Name: Jamun
Scientific Name: Syzygium cumini
Variety: Patel Jambo
Salient Features:
This is a selection which bears big fruits with more flesh and small seed. The black plum works against diabetes and converts sugar into energy.
Season: June-July
Uses and Health benefits:
- The Jamun fruit is good for digestive system because of its coolant features.
- Having astringent properties, helps to prevent acne, blemishes, wrinkles and pimples.
- Good for blood due to more amount of iron. Help manage diabetes.
- Seeds can be used to manage a number of stomach-related issues effectively, helps regulate blood pressure, boost immunity, and aids weight loss.
- Soil
The jamun tree can be grown on a wide range of soils. However, for high yield potential and good plant growth, deep loam and a well drained soil are needed. Such soils also retain sufficient soil moisture which is beneficial for optimum growth and good fruiting. Jamun can grow well under salinity and waterlogged conditions too. However, it is not economical to grow jamun on very heavy or light sandy soils.
- Climate
Jamun prefers to grow under tropical and subtropical climate. The jamun requires dry weather at the time off towering and fruit setting. In subtropical areas, early rain is beneficial for ripening of fruits and proper development of its size, colour and taste.
- Planting
Jamun is an evergreen tree that can be planted during both the spring season (February–March) and the monsoon season (July–August).
Prior to planting, the field is properly cleared and ploughed. Pits of 1 x 1 x 1 m size are dug at the distance of 10m both ways. Usually, work of digging of pits is completed before the onset of monsoon. The pit are filled with mixture of 75% top soil and 25% well rotten farmyard manure or compost.
- Fertilizer Application
An annual dose of about 19 kg FYM during the pre-beating period and 75 kg per tree bearing trees is considered. On very rich soils, the trees have a tendency to put on more vegetative growth with the result that fruiting is delayed. When the trees show such a tendency, they should not be supplied with any manure and fertilizer and irrigation should be given sparingly and withheld in September-October and again in February-March. This helps in fruit bud formation, blossoming and in fruit setting.
Grown up trees should be applied 500 kg N, 600gand 300g K /plant /year.
- Irrigation
In early stages, the jamun tree requires frequent irrigations but after the trees gets established, the interval between irrigations can be greatly decreased. Young trees require 8 to 10 irrigations in a year. The mature trees require only about half the number, which should be applied during May and June when the fruit is ripening. During autumn and winter months, just an occasional irrigation may be applied when the soil is dry. This will also save the trees from the ill effects of frost in winter.
- Intercropping
In the initial years of planting, when a lot of interspaces is available in the orchard, appropriate intercrop especially legumes crops and vegetables can be taken during rainy season.
- Training and Pruning
Regular pruning in jamun is not required. However, in later years the dry twigs and crossed branches are removed. While training the plants, the framework of branches is allowed to develop above 60 to 100 cm from the ground level.
- Insect Pests
Among the pests, white fly and leaf eating caterpillar cause great damage to the tree.
1. White fly (Dialeurodes eugenia)
It damages jamun tree in all parts of India. Affected fruits get wormy appearance on the surface. White fly can be controlled in the following ways.
a. Maintain sanitary conditions around the tree.
b. Pluck all affected fruits and destroy them.
c. Dig up the soil around the tree trunk so that the maggots in the affected fruits and pupae hibernating in the soil are destroyed.
2. Leaf eating caterpillar (Carea subtillis)
The insect infests the leaves and may defoliate the tree. It can be controlled by spraying Rogor 30 EC or Malathion @ 0.1 per cent.
3. Other pests
Besides the above insects, the jamun crop is seriously damaged by pests like squirrels and birds like parrots and crows. These must be frightened away by beating the drums or flinging stones.
Among the diseases, the fungal disease anthracnose is notable .
1. Anthracnose (Glomerella cingulata)
The fungus incites leaf spots and fruit rot. Affected leaves show small scattered spots, light brown or reddish brown in colour. Affected fruits show small water soaked, circular and depressed lesions. Ultimately, the fruits rot and shrivel.
Spraying with Dithane Z- 78 @ 0.2% or Bordeaux mixture
XIII. Flowering and Fruiting
Flowers are borne in the axils of leaves on branchlets. In North Indian conditions, flowering starts in the first week of March and continues up to the end of April. The pollen fertility is higher in the beginning of the season. The maximum receptivity of stigma is one day after anthesis.
The jamun is a cross-pollinated and the pollination is done by honey bees, houseflies and wind.
There is heavy drop of flowers and fruits within 3 to 4 weeks after blooming. Later natural fruit drop can be reduced with two sprays of GA3 60 ppm, one at full bloom and another 15 days after initial setting of fruits.
The pattern of growth and fruit development of jamun can be divided into three phases: the first phase from 15-52 days after fruit set having slow growth of fruit, the second phase from 52 to 58 days after fruit set having fast growth and the third and last phase from 58 to 60 days after fruit set having slow growth and very little addition in fruit weight.
The fruit ripens in the month of June -July. The main characteristic of ripe fruit at full size is deep purple or black colour. The fruit should be picked immediately when it is ripe, because it cannot be retained on the tree in ripe stage. The ripe fruits are hand-picked singly by climbing the tree with bags slung on the shoulder. Care should be taken to avoid all possible damage to fruits.
The average yield of fruits from a full grown seedling tree is about 80 to 100 kg.
The fruits are highly perishable in nature. They cannot be stored for more than 3 to 4 days under ordinary conditions. However, pre cooled fruits packed in polythene bags can be stored well up to three weeks at low temperatures of 8 to 10°C and 85 to 90% relative humidity.
The fruit is packed and sent to the market almost daily. For marketing, well ripe and healthy fruits are selected. Damaged, diseased and unripe fruits are discarded. These selected fruits are then carefully packed in wooden baskets and sent to the local markets.