PASSIFLORA herbertiana - Native Passion Fruit

A rare edible passion fruit native to Australia with large and succulent fruits which are white-fleshed with a tasty flavour.
It produces delightful pale apricot flowers that occur in spring, followed by fruits ripening 3-4 months later. The leaves are three-lobed, but can also be entire (not lobed)

It is reported to have the best flavour of the native passion fruit.

Grows very rapidly and occurs naturally in New South Wales and Queensland.

Prefers medium to heavy soil in a protected shaded position. Drought and frost tender.

Please Note: Although many of the traditional Bush Food and Medicine plants are now commercially produced in various forms we recommend you research these before using them as any form of food or medicine. Some parts of the plant may not be edible or some may need to be prepared before they are safe to eat or use in any way. We do our best to describe their traditional & modern uses. It is the purchaser's responsibility to ensure they are fit for their intended use.

Grow note:

Although seed can be sown most of the year in many parts of Australia seed is generally best sown in spring or autumn, avoid the coldest and hottest months of the year. The optimum germination temperature for germination is around 23-25°C

To assist in the uptake of moisture for germination to occur seed is best soaked in warm water for 24 hours prior to sowing.

A warm water soak is recommended for this species.

1. Place the seed in a container with warm water (around 25°C) and allow it to soak 24hrs.
2. Sow seed on the surface of a porous seed raising mix. The seed will lodge in the pores of the mix once watered.
3. Cover lightly with the seed-raising mix. Do not bury the seed to deeply.
4. Water with fine mist spray to avoid disturbance of the seed.
5. Place in a warm shaded or semi-shaded position to avoid dying out.
6. Keep warm & moist, and avoid drying out or waterlogging the growing mix.
7. Germination should occur in 30-60 days @ 25-30°C

General note: Seeds of many natives are dormant and require specific conditions or pre-treatment for germination.
Do not be too hasty to discard seed that does not germinate, seeds will often lay dormant until the conditions are similar to their natural requirements for germination to occur. Containers put to one side will often surprise long after they were discarded.