North American Fruit Explorers mailing list at ibiblio

["Dr. Chiranjit Parmar" <parmarch_mnd@dataone.in>]

Here is some information about Myrica rubra and Myrica nagi.  I had collected it.  It is being sent as an attachment.

 

Please do send me your comments.

 

Chiranjit Parmar

----- Original Message -----

From: Stephen Sadler

To: 'North American Fruit Explorers'

Sent: Sunday, March 09, 2008 12:47 PM

Subject: Re: [NAFEX] Yumberry, Myrica rubra

It’s good to hear the CRFG bulletin board is still up and running.  Bill G. was talking about deactivating it.  I’ve found it to be an underused but useful board. 

I’ve volunteered to set up and maintain an email group for CRFG.  Here was the reply:

 

“Stephen,

Thanks. We do have a bulletin board but usage is very infrequent. Take a look at http://www.crfg.org/phpbb, where you'll see just a few of the topics but you when you join (and I approve) you see many more. We get more spam attempts than actual users. Most people that I know are involved with Cloud Forest or Leo Manuel's Rare Fruit mailing list.”

 

BTW, I had joined (and he had approved) over a year before this mail.  If CRFG has an interest in the future, I would still set up an email group.  I own a group, and moderate three.  I do belong to Rarefruit and Cloud Forest, and find good information and other CRFG members.  They are excellent resources for us warmer-region fruit explorers.  Location-specific concerns can be addressed, and I’ve corresponded with members who are very nearby.

 

Myrica rubra is mentioned in the CRFG fruit list, but there’s no information.  I don’t see it mentioned in the boards, but I may have missed it.

 

From: nafex-bounces@lists.ibiblio.org [mailto:nafex-bounces@lists.ibiblio.org] On Behalf Of Spidra Webster
Sent: Saturday, March 08, 2008 8:08 PM
To: North American Fruit Explorers
Subject: Re: [NAFEX] Yumberry, Myrica rubra

 

On Mar 8, 2008, at 7:40 PM, Lon J. Rombough wrote:

Too bad the California Rare Fruit Growers don't have a discussion list.  Myrica rubra is grown by a number of their members.  There have been articles about it in their magazine.  There may be sources listed on their website, www.crfg.org

-Lon Rombough

 

Well, CRFG has several different online fora and discussion lists so I think what's missing here is one single list that CRFG members all over the world participate in.  I don't know why, but most CRFG members I've met are a lot less keen on online stuff than  the NAFEX members on this list.

 

The one online thing I know about that is accessible to CRFG members regardless of chapter affiliation AND the general public is the CRFG Bulletin Board. It's used very lightly despite the efforts of a couple members to invigorate it.  But CRFG President Bill Grimes is still operating the board for the time being so you're welcome to register and post there and I'll make a point of telling other CRFG members that there's a question there on Myrica rubra for them to answer.

 

www.crfg.org/phpbb

 

The current issue of The Fruit Gardener has an article on yumberry, in fact.  I haven't had the chance to go to an Asian market so I can sample what it tastes like and decide whether to grow it.

 

Megan Lynch

 

Berkeley, CA  Zone 9b

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Title: BAYBERRY

BAYBERRY

(Myrica rubra)

 

 

A bayberry tree in Japan

 

Synonyms: Morella rubra, Myrica rubra var. acuminata

 

Other names: Chinese bayberry, Chinese strawberry tree, Chinese treeberry, Japanese bayberry, red bayberry, yumberry.

 

Bayberry is a subtropical tree grown for its sweet crimson to dark purple-red fruit in China, Japan and Korea.  It is not known much in outside world.  It is native to eastern Asia, mainly in China, where it has been grown for at least 2000 years, and probably also Japan and Southeast Asia as well.  It is fruit of considerable economic importance in area south of the Yangtze River, where it is of considerable economic importance.

 

            It is the second most important fruit, next to citrus, in Zheijiang Provice of China.

 

Bayberry is a small to medium-sized tree growing to 10-20 m in height, evergreen, with smooth gray bark and a uniform spherical to hemispherical crown. It is dioecious, with separate male and female plants. It tolerates poor acidic soils. The root system is shallow (5–60 cm), with no obvious taproot.

