Wild Jackfruit and its Health benefits

Wild Jackfruit of Moraceae family

Wild Jackfruit also called Wild Jack with latin name Artocarpus hirsutus Lam. belongs to the Moraceae family. It is called Hebbalasu in Kannada, Vadahar in Hindi, Lakucha, Dahu, Adahu, Iravatam, Panasah in Sanskrit, Ranpanas, Pachpanas in Konkani. Anhili, Ayani-maram, Ayani, Anjili, Ayini plavu in Malayalam, Kattupula, Aiyini pala, Kurangu pala, pei pala in Tamil, Pejakai in Tulu and Adavi panasa in Telugu,

Wild Jackfruit

Wild Jackfruit - the tropical evergreen tree
It is a large tropical evergreen tree that grows up to a height of 35-45m and a girth of about 5m or more. It is found at an altitude of  upto1300m in the lush evergreen forest area of peninsular India. The tree prefers a moist atmosphere where rainfall is about 1500mm annually and thrives in deciduous to partially evergreen woodlands. It grows in many parts of Kerala, Karnataka, Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu states. Endemic to the Malabar, south and central parts of Western ghats and Maharashtra Sahyadris.

It is easily distinguished from the common jack fruit - Artocarpus heterophyllus, by the smaller sized edible fruits. The fruits are syncarps and very sweet. Outer color of the bark is grayish but the inner color is blackish brown. Has straight clean stem as well as dense foliage. Male head narrow and cylindrical, female heads quite simple. The leaves are of dark green color and shaped elliptic rhomboid or ovate in mature trees and they are deeply lobed on younger ones. The simple, alternate leaves ooze out latex if broken.

Seeds are long and ovoid in shape. The structure is similar to that of the much larger jackfruit. Outer look of the fruit is subglobose or ellipsoid with long echinate and yellowish green or yellow color. The inner edible part is smaller, thinner and about the size of a lemon, orange hued when ripe and ovoid. The trees are distributed all over southern parts of India. It grows in areas where there is heavy rainfall probably 175cm.The wood is strong and light which is the main advantage. The grains are interlocked and even textured with blackish brown color. Flowering occurs in axillary inflorescence and are unisexual, male and female flowers are present in a single tree. Mode of propagation is by the seeds, cutting and air layers.

Uses and health benefits of Wild Jackfruit

Almost all parts of the tree are useful in many ways.
1. The fruits are usually used as an appetizer and ingredient in snacks.
2. They are stored in jars adding salt after removing the outer skin. They are used in preparing chutney.
3. The timber obtained and the ripe fruits are locally traded. The wood is harvested usually for the house construction, boat building, furniture making, etc. In the Malabar coast, it is used to build house boats and racing boats. Rice pounding and de-husking was done in the wooden de-huskers made of the same wood in ancient times. Body building material for trucks and wheels in irrigation are still made of this wood in some places of South west India.
4. The heart wood is stronger and contains all type of flavonoids except norartocarpin.
5. Powdered bark is used in healing sores.
6. Dry leaves are useful in treatment of bubose and hydrocele.
7. Leaves are useful fodder for elephants.
8. The seeds are powdered and mixed with honey for the treatment of asthma.
9. An infusion of the bark is applied over the skin to cure pimples and cracks.
10. In Ayurvedic medicine, the wild jack plant pacifies vitiated vata(air quality present within the human body) and pitta(bile within the body), anorexia, burning sensation and sexual weakness. Unripe fruit cause vitiation of tridosha (the 3 type of substances that are significant in balancing the human body build up and health according to ayurveda. Vata- the wind, pitta- the bile, kapha- the phlegm are tridoshas) and rakta(blood), and cause indigestion as well as impotency. Ripe fruits are cooling in nature and aphrodisiac. Bark has the properties to cure ulcers, diarrhea and pimples.
11. For skin diseases, fresh seeds of hirsutus are boiled in water and kept in container for a day. The oil that appears on the top surface is collected. Water content in the oil is removed after boiling it repeatedly. This oil is applied externally on the affected parts.
12. The cost of timber is very high. The tree is felled only after 25 years of growth. But according to some experts, it is good to use for commercial use only after 50 years of full growth. Every seed that falls off from the fruit is of great value.

Unripe fruits have qualities like aphrodisiac, sweet, astringent, thermogenic, sour, indigestible, constipating and can cause flatulence.

Diseases that trouble Wild Jackfruit tree

 

The attack of diseases to Artocarpus hirsutus in South India (Kerala state) are the Pink disease (Corticium salmonicolor) and Macrophomina leaf spot (Macrophomina phaseolina).

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Comments

Dinkan53 5 months ago from India

Wild jackfruit is known as chambol in south Asia I think. In Tamil Mull Narai Pazham may be. It is an exotic fruit, But rarely used by the people now especially in Kerala. But it is widely used in the preparation of Ayurvedic medicines. Thanks for sharing such an informative article. Rated as interesting.

Author 5 months ago from India Author

Hi dinkan53..Thanks for encouraging me with a good comment. It is available in the local vegetable market during the month of March and April i.e. summer season. Sometimes slightly sour to taste but I always think of the medicinal values of the fruit first.