Thanks so much to everyone who let me know that the amazing flowers I showed are passionflowers or passion fruit. It occurs to me that after living downtown and then abroad for the past 20+ years, my plant knowledge has suffered greatly. I used to know the Latin names of so many plants and trees.
I went back this morning and looked at the plants again and realized that they actually have fruit on them. 
I’ve heard from a number of people that this vine is very invasive. I am sure that the birds eat the fruit and then drop the seeds all around. Below, you can see the remains of the flower and the now-tiny fruit emerging from it. 
For more information on passionflowers and the legend behind the name, click here.
I am not sure where you heard that passionfruit is inedible. As a rule, it is fragrant and delicious, and consumed in quantity in many parts of the world. I live in Taiwan, and have a bunch in my refrigerator right now.
ReplyDeleteI would check it out further before you let this treasure go to waste.
--Road to Parnassus
RtoP... I think that there are about 500 varieties, and some are toxic, and others have very little taste. i also read that some varieties have a strong fragrance, but these don't.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you--if they're not fragrant, leave them alone, although passionfruit should be eaten when the outer rind begins to wrinkle.
ReplyDeleteIf you are in a 'Euell Gibbons' mood, you can go north and get wild raspberries, blackberries, strawberries, apples, haws, mayapples, etc.--all sweet and delicious.
Passionfruit are quite yummy, when eaten when the are deep purple with dry wrinkled skins. The pulp inside make an excellent topping for ice-cream, or flavouring for icing cakes and slices!
ReplyDeleteWhilst the vines can be invasive if theyare in fertile soil, they generally only have a five year stint of bearing decent fruit, and then should be cut down and replaced anyway.
David.