 

 

The fruit is spherical, 1.5-3.0 cm in diameter, with a knobby surface. The surface color is typically a deep, brilliant red, but may vary from white to purple depending upon the stage of maturity.  The flesh colour is similar to surface color, or somewhat lighter. The flesh is sweet and very tart. At the center is a single seed, with a diameter about half that of the whole fruit.  The fruits of cultivated varieties may weigh upto 10-15 g each. 

 

The abundant juice plus high sugar content in a good balance with moderate acids makes the fruit a delicious taste. It is also rich in vitamins C.

 

The fruit is eaten fresh and is also processed into sweets, jam, juice and wine.  It is also canned in syrup.  Bayberry juice (called Yumberry) is already being marketed under the brand name Frützzo in New York city and 12 ounce bottle is sold for US$3 to 3.50.

 

Bayberry has many varieties differing in fruit size, color and ripening date.

 

Medicinal Uses

 

In China, the stem bark is used as a wash in the treatment of arsenic poisoning, skin diseases, wounds and ulcers. The fruit is carminative, pectoral and stomachic. The seed is used in the treatment of sweaty feet. The plant is used in the treatment of cholera, heart ailments and stomach diseases.

 

Other Uses

 

A yellow dye is obtained from the plant.

 

Scope for further cultivation:

 

Bayberry is already a popular fruit in in China, Japan and some South East Asian countries.  It is matter of surprise that how the commercial cultivation of this fruit has not been started in other countries. It needs to be promoted.

 

            There is, however, only one small drawback in this fruit.  It does not keep very long and has to be used 2-3 days.  But this should not deter potential growers in taking up bayberry cultivation on commercial scale.

 

Bayberry from India:

 

A type of bayberry, Myrica nagi grows in the mid-hills of the Western Himalayas in the states of Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand.  This fruit is locally  called kaphal and botanically is Myrica nagi.  It is a very popular fruit of the region and sold in towns of the locality in large quantities. 

This is, however, not cultivated and the fruits are gathered from forests only.

 

            Kaphal fruits look quite similar to those of bayberry but are smaller in size.

 

            A chapter under the heading kaphal has been provided at this site.

 

 

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Title: KAPHAL

KAPHAL

(Myrica nagi)

 

A kaphal tree in the forest

 

Synonyms: Myrica esculenta, Myrica farquhariana, Myrica sapida

 

English name: Box myrtle

 

Other Indian names: kainaryamy (Andhra Pradesh); nagatenga (Assam); kaiphal, satsarila (Bengal); kariphal (Gujrat); kaphal, kaiphal (Himachal Pradesh); kaiphal (Hindi); kaphal (Jaunsar); kirishivani (Karnataka); maruta (Kerala); soh-phi (Khasi); kaphal (Kumaon); keiphang (Lushai); kayaphala (Maharashtra); kobuli, katphala (Nepal); kaiphal, kahela, kahi (Punjab) kathphala, aranya,            krishnagarbha (Sanskrit); masudam (Tamilnadu).

 

Kaphal  is a sub-temperate evergreen tree found throughout the mid-Himalayas, starting from about 1,300 metres and going up to about 2,100 metres.

 

            The tree yields a drupaceous fruit which is one of the tastiest wild fruits of the sub-Himalayan region. This fruit tree carries a lot of commercial importance and every year its fruits worth thousands of rupees are sold in different towns of Himachal Pradesh. These fruits are very much liked by all.

 

Morphology

 

A medium to large woody, evergreen, dioecious tree, 12 to 15 metres high; trunk girth, 92.5 cm; bark, light brown to black; the male and the female trees have almost similar appearance.

           

            Leaves, almost crowded towards the end of branches, lanceolate, 9.2 cm long, 3.2 cm broad; lower surface, pale green; upper surface, dark green.

 

            Pistillate flowers, very small, sessile, solitary and bracteate; sepals and petals, either absent or not visible; inflorescence, a catkin, 4.2 cm long, axillary, bearing about 25 flowers; only a thread-like style visible with the unaided eye.

 

            Each staminate flower has about 12 stamens, each with a very short filament; inflorescence, a compound raceme, about 3.5 cm long.

