I know that drinking guava leaves has many medicinal benefits. One of which is to help ease painful menstrual cramps. I have only tried the packaged guava leaves sold in tea bags and think they are helpful.
But I wonder if these Brazilian guava leaves would also do the same. So I picked a handful of guava leaves and took them home with me. I have made a few cups of tea with them. They taste a little bit different then the packaged guava leaves. It’s not as bitter and taste much more light with a bit of tang.
Photo of Brazilian guava leaves and also little buds of either fruit or blossom. They look more like the flower buds. Photo taken by Cambree in San Jose, Ca.
The leaves are also a bit fuzzy all around. But it’s not itchy unlike other hairy plants. Even if the trees won’t bear any fruits, I still think a good idea to grow it for the leaves. This way you have brew your very own cup of guava leaves anytime.
The photo of leaves I took in San Jose, CA look a bit different then these leaves from Trades Wind Fruit. But as long as the fruits are guavas, then I think the leaves have the same benefits.
Ripe and round Brazilian guava. Trades Wind Fruit describes them as, “Round or pear shaped fruit similar in size and appearance to the common guava. The rind is yellow, enclosing a white acidic pulp with a guava-strawberry flavor. “ I can’t wait to go back to the orchard when these are ripe and ready for picking. These little fruits are also pack with vitamins and nutrients.
Photo from Trades Wind Fruit.
12:02 am on June 17th, 2009
I like the Thai guava, they taste especially good when ripen. The young ones are a bit tart and we’d eat them with hot sauce, you can find these at the fruit stand in Thailand or Laos, one of my favorites.
Did you have to dry the leaves first to make the tea?
12:33 am on June 18th, 2009
Thai guava sound good. I think they have light green skin and pink flesh? I love the smell, it’s the most fragrant fruit ever to me.
As for the leaves - I was thinking of using fresh leaves, but decided to use dry leaves. I just put them in a try and leave in the oven. It dries up in a few days.
3:46 pm on June 19th, 2009
We had guava trees in our backyard in Laos. I remembered climbing the fence to the tree and how the fragrance smell simply filled the air when ripen. I wish I can grow them in my backyard…maybe in time with the global warming:))
7:30 pm on June 20th, 2009
Sound like you had a good and adventurous childhood.
Btw, have you consider getting a greenhouse? I think you would have plenty of room in your garden for one.
6:32 am on June 21st, 2009
The darn HOA would not allow such thing…but I’m going to build a small, temporary one anyway this fall to cover my papaya plant, tapioca, logan (I know this grows into a large fruit tree in Laos, but maybe if I can establish it, I can prune/train it to a smaller tree…experimenting), hot pepper, etc. There’s a section of my garden where I planted these in closed approximation so I can built a small greenhouse over them in winter. Last year I had two beautiful papaya plants, and of course they died during winter.
If the HOA say something then maybe I’ll build a small potting room in connection with my storage (which is not built yet), but built it with a slightly higher roof, etc…I guess the best thing is to have my own land, maybe one day.
11:28 pm on June 22nd, 2009
Sound like HOA are common in your part of the state. In Ca, HOA are usually found in gated communities or townhomes. The suburbs have city codes they have to stick with, such as no oil spills or too much junk. But if you live outside the city limits, it’s pretty much hands-off.
Yes - it would be neat to have your own land, space to do as you please. Be really self sufficient and use solar and wind to power your home.
But you don’t want to be too far off the grid!