How to Grow Your Own Passionfruit Vine
Warm weather is great for deliciously healthy fruit salads… and you know what can be a nice addition to a fruit salad? Passionfruit! Not only is passionfruit great for fruit salads, but it can also be an added topping for a homemade cheesecake or Christmas pavlova.
You may really enjoy eating passionfruit, but did you know that it’s also pretty easy to grow?! In fact, it’s a hardy plant that can be grown by those new to gardening, as well as experienced green thumbs.
Today, we take a look at how to grow your own passionfruit vine! Read on to find out more.
Where does the passionfruit plant come from?
The passionfruit plant is native to northern Argentina, southern Brazil, and throughout Paraguay. It grows well in tropical and subtropical areas.
Different types of passionfruit
There are several different types of passionfruit available. The type most commonly grown in Australia is the passiflora edulis. This passionfruit has dark purple skin, with a yellow to orange pulp surrounding its black seeds, and is the kind you likely frequently see in supermarkets. Varieties of passiflora edulis include Misty Gem and Sweetheart.
Another type is the passiflora flavicarpa, which has a skin that can range from yellow to red, depending on the variety. Varieties of the Passiflora flavicarpa include Pandora and McGuffies Red.
Before you begin, you’ll need to decide on which type of passionfruit you wish to grow!
How to grow your own passionfruit vine
Passionfruit vines love warm tropical and subtropical areas, which means they can be great for growing across many areas of Australia. If you’ve always dreamed of having a gorgeous, sprawling passionfruit vine that you can pick fresh fruit from, why not make the dream a reality and begin growing your own plant?! So, what are the steps to getting started?
Step 1: Acquire your passionfruit seedling or seeds
First, you’ll need to decide whether you wish to grow your passionfruit vine from seed or from a cutting. Next time you’re eating a tasty passionfruit, save a teaspoon of the seeds, remove the yellow-orange pulp, and rinse the seeds off. Leave these seeds to dry for a few days, then plant them. Alternatively, you can purchase seeds or grafted plants from your local nursery or plant supplier.
Step 2: Prepare the soil
These plants don’t like to compete with weeds, so make sure you remove any that are around the space where you are looking to plant your vine. Passionfruit plants enjoy having soil with plenty of organic matter for nutrients. You can also place straw on top to help insulate the plant if you live in a less-tropical region.
Step 3: Choose a sunny spot with support
Passionfruit plants love a little bit of sunshine, so plant them in a spot where they can soak up plenty of sun. About 6-8 hours of sunlight a day is ideal for these plants. Passionfruit vines love to climb, so a space with a trellis is great. You could also grow a passionfruit vine along a fence or gate, with sticks allowing the plant to easily climb and find support. If you don’t have space in your garden, or wish to have the option of moving your plant when needed, you can plant your passionfruit in a large pot, with support sticks or a trellis.
Step 4: Plant your plant and water it well
Once the spot is chosen and prepared, it’s time to plant your passionfruit! You can either choose to plant your passionfruit seeds in a small pot, and relocate them once they have become established seedlings, or plant them directly into the spot you wish them to stay. Water them well, as passionfruit vines love frequent watering, particularly when they have just been planted and when they are growing delicious fruit.
Step 5: Be patient
Don’t go into this whole process thinking you’ll plant your seeds and have yummy passionfruit to eat in a couple of months. It often takes between 12 and 18 months for a passionfruit vine to begin producing fruit, so don’t be too worried if your plant doesn’t produce any in the first year. In the meantime, keep your plant well-watered and maintained.
Read up on some of our tips for growing a passionfruit vine below!
Tips for growing your passionfruit vine
Plant in the spring
Spring is the ideal time to begin growing your passionfruit vine. Spring is a great time for planting many different plants, and the passionfruit vine is no different!
Weed the suckers
Passionfruit vines can sometimes produce something called suckers. These suckers can go a little wild if left in place and can cause damage to other plants in your garden. If you see these five-fingered plants with blue and white flowers popping up, remove them immediately. To find out exactly what to look for, have a search online at how the look of suckers differs from the fruiting plant you wish to grow.
Train the vines
These plants like to have support when growing. To help them on their growth journey, guide the vines to grow in the direction you wish them to. If you have sticks, trellis, or a fence next to your plant, gently position the vines to grow along them. If your plants won’t stay in place, gently tie them in place with soft plant ties.
We hope you’ve enjoyed learning a little bit about how to grow your own passionfruit vine! Why not think about growing your own passionfruit vine this spring? Next year you could be enjoying delicious passionfruit grown from your very own garden!
