2024 Author: Gavin MacAdam | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 13:38
Elephant apple (lat. Dillenia indica) - a fruit tree belonging to the Dillenevy family (one of the rarest). In science, this culture is called Indian dilution.
Description
The elephant apple is an evergreen fruit tree, endowed with an orange-brownish or strong reddish trunk and a rounded and very spreading crown. The height of most of the trees rarely exceeds fifteen meters, but sometimes you can see individual trees growing up to thirty meters.
The dark green leaves of an elephant apple grow in length from fifteen to thirty-six centimeters and are equipped with distinct veins and a grooved surface. Such leaves are located exclusively on the tops of the branches (simultaneously with single flowers).
Incredibly fragrant and surprisingly beautiful flowers of an elephant apple are quite large: their diameter often reaches fifteen to twenty centimeters. Each flower is equipped with many yellow stamens and fancy white petals.
The first flowers of an elephant apple begin to appear when it reaches the age of three to four years. And then, for the rest of its life (which is more than fifty years), this plant will delight with its amazing daily flowering. It is noteworthy that the same inflorescence can include not only opened flowers, but also buds, and sometimes even fruits. Each flower begins to bloom at night, at about 03:00, and about an hour before the sun rises, all flowers bloom completely. And already in the afternoon, at approximately 15-16 o'clock, the petals of wonderful flowers completely fall off. It turns out that the flowering of one flower takes no more than half a day.
The complex fruits of the elephant apple are formed by fifteen strongly enlarged carpels. Each fruit contains five seeds, surrounded by fleshy, overgrown sepals. The diameter of elephant apples ranges from five to twelve centimeters, and outwardly they look like apples that are simple and familiar to us.
This unusual culture was first described by Karl Linnaeus. He also gave this plant a Latin name - in honor of his friend and part-time colleague from Oxford Dillenius.
Reproduction of an elephant apple can occur both through seeds and vegetatively (that is, by a separated root shoot).
Where grows
The elephant grows in the countries of Southeast Asia, as well as in Sri Lanka and India. And in Australia, in distant Madagascar and in hot Africa, this culture can be found in a feral form. Most often, this attractive plant grows along rivers and tropical water streams.
Application
The pulp of the elephant apple is edible. It is especially widely used in Indian cuisine - a wide variety of desserts, jellies and jams are made from it, excellent jams are made, as well as various soft drinks and the famous curry sauce are prepared. And unripe fruits are great for making rich brine and chutney sauce.
Since the elephant apple contains a lot of iron, it is useful to use it for heavy periods in women and for anemia. In addition, it will be an excellent supportive agent after serious blood loss during surgery or during an injury.
The sour taste of this fruit helps to whet the appetite, normalizes the intestinal microflora, helps to increase the digestibility of food and has pronounced diuretic and choleretic properties. And the tannins included in the fruit inhibit putrefactive processes not only in the gastrointestinal tract, but also in the oral cavity.
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