Banana Passion Fruit (Passiflora mollisima)
At a glance
- Exposure
- Full sun
- Frost limit
- −23.3 °C
Cultivation
Requires a well-drained soil with plenty of moisture in the growing season, otherwise it is not fussy. One report says that this plant is hardy to climatic zone 6 (tolerating frosts of -20°c). Outdoor grown plants should have their roots restricted in order to reduce vegetative growth and encourage fruiting. Cultivated for its edible fruit in S. America. A climbing plant, attaching itself to other plants by means of tendrils that are produced at the leaf axils. Plants in this genus are notably resistant to honey fungus.
Propagation
Pre-soak the seed for 12 hours in warm water and then sow late winter or early spring in a warm greenhouse. If sown in January and grown on fast it can flower and fruit in its first year. The seed germinates in 1 - 12 months at 20°c. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots when they are large enough to handle. It you are intending to grow the plants outdoors, it is probably best to keep them in the greenhouse for their first winter and plant them out into their permanent positions in late spring or early summer, after the last expected frosts. Mulch the roots well in late autumn to protect them from the cold. Cuttings of young shoots, 15cm with a heel, in spring. Leaf bud cuttings in spring. Cuttings of fully mature wood in early summer. Takes 3 months. High percentage.
Edible uses
Fruit - raw or cooked.
Habitat
Forests in the Andes to elevations of 3400 metres.
Native range
S. America - Venezuela and Colombia to Bolivia and Peru.