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The feijoa, not the kiwi, is the unofficial fruit of New Zealand, but it remains unknown to much of the world. The perfumed green ovals are known elsewhere as pineapple guava and originate from South America, but theyÐÔÊӽ紫ý™ve found an unlikely and fervent popularity in New Zealand. During autumn, the short period when theyÐÔÊӽ紫ý™re ripe, the country goes feijoa (pronounced fee-jo-ah) wild. People sweep hundreds of feijoas from beneath backyard trees and offer them for free in such quantities that some feijoa lovers take pride in never having bought one. But the fruit's brief shelf life means exports have never taken off.

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A feijoa hangs from a backyard tree in Wellington, New Zealand, on Sunday, May 11, 2025. (AP Photo/Charlotte Graham-McLay)

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FILE - Northern Lights, or Aurora Borealis, shining over the Sycamore Gap tree, on Hadrian's Wall in Northumberland, England, July 3, 2016. (Owen Humphreys/PA via AP, File)

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FILE - The felled Sycamore Gap tree is seen on Hadrian's Wall in Northumberland, England, Sept. 29, 2023. (Owen Humphreys/PA via AP, File)

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FILE - The felled Sycamore Gap tree is seen on Hadrian's Wall in Northumberland, England, Sept. 29, 2023. (Owen Humphreys/PA via AP, File)

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FILE - The felled Sycamore Gap tree is removed at Hadrian's Wall in Northumberland, England, Oct. 11, 2023. (Owen Humphreys/PA via AP, File)

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A bed of white tulips in bloom is viewed from outside the gates of Gramercy Park, Monday, April 28, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Pamela Hassell)