Taxon: Psidium guajava L.

Summary

Genus:

Psidium

Family:

Myrtaceae

Subfamily:

Myrtoideae

Tribe:

Myrteae

Nomen number:

30205

Place of publication:

Sp. pl. 1:470. 1753

Typification:

View in Linnean Typification Project

Verified:

03/23/1993 ARS Systematic Botanists.

Accessions:

184 (57 active, 46 available) in National Plant Germplasm System. (Map it)

Other conspecific taxa

Autonyms (not in current use), synonyms and invalid designations

Heterotypic Synonym(s)
Psidium cujavillus Burm. f.
Psidium pomiferum L.
Psidium pumilum Vahl
Psidium pyriferum L.

Images (2 total. Click on image for more.)

Conservation Status

Reference(s)

University of Georgia Center for Invasive Species and Ecosystem Health
Acevedo-Rodríguez, P. et al. 1996. Flora of St. John, U.S. Virgin Islands. Mem. New York Bot. Gard. 78:1-581.
Adams, C. 1972. Flowering plants of Jamaica
Aldén, B., S. Ryman, & M. Hjertson. 2012. Svensk Kulturväxtdatabas, SKUD (Swedish Cultivated and Utility Plants Database; online resource)
APHIS. Agricultural Risk Management System United States Department of Agriculture.
Bernardi, L. 1985. Contribución a la dendrología paraguaya. II. Boissiera 37:146.
Brako, L. & J. L. Zarucchi. 1993. Catalogue of the flowering plants and gymnosperms of Peru. Monogr. Syst. Bot. Missouri Bot. Gard. 45
Carneiro, R. M. D. G. et al. 2012. Major guava nematodes and control prospects using resistance on Psidium spp. and non-host crops. Acta Hort. 959:41-49.
Conant, P. et al. 1997. Appendix. Selected plant species interfering with resource management goals in North American natural areas. In: Luken, J. O. & J. W. Thieret, eds., Assessment and management of plant invasions. 255-267.
Correll, D. S. & H. B. Correll. 1982. Flora of the Bahama archipelago.
Costa, I. R. & E. R. Forni-Martins. 2006. Chromosome studies in Brazilian species of Campomanesia Ruiz & Pávon and Psidium L. (Myrtaceae Juss.). Caryologia 59:7-13. Note: 2n=22
Costa, I. R. et al. 2008. Nuclear genome size variation in fleshy-fruited Neotropical Myrtaceae. Pl. Syst. Evol. 276:209-217.
Duke, J. A. et al. 2002. CRC Handbook of medicinal herbs
Encke, F. et al. 1993. Zander: Handwörterbuch der Pflanzennamen, 14. Auflage
Facciola, S. 1990. Cornucopia, a source book of edible plants Kampong Publications.
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). 2010. Ecocrop (on-line resource).
Forzza, R. C. et al., coord. Lista de espécies da flora do Brasil (on-line resource). Note: as naturalized
Girija, T. & Tabish. Flowers of India (on-line resource).
Groth, D. 2005. pers. comm. Note: re. Brazilian common names
Hackett, C. & J. Carolane. 1982. Edible Horticultural Crops Academic Press.
Henderson, L. 2001. Alien weeds and invasive plants: a complete guide to declared weeds and invaders in South Africa. Plant Protection Research Institute, Handbook 12
Hiwale, S. 2015. Chapter 14. Guava (Psidium guajava). Sustainable horticulture in semiarid dry lands Springer, India., New Delhi. 213-224.
Holm, L. et al. 1979. A geographical atlas of world weeds
Integrated Botanical Information System (IBIS). Australian plant common name database (on-line resource).
IPGRI. New World Fruits Database (on-line resource).
Killeen, T. J. et al. 1993. Guia de arboles de Bolivia
Krüssmann, G. 1984. Manual of cultivated broad-leaved trees and shrubs (English translation of Handbuch der Laubgehölze. 1976)
Lazarides, M. & B. Hince. 1993. CSIRO Handbook of Economic Plants of Australia
León (J. S. Sauget) & Alain (E. E. Liogier). 1946-1969. Flora de Cuba
Liberty Hyde Bailey Hortorium. 1976. Hortus third. A concise dictionary of plants cultivated in the United States and Canada
Liogier, H. A. 1984-. Descriptive flora of Puerto Rico and adjacent islands.
Macbride, J. F. et al., eds. 1936-. Flora of Peru Note: 1936-1971; new ser. 1980-
Markle, G. M. et al., eds. 1998. Food and feed crops of the United States, ed. 2
McGuffin, M., J. T. Kartesz, A. Y. Leung, & A. O. Tucker. 2000. Herbs of commerce, ed. 2 American Herbal Products Association, Silver Spring, Maryland.
Mitra, S. K. et al. 2012. Taxonomy and importance of Myrtaceae. Acta Hort. 959:23-34.
Personal Care Products Council. International Nomenclature Cosmetic Ingredient
Pommer, C. V. & K. R. N. Murakami. 2009. Chapter 3. Breeding guava (Psidium guajava L.). In: Jain, S. M. & P.M. Priyadarshan, eds., Breeding plantation tree crops: tropical species 83-120. Note: 2n=22
Porcher, M. H. et al. Searchable World Wide Web Multilingual Multiscript Plant Name Database (MMPND) (on-line resource).
Rehm, S. 1994. Multilingual dictionary of agronomic plants
Reichel, S. 1998. pers. comm. Note: re. German common names
Reitz, R., ed. 1965-. Flora ilustrada catarinense.
Sitther, V. et al. 2014. Genetic characterization of guava (Psidium guajava L.) germplasm in the United States using microsatellite markers. Genet. Resources Crop Evol. 61:829-839.
Standley, P. C. & J. A. Steyermark. 1946-1976. Flora of Guatemala.
Tuler, A. C. et al. 2015. SSR markers: a tool for species identification in Psidium (Myrtaceae). Molec. Biol. Rep. 42:1501-1513.
Verheij, E. W. M. & R. E. Coronel, eds. 1991. Edible fruits and nuts. In: Faridah Hanum, I. & L. J. G. van der Maesen, eds., Plant Resources of South-East Asia (PROSEA) 2:266.
Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:805. DOI: 10.1016/j.mb.2016.06.017.
Weber, E. 2003. Invasive plant species of the world: a reference guide to environmental weeds
Woodson, R. E. & R. W. Schery, eds. 1943-1980. Flora of Panama.
Yaacob, O. & S. Subhadrabandhu. 1995. The production of economic fruits in South-East Asia

