Peck Road Park is home to many passion fruit vines, and I always enjoy stopping to admire their stunning passion flowers. Their unique structure and vibrant colors never fail to catch my eye. But this post is more about the fruits these beautiful vines produce. Watching the passion fruits grow is always exciting—it’s like witnessing a little burst of nature’s vitality. Many of the vines in the park are wild, though, and their fruits aren’t edible. However, some passion fruit vines growing in people’s backyards do produce delicious, edible fruit. These vines are prolific, often yielding a generous number of fruits each season. Passion fruit vines grow quickly—some can stretch up to 20 feet in just one year. Despite their rapid growth, they are relatively short-lived, usually lasting no more than seven years. A friend once told me that the best time to pick passion fruits is when they fall naturally to the ground. So, whenever I walk by the vines, I pause to admire the flowers, and later in the season, I always check the ground—hoping to spot a ripe passion fruit waiting to be discovered.
Peck Road 公園裏及附近有許多百香果藤，我總是喜歡駐足欣賞它們那令人驚豔的花朵。它們獨特的結構和鮮豔的色彩總是能吸引我的目光。但這篇文章更著重於這些美麗藤蔓所結出的果實。看著百香果生長總是令人興奮不已——就像見證大自然的生命力。不過，公園裡的許多藤蔓都是野生的，它們的果實不能吃。然而有些生長在旁邊住家後院的百香果藤卻能結出美味可口的果實。這些藤蔓產量很高，每個季節通常都會結出大量的果實。百香果藤生長迅速——有些一年就能長到 20 英尺高。雖然它們生長迅速，但它們的壽命相對較短，通常不超過七年。一位朋友曾告訴我，採摘百香果的最佳時間是它們自然落地的時候。因此，每當我走過百香果藤時，我都會停下來欣賞花朵，而在季節後期，我總是察看一下地面，看我是否是辛運地能看到/撿到成熟的百香果。
I came upon this YouTube video "Passion Fruit in pot - from Flower to Fruit" It gives you some idea how passion fruit comes into being. For your information.
我看了這個YouTube視頻“花盆中的百香果-從花到果”。 它使你知道百香果是如何形成的。供你參考。
Passion fruits are very popular in Taiwan. They are usually pretty cheap. I go online to check the price. After some conversions, it comes about $1.4 (US) per pound in Taiwan. The other day in Chinese grocery store here (LA area) I saw passion fruits costing $14.99 per pound. I was shocked. But I was lucky enough to see one passion fruit on the ground one day and two the other day. The first one I waited too long to cut it (you can tell how inexperienced I was in terms of food/fruit) and it dried out a bit. After I learned my lessons when I cut the other two, it was perfect timing. Adding some water and honey, it was so enjoyable to have this tart and sweet drink and reminded me of my home country.
百香果在台灣非常普遍及受歡迎。 它們通常很便宜。 我上網查詢價格。 經過一些轉換後，台灣每磅約為1.4美元。 幾天前，在這裡的中國雜貨店（洛杉磯地區），我看到百香果的價格為每磅14.99美元。 我很驚訝這麼貴。 但是我很幸運有一天在地上撿了一粒百香果，而另一天又撿了兩粒。 第一粒我等了太久才把它切開（可見我在食物/水果方面實在沒常識），裏面的果實都乾乾的。 學了些教訓後，當我切開另外兩個時，正是最佳時機。 加些水和蜂蜜，好喜歡這種酸酸甜甜的滋味，也不禁浮起一種淡淡的鄉愁。
Notes 筆記
- The passion fruit is so called because it is one of the many species of passion flower, the English translation of the Latin genus name, Passiflora. Around 1700, the name was given by missionaries in Brazil as an educational aid while trying to convert the indigenous inhabitants to Christianity; its name was flor das cinco chagas or “flower of the five wounds” to illustrate the crucifixion of Christ, with other plant components also named after an emblem in the Passion of Jesus.
- Passion fruit flower is the national flower of Paraguay.
- The most popular varieties are purple and yellow. Purple ones are smaller but sweeter and are more commonly found here in the US. Yellow ones are more sour and larger and they’re Brazilians’ favorite.
- Passion fruit are high in fiber and Vitamin A. They also contain Vitamin C, iron, copper, lycopene and potassium.
- Passion fruits are produced by fast-growing vines that can grow as much as 20 feet in one year. However, it is also short-lived and can only survive a maximum of seven years.
- 百香果之名源於它是百香花（西番蓮）的許多種類之一，是拉丁屬名 Passiflora 的英文翻譯。大約在1700年，巴西傳教士在試圖使土著居民改信基督教時，將其用作教育講解的輔助品。它的名字叫 flor das cinco chagas 或“五傷花”，來說明基督被釘十字架的情景，植物的其他結構也是耶穌受難的象徵。
- 此果在中文地區的常見不同名稱：台灣：百香果、因台灣於1907年由日本人田代安定從石川植物園引進，野化，所以也稱時計果，時鐘瓜，客家人稱 tokeisō（時計草日語音）。中國大陸：西番蓮、熱情果、百香果、雞蛋果。香港：熱情果、百香果、西番果、巴西果。
- 百香果花是巴拉圭的國花。
- 最受歡迎的品種是紫色和黃色。紫色的較小，但較甜，在美國比較常見。黃色的比較酸也比較大，是巴西人的最愛。
- 百香果含豐富的纖維和維生素A。它們還含有維生素C，鐵，銅，番茄紅素和鉀。
- 百香果是產於迅速生長的百香果藤，一年可以長到20英尺。 但是，它的壽命也很短，最多只能生存7年。
References 參考資料
- Wikipedia: Passiflora edulis
- 維基百科: 百香果
Plants Posts 植物的帖子