The guava is an evergreen tree reaching a height of 3 - 10m. The trunk is slender with a greenish-brown scaly bark which peels off in thin flakes. The white flowers are either solitary or in groups of two or three, arising from the leaf axils of younger branches.
Some varieties are seedless.
The flavour is variable and is distinguished by a characteristic and penetrating musky aroma of varying intensity. Guava, a native of tropical America is well distributed throughout the tropics and subtropics. In Malaysia important guava growing areas are located in the states of Perak, Johore, Selangor and Negri Sembilan. Other states of lesser importance are Malacca, Kelantan, Trengganu, Perlis, Kedah, Pahang, Sabah and Sarawak. This variety produces big fruits of between 450 to 750gm per fruit.