Paradise Tree – Simarouba glauca (Miracle Tree / Lakshmi Taru) – cures diseases, produces oil, bio fuel and more
Posted on August 12, 2014 by admin in Organic, products with 18 Comments
Paradise Tree aka Lakshmitaru (Simarouba glauca DC.) is a multi-purpose evergreen tree receiving great interest as a promising energy crop and medicinal plant for the future.It has aroused great enthusiasm as miraculous tree of solace for cancer patients!
Brought from the tropical forests of Central America in 1960's, Lakshmitaru is now well flourished in Orissa, Maharashtra,Karnataka,Tamilnadu,Kerala and also at introductory stage of plantation in other states like Gujarat,Rajasthan,Andhra Pradesh and West Bengal.All parts of the plant namely, seed, shell, fruit pulp,leaf,leaf litter, unwanted branches, stem, bark, and root generate products that are useful in the production of food, fuel, manure, timber, medicine etc. The tree is well suited for the all the geographical regions of India. It reclaims wastelands, arrests soil erosion,supports soil microbial life and increases ground water levels.
Even though, the number of scientific publications devoted to medicinal palants is growing exponentially and the number of reviews is increasing rapidly, there are only very few literature available exploring the potential of this plant species.This blog is dedicated to provide numerous information about this versatile tree.
Botanical name : Simarouba glauca DC.
Family : Simaroubaceae
Distribution
It is an exotic species introduced from El-Salvador of Central America. It is a versatile multipurpose tree, which can grow well even in the degraded soils. This tree is regarded as highly suitable for growing on both arable and non-arable wastelands.
Environmental requirement
Climate and Temperature
It grows well up to 1000m MSL. The temperature of the species is 10-50°C with an annual rainfall of 500-2200 mm.
Soil
In all types of well-drained soil with pH 5.5-8.0. However, a minimum of 1.0 m deep soil is preferred for its growth. Soils of shallow depth with canker underneath are relatively unfavourable for its growth.
Phenology
The tree starts flowering and fruiting at about three years of age. Flowering is annual beginning in December and continuing up to February. The tree starts bearing when they are 4-6 years old and reach stability in production of another 4-5 years. The droplets (blackish purple in pink genotypes and brownish yellow in green genotypes) are ready for harvest by March/April. Season and duration of reproductive phenoperiods vary according to location and climate. Individual fruits have a development and ripening period of 1-2 months. Fruit is ellipsoid drupe, 2 – 2.5 cm long, with thin hard cuticle and juicy fruit pulp.
Silviculture
Simarouba glauca DC. (Family. Simaroubaceae), commonly known as aceituno, Simarouba or tree of heaven, is a medium sized evergreen tree (height 7-15 m) with tap root system and cylindrical stem. It is an exotic species introduced from El-Salvador of Central America. It is a versatile multipurpose tree, which can grow well even in the degraded soils. This tree is regarded as highly suitable for growing on both arable and non-arable wastelands. It needs no special care and requires minimum protection as it is generally not browsed by cattle, goats and sheep (Syamsundar Joshi etal, 1996).
Climate and Soil
It grows well up to 1000m MSL in all types of well-drained soil with pH 5.5-8.0. However, a minimum of 1.0 m deep soil is preferred for its growth. The temperature of the species is 17-35°C with an annual rainfall of 500-2200 mm. Soils of shallow depth with canker underneath are relatively unfavourable for its growth.
Flowering and Fruiting
The tree starts flowering and fruiting at about three years of age. Flowering is annual beginning in December and continuing up to February. The tree starts bearing when they are 4-6 years old and reach stability in production of another 4-5 years. The droplets (blackish purple in pink genotypes and brownish yellow in green genotypes) are ready for harvest by March/April. Season and duration of reproductive phenoperiods vary according to location and climate. Individual fruits have a development and ripening period of 1-2 months. Fruit is ellipsoid drupe, 2 – 2.5 cm long, with thin hard cuticle and juicy fruit pulp.
