Acca Sellowiana aka Feijoa Sellowiana (Fruit salad bush, Pineapple Guava or Guavasteen)

Another example of what my Grandpa will insist on describing as a ‘finger and thumb’ leaf. The foliage has two distinct sides with a shiny smooth upper surface that contrasts delightfully with a thick and wooly-felted underside. Thus ‘finger and thumb’…irresistible to the touch. It’s a textural combination one really has to experience with your eyes shut using one finger, and one thumb. Same hand, if you can.

Should your eyes be open at any point you’ll spot the lovely contrast in leaf colours, too. Grey green tops with silvery-white undersides. Caught in a breeze they properly dance and jiggle and are quite enchanting. Oh and they’re evergreen, too.

In Summer you’ll get a profusion of exotic flowers whose petals adhere to the same contrasting principles as the leaves, being brilliantly white on the outside and deeply purply-pink inside. The petals have a cowrie-like curl to them and rich red stamens are detonated from the centre. They are reliably self-pollinating and willl develop into greenish egg-shaped (and sized) fruits which taste of pineapple and spearmint. Sounds off-putting but once again this tree of contrasts gets it spot on. They’re delicious.

Pretty versatile and can be pruned as a tree, shrub or a hedge. Tends to do best in cities or coastal gardens where life is a little milder and with that in mind a spot in full sun against a south or west facing wall is champion. Here it will get the warmth and shelter that it needs to do properly well and produce some pineappley-minty fruit (salad).

Well drained alkaline or neutral soil is preferred, and once established it’s drought and salt tolerant so a good choice for the seaside.

There are some great examples to be admired at Wisley, but don’t go scrumping for fruit as they’re quite strict about that sort of thing there.

N.B. When clipping several plants with the same tool, have a bucket containing a 5% bleach solution and swish your blades around for 30 seconds between plants to sterilise them. This will help avoid the chance of cross contamination of disease.

As with all woody plants, plant high, exposing as much of the taper at the base of the trunk as possible. Allowing soil to accumulate round the base of a tree can be fatal. Keep very well watered when first planted.