 

            Fruit, a globose, succulent drupe, with a bard endocarp; diameter 1.1 to 1.3 cm; weight, 670 mg; volume, 610 microlitres; the colour of fruit, Spirea. red 025/1 or carmine 21 /1; pulp as well as juice Spirea red 025/1.

 

            Seeds, 9 mm long, 5 mm in diameter, weight 165 mg, volume 131 microlitres.

 

The flowering and fruiting season

The flowering season starts from the first fortnight of February and continues till the second fortnight of April.

           

            The peak flowering season was observed to occur during the first fortnight of March. Similarly the fruiting season started from the first week of May and continued till the last week of this month under Solan conditions.

Kaphal fruits displayed for sale	Kaphal fruits being sold in town

 

Yield

 

The yield, as recorded under Solan conditions, was found to be 15.5 kg per tree. It can, however, go up to 25 kg in the case of a big tree.

 

Chemical composition of the fruit

 

The edible portion of the fruit is its pulp, which is 75.4 per cent of the whole fruit. It contains 80.6 per cent moisture. The total soluble solids content of the fruit is 19.5 per cent. The juice content of the fruit is 40 percent. The juice contains 3.68 per cent acidity, 12.65 per cent total sugars, most of them in the form of reducing sugars. The tannin content was found to be 1.05 per cent on pulp basis. The fruits are not very rich in vitamin C and contain only 4.12 mg of it per 100 ml of juice.

The mineral content of the fruit pulp, as represented by its ash, is 0.387 per cent. The fruit contains 0.97 per cent protein, 0.007 per cent phosphorus, 0.194per cent potassium, 0.039 per cent calcium, 0.013 per cent magnesium and 0.004 per cent iron on pulp basis.

 

Medicinal properties

 

The bark of kaphal is said to possess many medicinal properties.  It is heating, stimulating and useful in catarrhal fever, cough and in the affections of the throat. An oil prepared from it is dropped into ears to stop earache.  Bark is also reported to be acrid, bitter, pungent, and useful in disorders relating to vata and kapha, fever, asthma, urinary discharges, piles, bronchitis, throat complaints, tumours, anemia, chronic dysentery and ulcers. Its snuff is useful in headache and in curing eye diseases. The oil from the flowers is a tonic, useful in earache, diarrhea and paralysis.

Utilization

The small seedy fruits of kaphal are very much liked by all for their taste and juiciness. Huge quantities of this wild fruit are picked by the villagers from the forests and sold in towns. The fruits easily sell 4 to 5 rupees a kg. Every year the fruit of this tree, worth thousands of rupees, is sold in towns. It is a good source of extra income for the villagers.

            The fruits, unfortunately, are not good keepers and their shelf-life does not exceed 2-3 days. As already mentioned under chemical composition, these fruits are fairly juicy and the percentage of extractable juice is about 40 per cent. The juice has a very attractive sparkling red colour. Efforts should be made to standardize a technique for its utilization.

            The major problem in the case of this fruit is that the harvesting period is too long and fruits from a single tree have to be harvested in many pickings. However, this is the only cost involved in the case of this fruit, the numerous trees bearing which are growing wild in the forests. This cost can, therefore, be overlooked.

            Kaphal is a tall and spreading evergreen tree. It should be very useful in avenue plantation in the hills. Besides providing shade and ornamental look, it will. also yield fruit.

            The small seedy fruits of kaphal are very much liked by all for their taste and juiciness. Huge quantities of this wild fruit are picked by the villagers from the forests and sold in towns. Every year the fruit of this tree, worth thousands of rupees, is sold in towns. It is a good source of extra income for the villagers.

            The fruits, unfortunately, are not good keepers and their shelf-life does not exceed 2-3 days. As already mentioned under chemical composition, these fruits are fairly juicy and the percentage of extractable juice is about 40 per cent. The juice has a very attractive sparkling red colour. Efforts should be made to standardize a technique for its utilization.

 

            Another problem in the case of this fruit is that the harvesting period is too long and fruits from a single tree have to be harvested in many pickings. However, this is the only cost involved in the case of this fruit, the numerous trees bearing which are growing wild in the forests. This cost can, therefore, be overlooked.

 

            Kaphal is a handsome spreading evergreen tree. It should a suitable avenue plant in the hills. Besides providing shade and ornamental look, it will also yield fruit.

 

 

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