Utilization
All the parts of Simaruba are useful in one-way or the other. The seeds are considered economically important as they contain 50-65 per cent edible oil, which can be used in the manufacture of vanaspathi. From 1950 onwards, in El-Salvador and other Central American countries the oil is marketed for edible purposes under the trade name Manteea Vegetal 'Nieve" and the demand for the product has steadily increased. As industrial oil, it is well suited for the manufacture of quality soaps, lubricants, paints, polishes, pharmaceuticals, etc. (Syamsundar Joshi and Shantha Hiremath, 2000). The pressed cake resulting from the milling operation contains a very high percentage of protein (64%) and can be used as a cattle feed after the extraction of toxic elements. The pressed cake is also being utilized as organic fertilizers. The shells (endocarp) can be used in the cardboard industry. Pulp (about 20 kg/tree/year) constituting about 60 per cent of the fresh fruit by weight contains about 11% sugars and It can be used for juice making or in the fermentation industry. Leaf litter is a good feed for earthworms and it makes good manure. The leaf and the bark contain the chemical viz. quassin, a resinous matter which is helpful in curing amoebiasis, diarrhoea and malaria.
Natural Regeneration
This species regenerate naturally through self-sown seeds disseminated through the excretes of birds and monkeys which feed on these fruits. However, the natural regeneration in the stand population of Simaruba has been found to be very poor.
Artificial Regeneration, Seed Maturity and Seed Collection
The physiological maturity of seeds with maximum germination capacity and longevity is attained 11-13 weeks after flowering when the Simaruba fruits attained peak weight, when embryo is fully developed and enclosed in a hard fibrous endocarp and some of the fruits started falling on the ground. A study at Forest College and Research Institute reported that seed reaches physiological maturity at 13 weeks after flowering, when the fruits are turned into purple colour. The optimum periods of collection is when the colour of the fruits turns from greenish yellow to blackish purple. The fruits are best to collect from the tree since fallen fruits often attacked by soil borne fungus. The fungus is carried along with pulpy fruit in deterioration of seeds. The fruits attacked by the fungus few hours after their fall, as they are pulpy and rich in carbohydrates. The easiest way of collection is to spread a tarpaulin under the trees and collect the fruits after they have been manually stripped of the branches or shed by shaking or beating the branches.
Seed Extraction
For maximum seed quality, grade the fruits to separate undeveloped, immature, damaged and decayed fruits and also grade for colour groups viz., fully green, greenish yellow and dark purple. Discard green fruits, which account for poor quality.After collection, the fruits are transported to the place of processing in gunny bags. Plastic bags or plastic containers should not be used for collection and transportation of fruits. The fruit pulp must be removed immediately after collection, either by hand or in a depulper. Depulping is done by macerating the fruits by hand in a bucket. The skin of the fruit floats on the water when water is poured in the bucket. The seeds with some pulp still adhered to it are transferred to bamboo basket. They are then thoroughly washed under running water. Macerate and wash only small lots of seeds, instead of filling the bucket to the brim avoid stagnation of water for long hours.
Seed Drying
Immediately after extraction seeds must be dried in shade for few hours followed by sun drying to reduce the moisture content. The surface moisture of the seeds should be removed immediately after depulping and washing by drying them. If the rooms are humid and closed, then use of fan, air blower. The seeds should always be spread in a single layer and should not be heaped for uniform drying. The initial moisture level of the seed is 12-15 per cent.
Storage and Viability
Seed is orthodox and if stored at low temperature, it will retain high viability for several years. If the seed is stored in paper/cloth bags at room temperature, 9-12 months storage can be expected without loss in viability. Germination of fresh seed is 70-80 per cent. The seed coated with pulp in a thin skinny epicarp needs to be separated, sun dried and stored till crushed for oil extraction. Any delay in separating the seed and drying, will effects the quality of oil content. The seeds are decorticated before extracting the oil.
Pretreatment
Paradise tree, a native of South and Central America and now grown widely in Karnataka, is fast becoming a tree of solace for many cancer patients in the state. The decoction of leaves is being used as a complement to chemotherapy, with patients vouching that it drastically improves the quality of life and even cure the cancer.
The leaves are sourced from Bangalore, where two retired agricultural scientists, Syamasundar Joshi and Shantha Joshi, are engaged in popularising this tree and the decoction. They do it without taking any money, charging patients only labour cost.
