Jujube - Fruit that relieves STRESS

Scientific Synonym - Ziziphus oenoplia

Also known as - Jujube, Red Date, Chinese Date, Jackal Jujube, Wild Jujube
Hindi: Makkay, Makai
Marathi: Burgi
Tamil: Suraimullu, ilantai
Malayalam: Tutali Cheriyalanta,Tutari
Telugu: Paraki, Paringi
Kannada: Pargi, Barige, karisurimullu, Harasurali
Bengali: Siakul
Sanskrit: Karkandhauh

Native to - southern Asia, between Lebanon, northern India, and southern and central China. Jujube was domesticated in the Indian subcontinent by 9000 BCE

Rich Source of - very high vitamin C

Tastes like - dry apple.. comparable sweetness

Propogation -Jujubes can be propagated from seed, although they do not come true. There is evidence that jujube cultivars will root on hard or soft wood cuttings. However, successes have been limited to date with this process of plant reproduction.

Interesting Usage -

• Important tree in the dry regions. It can grow voluntarily and rapidly on poor ground
• The jujube's sweet smell is said to make teenagers fall in love, and as a result, in the Himalaya and Karakoram regions, men take a stem of sweet-smelling jujube flowers with them or put it on their hats to attract women.
• The fruits are used in Chinese and Korean traditional medicine, where they are believed to alleviate stress
• In the traditional Chinese wedding ceremony, jujube and walnut were often placed in the newlyweds' bedroom as a sign of fertility
• In Bhutan, the leaves are used as a potpourri to help keep the houses of the inhabitants smelling fresh and clean
• It is also said to keep bugs and other insects out of the house and free of infestation
• In Korea, the wood is used to make the body of the taepyeongso, a double-reed wind instrument
• The jujube-based Australian drink 1-bil avoids making specific stress-related claims, but does suggest drinking 1-bil "when you feel yourself becoming distressed"
• Ziziphin, a compound in the leaves of the jujube, suppresses the ability to perceive sweet taste in humans
• If picked green, jujubes will not ripen
• The tree provides good timber and excellent fuel
• It is considered as a very good material for fencing
• Its branches have the ability to be used as fodder for camels and goats
• People employ the bark for tanning
• The plant is one of those trees on which the `Eri` and `Tasar` silkworms feed
• It is one of the best trees in Punjab for the insects named `Lac`
• The insects live on the tender branches of certain trees, suck the juice and form crusts continuously

Availability - early September until late October

Health Benefits -

• The fruit, being mucilaginous, is also very soothing to the throat
• The roots are astringent bitter, anthelmintic, digestive and antiseptic. They are useful in hyperacidity, ascaris(round worm with 3 lipped mouth) infection, stomachalgia and healing of wounds
• The fruits are used as a tonic for the lungs and kidneys and as a good blood cleanser
• The Chinese use jujube to tone the spleen and stomach, strengthen digestion and calm the emotions
• They are helpful for weakness, low energy, nervous exhaustion, and poor appetite
• They can stabilize the emotions when feeling irritable, sad or crying for no reason
• The leaves are said to kill parasites and worms in the intestinal tract, which cause diarrhea
• The leaves are also used to treat children suffering from typhoid fever, inducing sweating to break the fever
• The heartwood is a powerful blood tonic
• The bark is said to be used as an eyewash for inflamed eyes
• The root helps promote hair growth and also is used for treating eruptive fevers of children in smallpox, measles and chickenpox
• Jujubes are an important herb used for the purification of blood, as a synergestic herb combining multiple ingrediants in a tonic, and as an energy boost