8/12/2019 jamun 1

1/3

K E R A L A

C A L L I N G

F e

b r u a r y

2 0 0 7

30

R. Periyathambi

Jamun is a tall handsome evergreentree grown in tropical and subtropicalregions. It is one of the hardiest fruittree and best suited for wastelands.

It is drought tolerant, at the same time cantolerate water stagnation as well as marshy

wetlands. The wood is used as a timber inbuilding and railway sleeper.

The nutrients contents out of 100 gmof fresh fruits are 19.7 g carbohydrate, 0.7g protein, 0.1 g fat, 1.0 g iron, 0.02 g calcium, 0.01 g phosphorus and 0.9 g fibre. Besides taken as a dessert fruit, it isalso used for making value added products

like beverages, squash, jam, jelly and wine.

Botanical description Jamun botanically called asSyzygiumcumini L. (Syn: Eugenia jambolana,Syzygium jambolanum) belong to the family Myrtaceae. The tree is originated fromIndonesia and India; now growsabundantly in Southern Asia. It is anevergreen tropical tree having 8 to 15 mtall, with oblong opposite leaves that aresmooth, glossy and having a turpentinesmell. The bark is scaly gray and the trunk is forks or multiple stem, has fragrant white

flowers in branched clusters at stem tipsand purplish-black oval edible berries. This

J The Potential Untappedamun

berry has only one seed. The juicy fruit-

pulp contains resin, gallic acid and tannin.The taste is usually acid to fairly sweet andsomewhat astringent, jamun fruit mainly used for its medicinal properties.Vernacular namesEnglish - Jamun, Java plum and

Indian blackberry.Hindi - JambuMalayalam - NjavalSanskrit - JambuhTamil - Naval

Curative propertiesIn traditional medicine, it is extensively

Jamun is a tallhandsome evergreentree grown in tropical

and subtropical regions.It is one of the hardiest

fruit tree and best suitedfor wastelands.

It is drought tolerant,at the same time cantolerate water stagnation as

well as marshy wetlands.The wood is used as

a timber in buildingand railway sleeper.

30 HORTICULTURE

8/12/2019 jamun 1

2/3

F e b

r u a

r y

2 0 0

7

K E R A L A C

A L L I N G

31

used against diabetes and apart from that itis also administered against various ailmentslike carminative, febrifuge, antibacterial,stomachic, diuretic, diarrhea and vomiting.

Stems, leaves and fruits contain essentialoil having alpha and beta pinnene,limonene and bornyl acetate as majorconstituents. Fruits contain theanthocyanins, delphinidin-3-gentiobioside, jambocine, malvidin-3-laminaribioside and petunidin-3-gentiobioside. Fruits yielded citric, malicand Gallic acids. Seeds contain -Sitosterol.Bark having astringent properties. Bark andseed kernel hypoglycemic, fruit- stomachic,carminative, diuretic, bark and leaves haveanti diarrhoeal properties.Classical uses of Jamun

Leaf juice mixed with mustard oil iseffective in burn wounds.Leaves have antibacterial properties andused for strengthening the teeth.Tender leaves are used against vomiting.Dried and powdered jamun seeds mixed

with mango seed powder and jaggery taken thrice daily for diarrhoea.

A cold decoction of the tender leaves of jamun and mango mixed with honey taken twice daily and gives relief against

vomiting and burning sensation of stomach.The fine powder of the bark sprinkledon fresh wounds enables quick healing and arrests bleeding.Fruit is a very powerful digestive agent.Taking a decoction of bark powder withhoney arrests the bleeding.Diluted juice of fruits is diuretic andprevents enlargement of spleen.Seed powder of jamun is used as goodanti diabetic medicine.Fruit syrup is used in curing diarrhea

The juice of Jamun fruit or its vinegar was given in sluggish digestion.

The bark of Jamun is an ingredient in a classical compound Ushiraasava and itis prescribed for heamatemesis, epistaxis,bleeding through rectum and urinary passage.The seed is an ingredient inPushyaanuga Churna, indicated inleucorrhoea and other uterine disorders.In Unani system of medicine, Jamunseeds are the main ingredients in alldiabetics medicine.In Unani medicine, the seed of Jamun,kernel of mango and flowers of Acacia are prescribed for diarrhea and

resulting in better soil moisture will help ingrowth and development and ripening of

fruits. Young plants are susceptible to frost.It can be grown on a wide range soils like;calcareous, saline sodic soils and marshy areas. But, deep loam and well drained soilsare preferred by the plant.Varieties/Cultivars

There are only few improved cultivarsavailable so far. The most common typegrown in North India is known asRajamun. This is large fruited type having oblong fruits of deep purple colour. A typehaving large sized fruits is known as Parasin Gujarat. Another Seedless Jamun typefound in Varanasi has no seed. A selection

and stomach problems.Uses of Jamun in Indian System of

MedicineCharaka prescribed seeds, leaves

decoctions for diarrhea, vomiting andconstipation.