"We just want people to grow this tree. It is like taking health insurance,'' said 73-year-old Syamsundar Joshi. The scientist duo said that the tree was originally brought to India to tide over the edible oil crisis. They noticed the plant was anti-bacterial, anti-tumorous and was good for gynaecological problems.
It was effective for cancer patients and the scientist couple found that the decoction could also bring down side effects of chemotherapy, minimise appetite loss and ensure fast recovery.
Shyla Ramdas of Vazhuthacaud here, who had heard about this decoction, was at first hesitant to give it to her husband, a stage-four cancer patient, who had malignancy in and around his intestine.
"The doctors were not very hopeful about his case and he kept on losing weight. But once he started taking this decoction, he was much healthier, driving the car and generally managing on his own. He even gained back the weight he had lost,'' said Shyla.
Scientifically, validations are yet to come but isolated studies have shown that several compounds such as the quassinoids in Simarouba has anti-tumour and anti-leukemic (against blood cancer) action. Glaucarubinone, one such compound, has been found to have activity against drug-resistant mammary tumours in mice and anti-leukemic activity, again in mice. It has also been found to improve mitochondrial metabolism and extend lifespan in the nematode, Caenohabditis elegans.
Most patients that 'Express' talked to were willing to let chemotherapy or surgery take credit for their recovery, but in their hearts, believed that it was the Simarouba leaves that made them better. Simarouba glauca is the scientific name of the tree, the local one being 'Lakshmitaru.' The leaves are considered to be very effective in curing cancer of first and second stages, whereas in later stages, improvement in quality of life is what is expected. But for Lakshmidevi Pillai of Thrissur, who was suffering with an ovarian cancer that had spread to kidney and intestine, these leaves seemed to have worked.
''I had to undergo several rounds of chemotherapy and surgery, but on my last check-up date on October 28, they said everything was fine with me. I continue to drink the decoction,'' said Shyla, who got her treatment in Gujarat, where her husband worked. Many of the patients, like Pearly Karun of Vazhuthacaud, came to know of these leaves from friends or relatives.
Pearly, whose malignancy had spread from the uterus to the lung, still had a 0.4 cm big tumour even after her chemotherapy.
"I used to feel drained but after starting on this decoction, my fatigue just disappeared. My stamina increased and I have become at least ten times more active now. I am sure that whatever is left of my tumour, will go away," Pearly sounds confident.
Courtesy: newindianexpress
Syamasundar Joshi and Shantha Joshi. 2007. Simarouba glauca DC. Lakshmi taru. University of Agricultural Sciences, Bangalore and Indian Council of Agricultural Research, New Delhi. Pp 128.
Dr. Syamasundar Joshi and Dr. Shantha Joshi # 23, R.B.I. Colony (behind Punjab National Bank); Ananda Nagar; Bangalore — 560 024. Land mark: Near Sai Baba Temple, R.T. Nagar; Mob. (0)94486 84021; Ph (080) 2333 5813; E mail: joshi.sim@gmail.com
MEDICINALLY IMPORTANT CHEMICALS
QUASSINOIDS namely, Ailanthinone, Glaucarubinone, Holocanthone, Dehydroglaucarubinone, Benzoquinone, Canthin, Glaucarubine, Glaucarubolone, Simarubin, Melianone, Simaroubidin, Simarolide, Sitosterol, and Tirucalla
AILMENTS THAT CAN BE CURED
• Cancer, Leukemia
• Ulcers and bleeding in alimentary system,
• Gastritis caused by Helicobacter pylori
• Hyperacidity, Dyspepsia
• Amoebiasis, Diarrhoea, Colitis
• Chikungunya, H1N1, Herpes, Colds, Hepatitis, Malaria, Fever
• Hemorrhage, Anemia, Rheumatoid arthritis
• Gynecological disorders: irregular periods, painful periods, excess bleeding, white discharge and menopause problems
For Cancer, Leukemia, Ulcers, Rheumatoid arthritis: Treatment is continued until the ailment is completely cured.
. For other ailments and as tonic: The decoction is taken for 15 days. The course is repeated once in six months.