Common names

Language	Name	seq	Citation
English	common guava	1	Integrated Botanical Information System (IBIS). Australian plant common name database (on-line resource).
English	guava	1	Wiersema, J. H. & B. León. 1999. World economic plants: a standard reference CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL.
English	lemon guava	1	Facciola, S. 1990. Cornucopia, a source book of edible plants Kampong Publications.
English	yellow guava	1	Integrated Botanical Information System (IBIS). Australian plant common name database (on-line resource).
Afrikaans	koejawel	2	Henderson, L. 2001. Alien weeds and invasive plants: a complete guide to declared weeds and invaders in South Africa. Plant Protection Research Institute, Handbook 12
French	goyavier	2	Rehm, S. 1994. Multilingual dictionary of agronomic plants
German	Guave	2	Reichel, S. 1998. pers. comm. Note: re. German common names
German	Guavenbaum	2	Rehm, S. 1994. Multilingual dictionary of agronomic plants
German	Guayave	2	Encke, F. et al. 1993. Zander: Handwörterbuch der Pflanzennamen, 14. Auflage
India (Hindi)	amrood	2	Girija, T. & Tabish. Flowers of India (on-line resource).
Japanese Rōmaji	banjirō	2	Porcher, M. H. et al. Searchable World Wide Web Multilingual Multiscript Plant Name Database (MMPND) (on-line resource).
Portuguese	goiaba	2	Reitz, R., ed. 1965-. Flora ilustrada catarinense.
Portuguese	goiabeiro	2	Rehm, S. 1994. Multilingual dictionary of agronomic plants
Portuguese (Brazil)	araçá-goiaba	2	Groth, D. 2005. pers. comm. Note: re. Brazilian common names
Portuguese (Brazil)	araçá-guaçú	2	Groth, D. 2005. pers. comm. Note: re. Brazilian common names
Portuguese (Brazil)	guaiaba	2	Groth, D. 2005. pers. comm. Note: re. Brazilian common names
Portuguese (Brazil)	guaiava	2	Groth, D. 2005. pers. comm. Note: re. Brazilian common names
Spanish	guayaba	2	Rehm, S. 1994. Multilingual dictionary of agronomic plants
Spanish	guayabo	2	Rehm, S. 1994. Multilingual dictionary of agronomic plants
Swedish	guava	2	Aldén, B., S. Ryman, & M. Hjertson. 2012. Svensk Kulturväxtdatabas, SKUD (Swedish Cultivated and Utility Plants Database; online resource)

