The delicious passion fruit is the fruit of the passion flower, which is also valued as a flowering plant because of its striking flowers. The various species of the fruit plant, often referred to as passion fruit, originally come from Australia, South and Central America.
Where does passion fruit come from?
The passion fruit originally comes from Australia, South and Central America and belongs to the genus of passion flowers (Passiflora). Today, passion fruits are grown worldwide in tropical climates; the main growing areas include Africa, India, Australia and South America.
The origin of the name
The names passion flower and passion fruit go back to the discovery of the extraordinary flowers of the passion flower by Jesuits in South America. They believed that they had discovered symbols of the Passion of Christ in the eye-catching flowers and their shape and color design. Individual parts of the flower such as the pistil, aureole and anther are said to symbolize cross nails, stigmata and the crown of thorns.
The most important passion fruit growing areas
Today, there are more than 530 different plant species worldwide in the passion flower genus (Passiflora). Most of them originally come from Central and South America, but certain species are also native to Southeast Asian countries and the South Pacific region. Passion fruits are now used commercially in many countries with tropical climates. These include, for example:
- Africa
- India
- Australia
- South America
The fruits sold commercially in this country mainly come from Kenya, South Africa and Sri Lanka. The fruits are still considered exotic on the fruit shelf, but the passion fruit juice obtained from the yellow passion fruit has been included in many fruit juices for decades. This may also be because yellow passion fruits make a very refreshing juice, but in terms of taste they are inferior to purple passion fruits.
Cultivate passion fruit yourself in the pot
Since passionflowers come from tropical climates, they are not frost hardy and have difficulty withstanding temperatures below 10 degrees Celsius. The sensitive climbing plants can therefore only be grown as houseplants or as potted plants for balconies and terraces that have overwintered in the house. Seeds for various types of passionflower can be purchased from specialist seed retailers. The seeds of purchased fruits are usually consumed together with the pulp surrounding them. If the seeds are to be used for sowing in pots, the pulp must first be removed so that the seeds do not become moldy during the germination phase.
Tips & Tricks
There is a persistent rumor that particularly shriveled passion fruits are also particularly tasty and ripe. However, even plump fruits can be fully ripe and particularly shriveled fruits are sometimes overripe and no longer particularly refreshing.