FUTURE ACTION PLEASE: Grow Simarouba (Lakshmi taru) plants and gift health insurance to the world.
Paradise Tree – Simarouba glauca (Miracle Tree / Lakshmi Taru) – cures diseases, produces oil, bio fuel and more
Paradise Tree aka Lakshmitaru (Simarouba glauca DC.) is a multi-purpose evergreen tree receiving great interest as a promising energy crop and medicinal plant for the future.It has aroused great enthusiasm as miraculous tree of solace for cancer patients!
Brought from the tropical forests of Central America in 1960's, Lakshmitaru is now well flourished in Orissa, Maharashtra,Karnataka,Tamilnadu,Kerala and also at introductory stage of plantation in other states like Gujarat,Rajasthan,Andhra Pradesh and West Bengal.All parts of the plant namely, seed, shell, fruit pulp,leaf,leaf litter, unwanted branches, stem, bark, and root generate products that are useful in the production of food, fuel, manure, timber, medicine etc. The tree is well suited for the all the geographical regions of India. It reclaims wastelands, arrests soil erosion,supports soil microbial life and increases ground water levels.
Even though, the number of scientific publications devoted to medicinal palants is growing exponentially and the number of reviews is increasing rapidly, there are only very few literature available exploring the potential of this plant species.This blog is dedicated to provide numerous information about this versatile tree.
Botanical name : Simarouba glauca DC.
Family : Simaroubaceae
Distribution
It is an exotic species introduced from El-Salvador of Central America. It is a versatile multipurpose tree, which can grow well even in the degraded soils. This tree is regarded as highly suitable for growing on both arable and non-arable wastelands.
Environmental requirement
Climate and Temperature
It grows well up to 1000m MSL. The temperature of the species is 10-50°C with an annual rainfall of 500-2200 mm.
Soil
In all types of well-drained soil with pH 5.5-8.0. However, a minimum of 1.0 m deep soil is preferred for its growth. Soils of shallow depth with canker underneath are relatively unfavourable for its growth.
Phenology
The tree starts flowering and fruiting at about three years of age. Flowering is annual beginning in December and continuing up to February. The tree starts bearing when they are 4-6 years old and reach stability in production of another 4-5 years. The droplets (blackish purple in pink genotypes and brownish yellow in green genotypes) are ready for harvest by March/April. Season and duration of reproductive phenoperiods vary according to location and climate. Individual fruits have a development and ripening period of 1-2 months. Fruit is ellipsoid drupe, 2 – 2.5 cm long, with thin hard cuticle and juicy fruit pulp.
Silviculture
Simarouba glauca DC. (Family. Simaroubaceae), commonly known as aceituno, Simarouba or tree of heaven, is a medium sized evergreen tree (height 7-15 m) with tap root system and cylindrical stem. It is an exotic species introduced from El-Salvador of Central America. It is a versatile multipurpose tree, which can grow well even in the degraded soils. This tree is regarded as highly suitable for growing on both arable and non-arable wastelands. It needs no special care and requires minimum protection as it is generally not browsed by cattle, goats and sheep (Syamsundar Joshi etal, 1996).
Climate and Soil
It grows well up to 1000m MSL in all types of well-drained soil with pH 5.5-8.0. However, a minimum of 1.0 m deep soil is preferred for its growth. The temperature of the species is 17-35°C with an annual rainfall of 500-2200 mm. Soils of shallow depth with canker underneath are relatively unfavourable for its growth.
Flowering and Fruiting
The tree starts flowering and fruiting at about three years of age. Flowering is annual beginning in December and continuing up to February. The tree starts bearing when they are 4-6 years old and reach stability in production of another 4-5 years. The droplets (blackish purple in pink genotypes and brownish yellow in green genotypes) are ready for harvest by March/April. Season and duration of reproductive phenoperiods vary according to location and climate. Individual fruits have a development and ripening period of 1-2 months. Fruit is ellipsoid drupe, 2 – 2.5 cm long, with thin hard cuticle and juicy fruit pulp.