Distribution

order_code	Status	Continent	Subcontinent	Country	State	Note	Reference
1	Native	Northern America	Northern Mexico	Mexico	Baja California Sur		Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:805. DOI: 10.1016/j.mb.2016.06.017.
1	Native	Northern America	Northern Mexico	Mexico	Chihuahua		Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:805. DOI: 10.1016/j.mb.2016.06.017.
1	Native	Northern America	Northern Mexico	Mexico	Coahuila de Zaragoza		Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:805. DOI: 10.1016/j.mb.2016.06.017.
1	Native	Northern America	Northern Mexico	Mexico	Durango		Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:805. DOI: 10.1016/j.mb.2016.06.017.
1	Native	Northern America	Northern Mexico	Mexico	Nuevo León		Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:805. DOI: 10.1016/j.mb.2016.06.017.
1	Native	Northern America	Northern Mexico	Mexico	San Luis Potosí		Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:805. DOI: 10.1016/j.mb.2016.06.017.
1	Native	Northern America	Northern Mexico	Mexico	Sinaloa		Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:805. DOI: 10.1016/j.mb.2016.06.017.
1	Native	Northern America	Northern Mexico	Mexico	Sonora		Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:805. DOI: 10.1016/j.mb.2016.06.017.
1	Native	Northern America	Northern Mexico	Mexico	Tamaulipas		Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:805. DOI: 10.1016/j.mb.2016.06.017.
1	Native	Northern America	Northern Mexico	Mexico	Zacatecas		Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:805. DOI: 10.1016/j.mb.2016.06.017.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Campeche		Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:805. DOI: 10.1016/j.mb.2016.06.017.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Chiapas		Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:805. DOI: 10.1016/j.mb.2016.06.017.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Colima		Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:805. DOI: 10.1016/j.mb.2016.06.017.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Guanajuato		Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:805. DOI: 10.1016/j.mb.2016.06.017.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Guerrero		Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:805. DOI: 10.1016/j.mb.2016.06.017.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Hidalgo		Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:805. DOI: 10.1016/j.mb.2016.06.017.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Jalisco		Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:805. DOI: 10.1016/j.mb.2016.06.017.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	México		Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:805. DOI: 10.1016/j.mb.2016.06.017.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Michoacán de Ocampo		Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:805. DOI: 10.1016/j.mb.2016.06.017.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Morelos		Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:805. DOI: 10.1016/j.mb.2016.06.017.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Nayarit		Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:805. DOI: 10.1016/j.mb.2016.06.017.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Oaxaca		Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:805. DOI: 10.1016/j.mb.2016.06.017.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Puebla		Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:805. DOI: 10.1016/j.mb.2016.06.017.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Querétaro		Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:805. DOI: 10.1016/j.mb.2016.06.017.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Quintana Roo		Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:805. DOI: 10.1016/j.mb.2016.06.017.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Tabasco		Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:805. DOI: 10.1016/j.mb.2016.06.017.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave		Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:805. DOI: 10.1016/j.mb.2016.06.017.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Yucatán		Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:805. DOI: 10.1016/j.mb.2016.06.017.
1	Native	Southern America	Brazil	Brazil		s.e.
1	Native	Southern America	Caribbean	Anguilla
1	Native	Southern America	Caribbean	Antigua and Barbuda
1	Native	Southern America	Caribbean	Bahamas			Correll, D. S. & H. B. Correll. 1982. Flora of the Bahama archipelago.
1	Native	Southern America	Caribbean	Barbados
1	Native	Southern America	Caribbean	Cuba			León (J. S. Sauget) & Alain (E. E. Liogier). 1946-1969. Flora de Cuba
1	Native	Southern America	Caribbean	Dominica
1	Native	Southern America	Caribbean	Grenada
1	Native	Southern America	Caribbean	Guadeloupe
1	Native	Southern America	Caribbean	Hispaniola
1	Native	Southern America	Caribbean	Jamaica			Adams, C. 1972. Flowering plants of Jamaica
1	Native	Southern America	Caribbean	Martinique
1	Native	Southern America	Caribbean	Montserrat
1	Native	Southern America	Caribbean	Netherlands Antilles
1	Native	Southern America	Caribbean	St. Kitts and Nevis
1	Native	Southern America	Caribbean	St. Lucia
1	Native	Southern America	Caribbean	St. Vincent and Grenadines
1	Native	Southern America	Caribbean	Trinidad and Tobago
1	Native	Southern America	Caribbean	United States	Puerto Rico		Liogier, H. A. 1984-. Descriptive flora of Puerto Rico and adjacent islands.
1	Native	Southern America	Central America	Belize
1	Native	Southern America	Central America	Costa Rica
1	Native	Southern America	Central America	El Salvador
1	Native	Southern America	Central America	Guatemala
1	Native	Southern America	Central America	Honduras
1	Native	Southern America	Central America	Nicaragua
1	Native	Southern America	Central America	Panama			Woodson, R. E. & R. W. Schery, eds. 1943-1980. Flora of Panama.
1	Native	Southern America	Northern South America	French Guiana
1	Native	Southern America	Northern South America	Guyana
1	Native	Southern America	Northern South America	Suriname
1	Native	Southern America	Northern South America	Venezuela
1	Native	Southern America	Southern South America	Argentina		n.
1	Native	Southern America	Southern South America	Paraguay
1	Native	Southern America	Western South America	Bolivia			Killeen, T. J. et al. 1993. Guia de arboles de Bolivia
1	Native	Southern America	Western South America	Colombia
1	Native	Southern America	Western South America	Ecuador
1	Native	Southern America	Western South America	Peru			Brako, L. & J. L. Zarucchi. 1993. Catalogue of the flowering plants and gymnosperms of Peru. Monogr. Syst. Bot. Missouri Bot. Gard. 45
2	Cultivated					widely cult.
4	Naturalized					widely natzd.
6	Other					exact native range obscure

