Passion Flowers & Fruit
 

During the past week I have had about 15 more flowers turn into fruit. I've
been cross pollinating with my finger which seems to be successful.

One question. I left one of the fruits on the vine assuming that it wasn't
big enough to eat. I have a blue passion flower and thought they would get
at least 1 1/2" inches in size before they were good to eat. It seems I
left the first one on too long. When do I know when it would be okay to
pick and eat? Also, how do I get the seeds from the fruit? I saw a post
that said the fruit had to rot a little before getting the seed.

Thanks!

Passion Flowers & Fruit
 

I have a general question about passion flowers. I've got them, native, all
over my property. I know they are passion flowers because one of the vines
occasionally blooms. But, many of the vines never bloom at all, and those
few that occasionally produce a flower or two never form any fruit. I've got
plenty of flies, bees, wasps, mosquitos, birds, etc., so I doubt lack of
pollination is the problem. Some vines are in full sun, others partial
shade, others full shade. I have good (i.e., imported from Gardenville or
equivalent) soil in most areas. Does anyone have any idea why: (1) my vines
so seldom bloom (I get maybe three blossoms total per season, and have had
none so far this year), and (2) why I never see fruit? The vines themselves
are quite vigorous, especially the ones that get a lot of sun. And I have
other blooming plants that have no problem making flowers, and pepper plants
that have no problem making fruit.

thanks,
alternate


"starlia" wrote in message
...
During the past week I have had about 15 more flowers turn into fruit.
I've
been cross pollinating with my finger which seems to be successful.

One question. I left one of the fruits on the vine assuming that it
wasn't
big enough to eat. I have a blue passion flower and thought they would
get
at least 1 1/2" inches in size before they were good to eat. It seems I
left the first one on too long. When do I know when it would be okay to
pick and eat? Also, how do I get the seeds from the fruit? I saw a post
that said the fruit had to rot a little before getting the seed.

Thanks!

Passion Flowers & Fruit
 

When mine flowers, there's no stopping it. When I planted them I used soft rock
phosphate. It seems to be a more available phosphorous to plants,which triggers
the flowering mechanism. Have you fed it?

On Thu, 17 Jul 2003 02:40:19 GMT, "Alternate Personality"
wrote:

Well, I'll keep you posted. Perhaps the person who owned my property before
I did put in some non-native varieties. As of this writing, I have at least
20 vines (some easily 30 feet in length), and zero flowers. I've probably
only had a dozen blooms, total, in the last 10 years, and I believe they
were all bluish-purple in color. I had more or less come to the conclusion
that passion flowers just didn't want to flower in this part of Texas, but
that clearly has not been the experience of others in this group.

-alternate

"animaux" wrote in message
.. .
Passiflora is a relatively large variety of plants within it's family.
The only
one native to Texas, I believe (correct me if I'm wrong) is the red
flowering
variety. I don't know the botanical name.


On Wed, 16 Jul 2003 12:43:12 GMT, "Alternate Personality"
wrote:

So far this summer, I have not had a single flower, so I don't have
anything
to photograph at the moment. The flowers, when they occur, are large
(maybe
3" in diameter), and a beautiful deep blue with a hint of purple. I'm
99.99
percent certain they are passion flowers, based on photos I've seen of
passion flowers. But if I get any blooms this summer, I'll be more than
happy to send you a photo.

thanks,
alternate

"animaux" wrote in message
.. .
Can you produce a photo of the flower you do have? What color is it?


