Description
Waingaro is a late-ripening pineapple guava bred by Nigel Ritson in Golden Bay, New Zealand, and one of his own favorites among the cultivars he released. The fruit is large, with a sweet-tart flavor and fragrant tropical notes.
Because it ripens later than most pineapple guavas, Waingaro stretches the harvest season when paired with an earlier cultivar.
Overview
- Large fruit, sweet-tart with fragrant tropical notes
- Late-season ripening
- Bred by Nigel Ritson in Golden Bay, New Zealand
- Partially self-fertile
- Hardier than it looks; an established plant shrugs off brief single-digit cold
Growing Details
Latin Name: Acca sellowiana ‘Waingaro’
Site and Soil: Full sun to part shade; well-drained soil
Hardiness:Hardy to roughly 10F – mature plants have survived lower
Rootstock: Grafted onto pineapple guava seedling rootstock
Bearing Age: 2 to 3 years after planting
Size at Maturity: 10 to 12 ft – often maintained smaller
Ripening Time: Late season; October into November
Pollination: Partially self-fertile; plant a second cultivar for a full crop
Pests & Diseases: Generally resistant; few issues in most regions
Yield: Heavy cropping
Additional Notes
- Grower’s Insight: Pair Waingaro with an earlier-ripening cultivar such as Takaka to stretch the pineapple guava harvest across the whole season.
- Regional Insight: Waingaro needs a long, warm growing season to ripen fully, so it performs best along the Gulf Coast, in coastal California, and across the Southeast.
- Explore more pineapple guavas in our collection: Pineapple Guavas