Native
Northern America

NORTHERN MEXICO: Mexico [Baja California Sur, Chihuahua, Coahuila de Zaragoza, Durango, Nuevo León, San Luis Potosí, Sinaloa, Sonora, Tamaulipas, Zacatecas]
SOUTHERN MEXICO: Mexico [Campeche, Chiapas, Colima, Guanajuato, Guerrero, Hidalgo, Jalisco, México, Michoacán de Ocampo, Morelos, Nayarit, Oaxaca, Puebla, Querétaro, Quintana Roo, Tabasco, Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave, Yucatán]

Southern America

CARIBBEAN: Hispaniola, Anguilla, Netherlands Antilles, Antigua and Barbuda, Bahamas, Barbados, Cuba, Dominica, Guadeloupe, Grenada, Jamaica, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, Montserrat, Martinique, Trinidad and Tobago, United States [Puerto Rico], St. Vincent and Grenadines
CENTRAL AMERICA: Belize, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama, El Salvador
NORTHERN SOUTH AMERICA: French Guiana, Guyana, Suriname, Venezuela
BRAZIL: Brazil (s.e.)
WESTERN SOUTH AMERICA: Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru
SOUTHERN SOUTH AMERICA: Argentina (n.), Paraguay

Cultivated (widely cult.)
Naturalized (widely natzd.)
Other (exact native range obscure)

Reference(s)

Adams, C. 1972. Flowering plants of Jamaica
Brako, L. & J. L. Zarucchi. 1993. Catalogue of the flowering plants and gymnosperms of Peru. Monogr. Syst. Bot. Missouri Bot. Gard. 45
Correll, D. S. & H. B. Correll. 1982. Flora of the Bahama archipelago.
Killeen, T. J. et al. 1993. Guia de arboles de Bolivia
León (J. S. Sauget) & Alain (E. E. Liogier). 1946-1969. Flora de Cuba
Liogier, H. A. 1984-. Descriptive flora of Puerto Rico and adjacent islands.
Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:805. DOI: 10.1016/j.mb.2016.06.017.
Woodson, R. E. & R. W. Schery, eds. 1943-1980. Flora of Panama.

Economic Uses

Usage	Type	Note	Reference
Human food	beverage base		Facciola, S. 1990. Cornucopia, a source book of edible plants Kampong Publications.
Human food	fruit		Facciola, S. 1990. Cornucopia, a source book of edible plants Kampong Publications.
Materials	wood		Weber, E. 2003. Invasive plant species of the world: a reference guide to environmental weeds
Medicines	folklore		Duke, J. A. et al. 2002. CRC Handbook of medicinal herbs
Medicines	folklore		McGuffin, M., J. T. Kartesz, A. Y. Leung, & A. O. Tucker. 2000. Herbs of commerce, ed. 2 American Herbal Products Association, Silver Spring, Maryland.
Weed	seed contaminant	potential	Lazarides, M. & B. Hince. 1993. CSIRO Handbook of Economic Plants of Australia
Weed	seed contaminant	potential	Weber, E. 2003. Invasive plant species of the world: a reference guide to environmental weeds
Weed	seed contaminant	potential	Henderson, L. 2001. Alien weeds and invasive plants: a complete guide to declared weeds and invaders in South Africa. Plant Protection Research Institute, Handbook 12

Cite as: USDA, Agricultural Research Service, National Plant Germplasm System. 2026. Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN Taxonomy). National Germplasm Resources Laboratory, Beltsville, Maryland.
URL: https://npgstest.ars-grin.gov/gringlobal/taxon/taxonomydetail?id=30205. Accessed 12 May 2026.