Clockwise from left: P. quadrangularis, P. quadrangularis, P.racemosa, P.edulis, P.racemosa. Photos by Kat Pearson.
BY KAT PEARSON, GIRL IN THE GREEN
Ah, the ubiquitous passionfruit. Just like mulberries and lemon trees, they have been a staple backyard addition for forever. Apart from a tendency to smother anything in their path, they take relatively little effort and soon produce so much fruit that you can’t make enough pavlovas. Assuming the rats don’t eat them first. Or the possums.
But, in my opinion, there is more to the passionfruit than the fruit. The flowers are stunning, and in a climate where we can’t grow delicate clematis and perhaps struggle with climbing roses, Passiflora vines are here for you.
If you have yet to pay attention to the common Passiflora edulis (or regular edible passionfruit) flowers, they are works of beauty. The base ring of petals with the frilly ‘corona filaments’ sitting on top, stick out at right angles like a tutu. Look at the flower from the side, and you will notice the anther and stigma (boy and girl bits) sticking up, looking, at least to me, quite alien-like. And if you thought the regular passionfruit flowers were something special, you need to investigate some of the other species.
Another variety that produces edible fruit is P. quadrangularis or the giant granadilla. These fruit grow to the size of a football, and I’ve heard they taste like sweet tropical melon, although I wouldn’t know because the few fruit my vine has managed to produce have been eaten by rats. We all know rats always take the good stuff, though, so I assume they’re delicious. Nevertheless, I persist because the flowers are out of this world! A similar structure to P. edulis, they are much bigger, have even more squiggly (technical term there) filaments and are the most brilliant shade of purple.
Another stunner, not grown for fruit, is P. racemosa. The filaments are smaller, but the longer coral-coloured petals are reflexed (bent backwards), and as the species name suggests, flowers are born in racemes or clusters that hang down from a slightly less boisterous vine, making it the perfect climber for an obelisk or graceful archway.
Regular passionfruit vines are available everywhere. The other two I mentioned should be able to be sourced through local nurseries or online.
