| General Description | Jamun is a tall, handsome, fast-growing, hardy, evergreen tropical tree
which is valued for its fruit and timber. It also has ornamental value as
an avenue tree and promising therapeutic properties. It can grow up to
35 metres tall and is long-lived. Leaves are aromatic and shiny. The fruit
is sweetish sour in taste and has multiple health benefits. |
| Shape | The tree has upright growth. It is a tall tree with a dense crown and large
canopy. |
| Landscape | This tree is used as a windbreak as it is quite wind-resistant. Also, its
aromatic and shiny foliage makes it an excellent ornamental tree. In
India, it is grown for shade and its fruit. Coffee growers use Jamun trees
to shade the coffee crop. It is also an economical tree for its fruit which
has excellent medicinal properties. |
| Propagation | Jamun can be propagated by both sexual and asexual methods of
reproduction.
Sexual propagation: The Jamun tree is commonly propagated through
seed. The Jamun seeds do not show dormancy, hence can be used fresh.
Seeds remain viable for 3 months after extraction from fruits. It is
usually recommended to treat seeds with Bavistin before sowing to
protect trees from soil-borne diseases. The seeds can be sown in flat
nursery beds and they begin to germinate in 10-15 days. The seedlings
become ready for transplanting after one year.
Asexual propagation: Various vegetative methods of propagation are
practiced on the Jamun tree which are discussed below:
T-budding and patch budding: These two methods of budding can
be successfully used to produce a commercial crop of Jamun. The
Jamun seedlings which are one year old and have attained 10-4
mm of thickness are used as rootstock. The success rate is higher
in T-budding than patch budding.
Inarching: Inarching is not much success to produce the
commercial crop. The graft union is made between scion and stock
of almost 1-2 years old and of matching thickness. The union takes
about 6 weeks to complete. |
| Cultivation | It requires a tropical or sub-tropical climate for successful growth. As it is a hardy crop, it can also thrive in marshy and neglected lands. Jamun can generally grow in all kinds of soils; however, deep, well-drained loamy soil is best for its optimum growth and fruiting. Avoid heavy clays or light sandy soils. The optimum pH is near neutral. Also, it is usually resistant to waterlogging and saline conditions. |
| Pests | Jamun tree is susceptible to various insect pests such as whitefly, leaf- eating caterpillar, bark eating caterpillar, Jamun leaf roller and leaf webber. The other pests include squirrels, parrots, crows and other birds. Anthracnose is a disease that causes leaf spots and die-back in Jamun trees. As far as disorders are concerned, flower and fruit drop can affect the yield of the fruit. |
| Notable Specimens | The notable specimens of Jamun are found in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
and in herbarium of Royal Botanical Gardens, Kew in Richmond, the
UK. |
| Habitat | S. cumini prefers moist locations and will tolerate waterlogging thus is
commonly found on riverbanks, but it can also survive, but less well, on
drier sites once established. In its native range, it is commonly cultivated and thus found in and around homesteads and agricultural land. In the Pacific where it has proved most invasive, it is generally a more lowland species such as in Fiji, but may be found up to 700 m Hawaii and has naturalized in inland forests in Fiji. |
| Bark/Stem Description | The bark is rough on the lower part of the trunk with cracks and flakes.
It is also discoloured or dark-grey at the base of the tree. However, the
bark turns smooth and light-greyish on the upper side of the trunk. |
| Flower/Leaf Bud Description | Leaf buds are borne in clusters and are elongated, globular, small, dark
green and are about 4 cm. Fruit buds are light green, round, formed in
clusters that are very small individually measuring 2-4 mm. |
| Leaf Description | Leaves are simple, oblong-ovate to elliptical and are tapering at tips.
They are arranged oppositely on the stem and can be 5-25 cm long and
2.5-10 cm wide. Young leaves are pink and turn green as they mature.
Leaves are glossy, leathery, and dark green on the upper side; however,
lighter in colour on beneath with a prominent yellow midrib. The leaves
are aromatic when crushed with a turpentine-like smell. |
| Flower Description | S. cumini tree flowers from March-April. The flowers are borne in
clusters and are small, 4-6 cm. They are fragrant, with 4-5 petals white
initially, turning pink afterwards. The flowers lack stalks. The calyx is
funnel-shaped and sheds the petals fast leaving only stamens behind. |
| Fruit Description | The fruit is oval to elliptic measuring 1.5-3.5 cm. It is green when unripe
turning light-magenta and finally dark-purple or blackish. The fruit tends
to turn the tongue also purple. The epicarp of fruit is smooth and glossy.
The pulp is very juicy and edible. It tastes acidic to sweetish. The fruit
encloses one large seed, oblong in shape and measures 4cm. |
| Colour Description | The bark of the tree is discoloured at the base and turns light-greyish
higher up. The leaves are pink when young and turn glossy, dark green
when mature. The flowers are white initially and change to pink
afterwards. The fruit is green when immature and turns deep purple or
almost black when matures. The seed of the fruit is greenish or brown. |
| Texture Description | S. cumini is a finely textured tree. |