Monodora myristica
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Monodora myristica |
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| ( Gaertn. ) Dunal |
Monodora myristica is a species of plant within the Annonaceae family. The seeds of this tropical tree are widely sold as a spice, in the past mainly as an inexpensive substitute for muscat . Common names are African or false nutmeg , Jamaican nutmeg and calabash nutmeg .
description
Appearance and leaf
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Monodora myristica grows as a deciduous tree and reaches stature heights of 35, sometimes up to 40 meters and chest height diameters of around 40 to 100 centimeters. The cylindrical, slightly furrowed trunk has a brownish to grayish bark , which is provided with a gray-blue wax coating on the branches. Older branches are ash gray to brown in color.
The alternate leaves arranged on the branches are divided into a petiole and a leaf blade. The simple, slightly leathery leaf blade is about 11 to over 50 centimeters long and 4 to 14 centimeters wide, obovate to elliptical or narrowly elliptical, its base is slightly heart-shaped to rounded, more rarely wedge-shaped. The tip of the leaf is pointed to pointed or tailed, the tip up to 10 to 15 millimeters long. The leaf is lighter on the underside, with clearly protruding leaf veins. The petiole reaches 8 to 14 millimeters in length and is furrowed on the outside on the upper side.
blossom
The fragrant, large, hermaphrodite flowers with a double bloom cover are pendent and arranged individually opposite to the leaves . They are long-stalked (and thus distinguishable from the related Monodora undulata ). The length of the stem ranges from 5.5 to 30 centimeters, this is light green with purple spots and covered with a blue-gray wax coating. The upper, wavy and bald bract is 1.5 to 4 inches long, green with purple stripes and pointed to pointed. The three laid back, lanceolate sepals are 2 to 4 inches long and 0.7 to 1.7 inches wide, they are green to reddish, glabrous and wavy. The three inner and outer, unequal petals in two circles are fused together at the base, the basal part is 6 to 8 millimeters long fused with the flower stalk. The outer, spreading, long and frilly, wavy petals are 4 to 10.5 inches long, with a length to width ratio of about 1.8 to 3, they are pointed and ovate. Their color is light yellow with purple stripes, with spots up to sometimes completely purple. The inner, upright petals are only 25 to 35 millimeters long, with a length to width ratio of about 1 to 1.5. They are triangular to heart-shaped and narrowed to a short, white nail at the base . Inside they are covered with short, upright hairs at the base. They are predominantly pale yellow in color, with red spots on the inside, but only slightly spotted and keeled on the outside. Its smooth edge is covered with short, curved hair. The numerous short stamens sit in 16 to 20 rows on the ovoid flower axis , they are about 2 millimeters long. The upper, green ovary towers over the stamens, it is about 4 to 5 millimeters long and just as wide. The split scar is relatively small.
Monodora myristica flowers and fruit all year round. The striking flowers are known to be pollinated by flies.
Fruit and seeds
The spherical, heavily woody, multi-seeded fruits, hanging from dark brown, 30 to 35 centimeters long, fruit stalks, reach a diameter of about 9 to 15 centimeters. They are colored green with white spots when young, later they turn pale yellow. They are finely ribbed lengthways. The 15 to 22 millimeter long, brown seeds sitting in it are embedded in a whitish pulp. The very hard and stable fruits are only used by larger, fruit-eating species such as chimpanzees . The seeds contain 5 to 9% of a colorless essential oil .
Occurrence
Monodora myristica grows naturally in the evergreen tropical rainforests of West Africa and western Central Africa , from sea level on the Gulf of Guinea to around 1600 meters, from Liberia to Nigeria, Cameroon, Ghana to Angola , in the east to Uganda and in western Kenya . It occurs in primary and secondary forests on sandy to stony soils, mostly along rivers or in swampy regions.
With the slave trade , Monodora myristica was introduced to the Caribbean islands at an unknown date, where it established itself.
use
Spices and medicinal plants
The aromatic seeds are ground into powder and used as a seasoning with a nutmeg-like taste in dishes. In Ghana, where the species occurs both wild and cultivated, it is one of the most important aromatic plants traded there; trade in markets is extrapolated to around 10 tons a day across the country.
This powder is also traditionally added to pepper soup as a stimulant to relieve constipation and prevent passive uterine bleeding in women immediately after giving birth. It is also used as a stimulant to promote the flow of milk in the mother after the child is born. It also has diuretic properties and is also used to lower mild fevers.
The bark of Monodora myristica is used to treat hemorrhoids, stomach aches and fever pains. It is used as a refreshment in steam baths and is suitable for alleviating the symptoms of lumbago with fever.
The African nutmeg is also used in the production of healing ointments for the treatment of rheumatism , arthritis and strep throat .
When used externally, the seeds, either in powder form or mixed as a paste, can be used for wound care, in particular for the treatment of wounds caused by the guinea worm . It is also used as a remedy for fleas and lice.
Other use
The wood of Monodora myristica is hard. The seeds are also made into chains. The seeds of Monodora myristica are used as an insect repellent .
Taxonomy and Phylogeny
Monodora mysticism was in 1791 by the German botanist Joseph Gaertner , under the basionym Annona myristica , described according to the herbarium specimen of a cultivated in Jamaica plant he the English botanist Joseph Banks had received. The French botanist Michel Félix Dunal transferred them in 1817 to the genus Monodora, which he had newly described . It is the type species of the genus. Synonyms are Monodora borealis Scott-Elliot, Monodora claessensii De Wildeman, Monodora unwinii Hutchinson & Dalziel.
According to genetic data, Monodora myristica belongs to a clade of representatives of the genus, which are mainly found in western and central Africa. Sister species would be Monodora laurentii , other closely related species are Monodora crispata , Monodora tenuifolia and Monodora undulata .
swell
- Thomas LP Couvreur: Monograph of the Syncarpous African Genera Isolona and Monodora (Annonaceae). In: Systematic Botany Monographs. Vol. 87, 2009, 150 pages.
- Thomas LP Couvreur: Revealing the Secrets of African Annonaceae: Systematics, Evolution and Biogeography of the Syncarpous Genera Isolona and Monodora. Dissertation, Wageningen University, 2008, ISBN 978-90-8504-924-1 , online (PDF; 14.6 MB).
- EA Weiss: Spice Crops. CABI, Center for Agriculture and Biosciences International, 2002, ISBN 978-0-85199-605-9 , p. 102 f.
Individual evidence
- ↑ Thomas J. Zumbroich: The introduction of Nutmeg (Myristica fragans Houtt.) And Cinnamon (Cinnamomum verum Presl.) To America. In: Acta Botanica Venezuela. 28 (1), 2005, pp. 155-160, online .
- ↑ Mirabel Tengi Bejeng: Journal of African Medicine (JOFAM), January 13, 2016: Data sheet from Monodora myristica ( memento of the original from April 23, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , accessed April 23, 2016.
- ↑ Tinde van Andel, Britt Myren, Sabine van Onselen: Ghana's herbal market. In: Journal of Ethnopharmacology. 140 (2), 2012, 368-378, doi: 10.1016 / j.jep.2012.01.028 .
Web links
- Monodora myristica in the Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN), USDA , ARS , National Genetic Resources Program. National Germplasm Resources Laboratory, Beltsville, Maryland.
- Monodora myristica at Useful Tropical Plants.
- Description, and images, from World Annonaceae , accessed June 22, 2016.
- Monodora myristica JSTOR Global Plants , accessed June 22, 2016.
- Monodora myristica at KewScience, accessed May 18, 2020.
