjoys the reputation of the "king of fruit juice." So what common varieties of passion fruit are there?

1. Tainong No. 1

This variety is a hybrid bred by the Taiwan Agricultural Research Institute using the purple variety as the female parent and the yellow variety as the male parent.

1. Main characteristics

It has relatively strong growth vigor and slightly stronger moisture tolerance and disease resistance. The stems, petioles, and leaf veins are green with a purplish-red tinge, and the tendrils are also green, but the fruit is purplish-red.

The structure of the flower is similar to that of the purple variety; its stigma bends downward and it has self-compatibility. The flowering period is from mid-to-late March to late November.

The rind is slightly smooth, somewhat thinner than that of the yellow variety, and has relatively fine, dense white fruit dots. The fruit can weigh up to 120 grams. The juice is deep yellow, strongly aromatic, and slightly low in acidity.

2. Suitable growing areas

It is suitable for planting in cool summer regions and is the main variety grown in Southeast Asia.

3. Notes

Although Tainong No. 1 inherits many advantages from its female and male parents and is relatively disease-resistant, it is quite seriously affected by viral diseases.

2. Zixiang No. 1

This variety is said to have been selected and bred from grafted seedlings of Tainong No. 1, and it was named by a company in Guangxi that began commercial passion fruit cultivation relatively early.

1. Main characteristics

Its growth characteristics are basically similar to those of Tainong No. 1. Ripe fruit can be harvested from mid-June each year to early February of the following year, with the most concentrated harvest periods in July and October.

The fruit is oval, and the rind is purplish-red and slightly hard. The average single fruit weight is 75 g, slightly smaller than Tainong No. 1. The juice content is about 28%, and the soluble solids content is 15%-16%.

2. Suitable growing areas

It has strong adaptability and can be cultivated in areas with an annual average temperature above 18°C and an average temperature in the coldest month above 8°C.

3. Notes

This variety has few diseases and pests, mainly including stem base rot, fruit flies, and red spiders. With proper prevention, the cost of pesticide use is not high. However, Zixiang No. 1 has slightly poorer stability and commercial quality than Tainong No. 1, and Zixiang No. 1 is mostly propagated from cuttings, so it has a high possibility of carrying viruses.

3. Mantianxing

This variety was introduced from Indonesia to Taiwan, China, and improved and cultivated there. It gets its name because the fruit surface has small speckles.

1. Main characteristics

The fruit is relatively large, with an average single fruit weight of 150 grams. It has high sweetness and a juice yield as high as 40%, but no aroma. It is relatively tolerant of storage and transport and is suitable for fresh eating.

2. Suitable growing areas

This variety is a tropical variety and has poor cold resistance, so more attention should be paid when introducing it to areas with frost.

3. Notes

The leaves of Mantianxing also have a sweet taste and are prone to attracting thrips, mites, and others. In particular, some mites also carry Passionfruit green spot virus (PFGSV), which induces green spot disease.

4. Golden passion fruit

A relatively popular variety in recent years. Because its fruit surface is golden yellow all over, it is known as the golden fruit.

1. Main characteristics

After planting in March, it begins to flower and bear fruit in April to May of that year, and then continues to grow while flowering and fruiting. The flowers of 2-year-old golden passion fruit are mainly concentrated in spring and autumn. Flowers that open after mid-to-late November bear fruit that is difficult to color in low-temperature periods and has poorer quality.

This variety has more juice and high sweetness, with a rich guava aroma, and is one of the best-selling varieties on the market at present.

2. Suitable growing areas

This variety has poor cold resistance, and areas with continuous high temperatures and drought in summer will also affect its fruit set, so more attention should be paid when introducing it.

3. Notes

This variety has slightly higher environmental requirements, and its yield fluctuates greatly depending on the level of management. It is relatively resistant to stem base rot.

The above is an introduction to passion fruit varieties. At present, passion fruit is mainly cultivated in Guangxi, Guangdong, Guizhou, Hainan, Fujian, Yunnan, Taiwan, China, Vietnam, Southeast Asia, and the Americas. It originated in the Lesser Antilles and is now widely planted in tropical and subtropical regions.

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