On Wed, 16 Jul 2003 00:17:47 GMT, "Alternate Personality"
wrote:

I have a general question about passion flowers. I've got them,
native,
all
over my property. I know they are passion flowers because one of the
vines
occasionally blooms. But, many of the vines never bloom at all, and
those
few that occasionally produce a flower or two never form any fruit.
I've
got
plenty of flies, bees, wasps, mosquitos, birds, etc., so I doubt lack
of
pollination is the problem. Some vines are in full sun, others partial
shade, others full shade. I have good (i.e., imported from Gardenville
or
equivalent) soil in most areas. Does anyone have any idea why: (1) my
vines
so seldom bloom (I get maybe three blossoms total per season, and have
had
none so far this year), and (2) why I never see fruit? The vines
themselves
are quite vigorous, especially the ones that get a lot of sun. And I
have
other blooming plants that have no problem making flowers, and pepper
plants
that have no problem making fruit.

thanks,
alternate


"starlia" wrote in message
...
During the past week I have had about 15 more flowers turn into
fruit.
I've
been cross pollinating with my finger which seems to be successful.

One question. I left one of the fruits on the vine assuming that it
wasn't
big enough to eat. I have a blue passion flower and thought they
would
get
at least 1 1/2" inches in size before they were good to eat. It
seems
I
left the first one on too long. When do I know when it would be
okay
to
pick and eat? Also, how do I get the seeds from the fruit? I saw a
post
that said the fruit had to rot a little before getting the seed.

Thanks!

Passion Flowers & Fruit
 

Alternate Personality wrote:
were all bluish-purple in color. I had more or less come to the conclusion
that passion flowers just didn't want to flower in this part of Texas, but
that clearly has not been the experience of others in this group.

We have three varieties of passionvine and they all bloom from April/May to
the first frost.

--
Victor M. Martinez

http://www.che.utexas.edu/~martiv

Passion Flowers & Fruit
 

Some native passionvines:
Passiflora tenuiloba Slender-Lobe Passionflower - green flowers
Passiflora lutea Yellow Passionflower - pale yellow-green flower
Passiflora affinis - similar to P. lutea
Passiflora incarnata (?) Passionflower - I don't know its common name
lavender flowers

No doubt that there are others as well. I know that P. tenuloba & P.
lutea grow here in Austin. They are very small in comparision to the
large more tropical varieties.

-Nancy

Passion Flowers & Fruit
 

I never received your email but I would be glad to give you a cutting and
some of the fruit. How would you like to meet? I live in Leander.

"Ruth Shear" wrote in message
...
G'day

starlia wrote:

During the past week I have had about 15 more flowers turn into fruit.

Jealous sigh Want some recipes? Come on over to austin.food and ask
there.

I left one of the fruits on the vine assuming that it wasn't
big enough to eat. I have a blue passion flower and thought they would
get at least 1 1/2" inches in size before they were good to eat. It
seems I left the first one on too long.

What makes you say that?

When do I know when it would be okay to pick and eat?

Usually the skin loses the greenish tinge and is a purplish/ blackish/
reddish colour. Many (but not all) varieties will then start to crumple,
meaning an unripe passionfruit has a smooth rounded surface, and then as
it ripens it starts getting wrinkled or crumpled. I am assuming that
this is what has happened to your passionfruit and you think it is too
old. In fact it is perfect! Some varieties stay with a smooth skin right
through ripeness, so you can tell them by the colour change. Oh and some
varieties are yellow, and some yellow ones are elongated (called "banana
passionfruit" in australia). Some have very thick pithy skins. Some have
thin not very pithy skins. They all taste devine. The riper they are,
the sweeter they are, but they all have a great tang to them. I prefer
it a little before they are fully ripe.

Passionfruit will ripen off the vine, so if you have a
bird/animal/DrRuth sneaking in at midnight problem you can pick them
earlier (though I would wait till there is some purpleness, not all
green) and let them ripen on the windowsill.

Also, how do I get the seeds from the fruit? I saw a post
that said the fruit had to rot a little before getting the seed.

If you mean to plant the seed, then just let the passionfruit sit till
it has totally dried out, cut it open, wash off the dried up pulp and
plant the seeds. This works for me just fine when I have the selfcontrol
to not eat a passionfruit.

If you mean to get the seeds out so you can eat the pulp - forget it.
Just slice in half, trying not to lose the juice, and use a teaspoon to
just eat the lot. Well you can use a fine fine cooking sieve if you
really want to remove the seeds but it's way too much trouble. You don't
even notice you are eating the seeds - you are too distracted by the
great flavour of the pulp.

