2024 Author: Gavin MacAdam | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 13:38
When the Spanish conquerors, among the tropical plants of the new continent, met small trees with yellow fruits, exuding an amazingly delicate aroma, they decided that they were in an earthly paradise
Favorite food of the Aztecs and Incas
Long before the arrival of Europeans, the aborigines of America ate the gifts of nature, with which we get acquainted only today. One of these gifts is the fruit of a shrub or small tree, similar in appearance to pears, called differently in different countries.
The Latin name of the genus of plants sounds like Psidium, and is attributed by botanists to the Myrtle family. I know the plant as Guava. The fruits have the same name.
Thousands of years ago, when people had no idea about antibiotics, they were rescued from diseases by the antimicrobial ability of Guava fruits.
The healthy fruit quickly migrated from America to the tropical countries of Asia, gaining popularity among people. Its foreign origin can sometimes be recognized by the name of the fruit. For example, in Thailand the fruit is called "farang", which translated into Russian means "foreigner, alien".
The plant's high resistance to drought helped to take root in hot Africa, where the plant is called Guava.
A treasure trove of nutrients
The popularity of Guava fruits is a merit of nature, which has invested in them a lot of useful chemical elements: copper, iron, phosphorus, calcium, potassium … In addition, they contain the most important vitamins, and, in terms of vitamin C content, Guava is ahead of citrus fruits, as well as fiber, vegetable fats and proteins.
I experienced the beneficial effect of fruits on the digestion process myself when I had to live in Egypt. I forgot that I can tingle in my side, that there are constipation or diarrhea. My weak lungs and upper respiratory tract, which met any weather cataclysms with annoying lingering cough and almost never disappearing rhinitis, disappeared as if by magic. Of course, the purest Red Sea has made its own contribution.
Guava helps asthmatics get rid of asthma attacks, stimulates heart activity.
Not only the fruits are useful, but also the leaves of the plant. A decoction of them calms down a cough, helps to get rid of chronic respiratory diseases, and lowers the temperature. Crushed leaves heal fresh and abscess wounds on the skin.
Delicious fruit
Plus, Guava is a delicious fruit. True, I didn't like it the first time. Its taste cannot be compared with anything, although you can read in the literature that Guava resembles the taste of strawberries. I would not say that, although its subtle aroma is very remotely reminiscent of the aroma of strawberries. Moreover, the smell from the fruits saturates the air gradually, as if it very slowly flows out of them, filling, in the end, the room with a persistent aroma.
Although it is believed that fruits can ripen when plucked green from the tree, my experience has not shown this. The fruits that ripen later are no longer as fragrant and tender as those that ripened on the branches. Apparently, that's why you can't find Guava in our stores. It makes no sense to transport it green, but ripe it simply will not live to the counter.
For pregnant women and children, according to European nutritionists, Guava is an irreplaceable food product.
Indoor plant
Guava is a thermophilic plant, our frosty winters do not give it a chance of survival, leading to death when the column of the outdoor thermometer drops below the “minus 3 degrees” mark.
This does not stop exotic lovers who have got used to growing Guava in their home.
Numerous seeds located in the center of the fruit can wait two years in the wings. True, the seedlings will have to wait for a long time, from two to eight weeks. If you have patience, then in a couple of years, in a maximum of eight years, you can enjoy your own fragrant fruits taken from the branch.
Any soil will do for Guava, including sand, clay, but subject to a good drainage system.
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