Other Names:  Passion Fruit, Passion Flower

Description:

A spectacular vine for the garden; the large flowers are showy with cream petals and deep purple filaments; dark purple fruits are edible and attractive; wonderful for covering an arbor, trellis or lattice, the flowers are individually beautiful close up

Edible Qualities

Possum Purple Passionfruit is a woody vine that is commonly grown for its edible qualities, although it does have ornamental merits as well. It produces deep purple fruit which are typically harvested when mature. The fruits have a sweet taste and a juicy texture.

The fruit are most often used in the following ways:

• Fresh Eating
• Juice-Making

Features & Attributes

Possum Purple Passionfruit features showy lightly-scented creamy white star-shaped flowers with white overtones, chartreuse eyes and deep purple centers at the ends of the branches from early to late summer. The flowers are excellent for cutting. It has dark green deciduous foliage. The glossy compound leaves do not develop any appreciable fall color. It features an abundance of magnificent deep purple berries from late summer to mid fall. The fruit can be messy if allowed to drop on the lawn or walkways, and may require occasional clean-up.

This is a multi-stemmed deciduous woody vine with a spreading, ground-hugging habit of growth. Its average texture blends into the landscape, but can be balanced by one or two finer or coarser trees or shrubs for an effective composition. This is a relatively low maintenance plant, and is best cleaned up in early spring before it resumes active growth for the season. It is a good choice for attracting birds, bees and butterflies to your yard. It has no significant negative characteristics.

Aside from its primary use as an edible, Possum Purple Passionfruit is sutiable for the following landscape applications;

• Accent
• Hedges/Screening
• General Garden Use

Planting & Growing

Possum Purple Passionfruit will grow to be about 15 feet tall at maturity, with a spread of 30 inches. As a climbing vine, it should be planted next to a fence, trellis or other rigid structure where it can be trained to grow upwards on it. It grows at a fast rate, and under ideal conditions can be expected to live for approximately 10 years.

This woody vine is quite ornamental as well as edible, and is as much at home in a landscape or flower garden as it is in a designated edibles garden. It does best in full sun to partial shade. It does best in average to evenly moist conditions, but will not tolerate standing water. This plant does not require much in the way of fertilizing once established. It is not particular as to soil type or pH. It is somewhat tolerant of urban pollution. Consider applying a thick mulch around the root zone in winter to protect it in exposed locations or colder microclimates. This is a selected variety of a species not originally from North America.