Oh - a hint when shopping for passionfruit at Central Market. They cost
the earth here, so you want your money's worth. Weigh them in your hand.
Go for the heavy ones. They vary a GREAT deal, mostly due to the amount
of juice in them.

Alternate Personality wrote:

I have a general question about passion flowers. I've got them, native,
all over my property.

I don't know about "native". Are they native to texas, or did someone
have one planted once and it has just fruited some year and spread
itself about.

Does anyone have any idea why:
(2) why I never see fruit?

It seems in general in the US, the different passiflora species are
grown for their flowers. I dont' know if some of them are bred
specifically in a way that reduces fruiting. As I said in answer to
Starlia's last posting on passionfruit, it is very unusual to get fruit
off a passionvine in Austin. It usually takes a number of years to get
to the fruiting stage and it is very hard with our hard frosts to keep a
vine alive many years.

Which reminds me..

starlia wrote:

If you are local you can have a cutting of the vine to see if it
gives you any fruit.

I emailed you starlia, but you didn't respond. I'd love a cutting.

DrRuth

Passion Flowers & Fruit
 

I would also like to see the native flowers.
"animaux" wrote in message
...
Can you produce a photo of the flower you do have? What color is it?


On Wed, 16 Jul 2003 00:17:47 GMT, "Alternate Personality"
wrote:

I have a general question about passion flowers. I've got them, native,
all
over my property. I know they are passion flowers because one of the
vines
occasionally blooms. But, many of the vines never bloom at all, and those
few that occasionally produce a flower or two never form any fruit. I've
got
plenty of flies, bees, wasps, mosquitos, birds, etc., so I doubt lack of
pollination is the problem. Some vines are in full sun, others partial
shade, others full shade. I have good (i.e., imported from Gardenville or
equivalent) soil in most areas. Does anyone have any idea why: (1) my
vines
so seldom bloom (I get maybe three blossoms total per season, and have
had
none so far this year), and (2) why I never see fruit? The vines
themselves
are quite vigorous, especially the ones that get a lot of sun. And I have
other blooming plants that have no problem making flowers, and pepper
plants
that have no problem making fruit.

thanks,
alternate


"starlia" wrote in message
...
During the past week I have had about 15 more flowers turn into fruit.
I've
been cross pollinating with my finger which seems to be successful.

One question. I left one of the fruits on the vine assuming that it
wasn't
big enough to eat. I have a blue passion flower and thought they would
get
at least 1 1/2" inches in size before they were good to eat. It seems
I
left the first one on too long. When do I know when it would be okay
to
pick and eat? Also, how do I get the seeds from the fruit? I saw a
post
that said the fruit had to rot a little before getting the seed.

Thanks!

Passion Flowers & Fruit
 

Nope, haven't fed them. Is it too late this year to give it a try?

thanks,
alternate

"animaux" wrote in message
...
When mine flowers, there's no stopping it. When I planted them I used
soft rock
phosphate. It seems to be a more available phosphorous to plants,which
triggers
the flowering mechanism. Have you fed it?

On Thu, 17 Jul 2003 02:40:19 GMT, "Alternate Personality"
wrote:

Well, I'll keep you posted. Perhaps the person who owned my property
before
I did put in some non-native varieties. As of this writing, I have at
least
20 vines (some easily 30 feet in length), and zero flowers. I've probably
only had a dozen blooms, total, in the last 10 years, and I believe they
were all bluish-purple in color. I had more or less come to the
conclusion
that passion flowers just didn't want to flower in this part of Texas,
but
that clearly has not been the experience of others in this group.

-alternate

"animaux" wrote in message
.. .
Passiflora is a relatively large variety of plants within it's family.
The only
one native to Texas, I believe (correct me if I'm wrong) is the red
flowering
variety. I don't know the botanical name.