Sushruta prescribed the fruitinternally in obesity, menstrual disordersand cold infusion in intrinsicheamorrhage.

The juice of Jamun, Mango and Amla leaves mixed with goats milk orhoney was prescribed for diarrhea withblood.

dysentery.In folk medicine, the ash of dried bark of Jamun is given a dose of 1.25 g withhoney on empty stomach or one hourbefore lunch and dinner for 40 days todiabetic patients.

CultivationSince Jamun is hardy fruit crop, it canbe grown under adverse soil and climaticconditions. Even during dry weather alsogives flowering and fruiting. It thrives wellunder both tropical and sub tropicalregions. It requires dry weather at the timeof flowering and fruit setting. Early rains

8/12/2019 jamun 1

3/3

K E R A L A

C A L L I N G

F e

b r u a r y

2 0 0 7

32

known as Narendra jamun-6 has been identified with desirable traits at Faizabad(U.P).Propagation

Jamun is propagated both by seeds and vegetative techniques, the most commonbeing by seeds. The seeds have no dormancy, hence fresh seeds can be sown (within 10-15 days) 4-5 cm deep at a distance of 25 cm 15 cm.

The seeds germinate 10 -15 days after sowing. The seedlings become ready fortransplanting in spring or next monsoon. Its seeds show polyembrony upto 30-40%, hence nucellar/apomictic seedlings can be used to produce true- to- typeplants.

Seedlings plants bear fruits of variable size and quality. There fore, vegetativemethod is desirable for propagation of improved or selected types. Budding is mostsuccessful for commercial rising of plants. It is done on one-year-old rootstock having about 10 mm thickness. Patch and Forkert methods give more than 80%success if performed in March in low rainfall area; July- August is ideal time forbudding.Planting

Pits of 1m1m1m size are dug 10m apart for seedlings trees and 7-8m apartfor budded plants in a properly cleaned field. Pit digging should be completedbefore the onset of monsoon or spring season. They should be filled with mixtureof top soil and well rotten farm yard manure or compost in a 3:1 ratio. Monsoonseason July to September is suitable season for planting. About 100 -150 plants arerequired for planting a hectare land.Training and pruning

Young plants need training for the development of frame work. Keep the mainstem or trunk clean up to a height of 90cm from the ground level by removing thebasal branches and sprouts. Jamun do not require any pruning except removing diseased, dry and crisscross twigs.Manures and fertilization

In pre bearing period, apply 20-25 kg Farm Yard Manure or compost/plant/year. For bearing trees, this dose increased upto 50-60 kg plant/year. The ideal time

for giving organic manure is a month before flowering. For well grown and bearing trees; 500g Nitrogen, 600g Phosphorous and 300g Potassium applied plant/year.This should be applied in a ring pit made around the tree canopy of the plant andmixed in soil by hoeing.Irrigation

During early stages of establishment, the plants must be watered periodically for better growth. The full grown and bearing trees, irrigation should be given oncein 12-15 days. Care and periodically watering must be given during summermonths. It will help for bud formation, fruit set as well as prevents fruit drop.Aftercare

During early stages of crop growth an inter crop like cowpea, green gram can begrown upto 5-6 years, intercropping with seasonal vegetables also advisable. Jamunis a cross pollinated fruit crop hence keeping honey-bee boxes 4-5 / acre is desirablefor maximum fruit set and high yield.Harvest and yield

The trees will start yielding from 8-10 years after planting in case of seedlings; whereas, the budded plants will take only 5-6 years. Fruits ripen during June-July or with the onset of rainy season. The fully matured and ripe fruits harvested gently from the branches without causing injury to the fruit skin.

The average yield of full grown budded and seedling trees are about 50-70 and80-100 kg/tree/year. Jamun fruits are highly perishable so, it must be utilized

within two days from the harvest.The writer is associated with Mitraniketan Krishi Vigyan Kendra, Vellanad- 695 543,

Thiruvananthapuram. e-mail: rpherbals@yahoo.com