On Wed, 16 Jul 2003 12:43:12 GMT, "Alternate Personality"
wrote:

So far this summer, I have not had a single flower, so I don't have
anything
to photograph at the moment. The flowers, when they occur, are large
(maybe
3" in diameter), and a beautiful deep blue with a hint of purple. I'm
99.99
percent certain they are passion flowers, based on photos I've seen of
passion flowers. But if I get any blooms this summer, I'll be more
than
happy to send you a photo.

thanks,
alternate

"animaux" wrote in message
.. .
Can you produce a photo of the flower you do have? What color is
it?


On Wed, 16 Jul 2003 00:17:47 GMT, "Alternate Personality"
wrote:

I have a general question about passion flowers. I've got them,
native,
all
over my property. I know they are passion flowers because one of
the
vines
occasionally blooms. But, many of the vines never bloom at all, and
those
few that occasionally produce a flower or two never form any fruit.
I've
got
plenty of flies, bees, wasps, mosquitos, birds, etc., so I doubt
lack
of
pollination is the problem. Some vines are in full sun, others
partial
shade, others full shade. I have good (i.e., imported from
Gardenville
or
equivalent) soil in most areas. Does anyone have any idea why: (1)
my
vines
so seldom bloom (I get maybe three blossoms total per season, and
have
had
none so far this year), and (2) why I never see fruit? The vines
themselves
are quite vigorous, especially the ones that get a lot of sun. And
I
have
other blooming plants that have no problem making flowers, and
pepper
plants
that have no problem making fruit.

thanks,
alternate


"starlia" wrote in message
...
During the past week I have had about 15 more flowers turn into
fruit.
I've
been cross pollinating with my finger which seems to be
successful.

One question. I left one of the fruits on the vine assuming that
it
wasn't
big enough to eat. I have a blue passion flower and thought they
would
get
at least 1 1/2" inches in size before they were good to eat. It
seems
I
left the first one on too long. When do I know when it would be
okay
to
pick and eat? Also, how do I get the seeds from the fruit? I
saw a
post
that said the fruit had to rot a little before getting the seed.

Thanks!

Passion Flowers & Fruit
 

http://www.csdl.tamu.edu/FLORA/ftc/dft/imatxpas.htm

I thought we only had one variety of passiflora as a Texas native. I was
incorrect, apparently. The URL above lists several.
v


On Thu, 17 Jul 2003 20:18:44 -0500, "starlia" wrote:

I would also like to see the native flowers.
"animaux" wrote in message
.. .
Can you produce a photo of the flower you do have? What color is it?


On Wed, 16 Jul 2003 00:17:47 GMT, "Alternate Personality"
wrote:

I have a general question about passion flowers. I've got them, native,
all
over my property. I know they are passion flowers because one of the
vines
occasionally blooms. But, many of the vines never bloom at all, and those
few that occasionally produce a flower or two never form any fruit. I've
got
plenty of flies, bees, wasps, mosquitos, birds, etc., so I doubt lack of
pollination is the problem. Some vines are in full sun, others partial
shade, others full shade. I have good (i.e., imported from Gardenville or
equivalent) soil in most areas. Does anyone have any idea why: (1) my
vines
so seldom bloom (I get maybe three blossoms total per season, and have
had
none so far this year), and (2) why I never see fruit? The vines
themselves
are quite vigorous, especially the ones that get a lot of sun. And I have
other blooming plants that have no problem making flowers, and pepper
plants
that have no problem making fruit.

thanks,
alternate


"starlia" wrote in message
...
During the past week I have had about 15 more flowers turn into fruit.
I've
been cross pollinating with my finger which seems to be successful.

One question. I left one of the fruits on the vine assuming that it
wasn't
big enough to eat. I have a blue passion flower and thought they would
get
at least 1 1/2" inches in size before they were good to eat. It seems
I
left the first one on too long. When do I know when it would be okay
to
pick and eat? Also, how do I get the seeds from the fruit? I saw a
post
that said the fruit had to rot a little before getting the seed.

Thanks!

Passion Flowers & Fruit
 

http://www.csdl.tamu.edu/FLORA/ftc/dft/imatxpas.htm

I thought we only had one variety of passiflora as a Texas native. I was
incorrect, apparently. The URL above lists several.
v


On Thu, 17 Jul 2003 20:18:44 -0500, "starlia" wrote:

I would also like to see the native flowers.
"animaux" wrote in message
.. .
Can you produce a photo of the flower you do have? What color is it?


On Wed, 16 Jul 2003 00:17:47 GMT, "Alternate Personality"
wrote:

I have a general question about passion flowers. I've got them, native,
all
over my property. I know they are passion flowers because one of the
vines
occasionally blooms. But, many of the vines never bloom at all, and those
few that occasionally produce a flower or two never form any fruit. I've
got
plenty of flies, bees, wasps, mosquitos, birds, etc., so I doubt lack of
pollination is the problem. Some vines are in full sun, others partial
shade, others full shade. I have good (i.e., imported from Gardenville or
equivalent) soil in most areas. Does anyone have any idea why: (1) my
vines
so seldom bloom (I get maybe three blossoms total per season, and have
had
none so far this year), and (2) why I never see fruit? The vines
themselves
are quite vigorous, especially the ones that get a lot of sun. And I have
other blooming plants that have no problem making flowers, and pepper
plants
that have no problem making fruit.

thanks,
alternate


"starlia" wrote in message
...
During the past week I have had about 15 more flowers turn into fruit.
I've
been cross pollinating with my finger which seems to be successful.

One question. I left one of the fruits on the vine assuming that it
wasn't
big enough to eat. I have a blue passion flower and thought they would
get
at least 1 1/2" inches in size before they were good to eat. It seems
I
left the first one on too long. When do I know when it would be okay
to
pick and eat? Also, how do I get the seeds from the fruit? I saw a
post
that said the fruit had to rot a little before getting the seed.

Thanks!

Passion Flowers & Fruit
 

http://www.csdl.tamu.edu/FLORA/ftc/dft/imatxpas.htm

I thought we only had one variety of passiflora as a Texas native. I was
incorrect, apparently. The URL above lists several.
v


On Thu, 17 Jul 2003 20:18:44 -0500, "starlia" wrote:

I would also like to see the native flowers.
"animaux" wrote in message
.. .
Can you produce a photo of the flower you do have? What color is it?


On Wed, 16 Jul 2003 00:17:47 GMT, "Alternate Personality"
wrote:

I have a general question about passion flowers. I've got them, native,
all
over my property. I know they are passion flowers because one of the
vines
occasionally blooms. But, many of the vines never bloom at all, and those
few that occasionally produce a flower or two never form any fruit. I've
got
plenty of flies, bees, wasps, mosquitos, birds, etc., so I doubt lack of
pollination is the problem. Some vines are in full sun, others partial
shade, others full shade. I have good (i.e., imported from Gardenville or
equivalent) soil in most areas. Does anyone have any idea why: (1) my
vines
so seldom bloom (I get maybe three blossoms total per season, and have
had
none so far this year), and (2) why I never see fruit? The vines
themselves
are quite vigorous, especially the ones that get a lot of sun. And I have
other blooming plants that have no problem making flowers, and pepper
plants
that have no problem making fruit.

thanks,
alternate


"starlia" wrote in message
...
During the past week I have had about 15 more flowers turn into fruit.
I've
been cross pollinating with my finger which seems to be successful.

One question. I left one of the fruits on the vine assuming that it
wasn't
big enough to eat. I have a blue passion flower and thought they would
get
at least 1 1/2" inches in size before they were good to eat. It seems
I
left the first one on too long. When do I know when it would be okay
to
pick and eat? Also, how do I get the seeds from the fruit? I saw a
post
that said the fruit had to rot a little before getting the seed.

Thanks!