Utilization
All the parts of Simaruba are useful in one-way or the other. The seeds are considered economically important as they contain 50-65 per cent edible oil, which can be used in the manufacture of vanaspathi. From 1950 onwards, in El-Salvador and other Central American countries the oil is marketed for edible purposes under the trade name Manteea Vegetal 'Nieve" and the demand for the product has steadily increased. As industrial oil, it is well suited for the manufacture of quality soaps, lubricants, paints, polishes, pharmaceuticals, etc. (Syamsundar Joshi and Shantha Hiremath, 2000). The pressed cake resulting from the milling operation contains a very high percentage of protein (64%) and can be used as a cattle feed after the extraction of toxic elements. The pressed cake is also being utilized as organic fertilizers. The shells (endocarp) can be used in the cardboard industry. Pulp (about 20 kg/tree/year) constituting about 60 per cent of the fresh fruit by weight contains about 11% sugars and It can be used for juice making or in the fermentation industry. Leaf litter is a good feed for earthworms and it makes good manure. The leaf and the bark contain the chemical viz. quassin, a resinous matter which is helpful in curing amoebiasis, diarrhoea and malaria.
Natural Regeneration
This species regenerate naturally through self-sown seeds disseminated through the excretes of birds and monkeys which feed on these fruits. However, the natural regeneration in the stand population of Simaruba has been found to be very poor.
Artificial Regeneration, Seed Maturity and Seed Collection
The physiological maturity of seeds with maximum germination capacity and longevity is attained 11-13 weeks after flowering when the Simaruba fruits attained peak weight, when embryo is fully developed and enclosed in a hard fibrous endocarp and some of the fruits started falling on the ground. A study at Forest College and Research Institute reported that seed reaches physiological maturity at 13 weeks after flowering, when the fruits are turned into purple colour. The optimum periods of collection is when the colour of the fruits turns from greenish yellow to blackish purple. The fruits are best to collect from the tree since fallen fruits often attacked by soil borne fungus. The fungus is carried along with pulpy fruit in deterioration of seeds. The fruits attacked by the fungus few hours after their fall, as they are pulpy and rich in carbohydrates. The easiest way of collection is to spread a tarpaulin under the trees and collect the fruits after they have been manually stripped of the branches or shed by shaking or beating the branches.
Seed Extraction
For maximum seed quality, grade the fruits to separate undeveloped, immature, damaged and decayed fruits and also grade for colour groups viz., fully green, greenish yellow and dark purple. Discard green fruits, which account for poor quality.After collection, the fruits are transported to the place of processing in gunny bags. Plastic bags or plastic containers should not be used for collection and transportation of fruits. The fruit pulp must be removed immediately after collection, either by hand or in a depulper. Depulping is done by macerating the fruits by hand in a bucket. The skin of the fruit floats on the water when water is poured in the bucket. The seeds with some pulp still adhered to it are transferred to bamboo basket. They are then thoroughly washed under running water. Macerate and wash only small lots of seeds, instead of filling the bucket to the brim avoid stagnation of water for long hours.
Seed Drying
Immediately after extraction seeds must be dried in shade for few hours followed by sun drying to reduce the moisture content. The surface moisture of the seeds should be removed immediately after depulping and washing by drying them. If the rooms are humid and closed, then use of fan, air blower. The seeds should always be spread in a single layer and should not be heaped for uniform drying. The initial moisture level of the seed is 12-15 per cent.
Storage and Viability
Seed is orthodox and if stored at low temperature, it will retain high viability for several years. If the seed is stored in paper/cloth bags at room temperature, 9-12 months storage can be expected without loss in viability. Germination of fresh seed is 70-80 per cent. The seed coated with pulp in a thin skinny epicarp needs to be separated, sun dried and stored till crushed for oil extraction. Any delay in separating the seed and drying, will effects the quality of oil content. The seeds are decorticated before extracting the oil.
Pretreatment
யாம் பெற்ற இன்பம் பெருக வையகம்பெற்றதாய்தனை மகமறந்தாலும் பிள்ளையைப் பெறுந்தாய் மறந்தாலும்
உற்ற தேகத்தை உயிர்ம றந்தாலும் உயிரை மேவிய உடல் மறந்தாலும்
கற்றநெஞ்சம் கலைமறந்தாலும் கண்கள்நின் றிமைப்பது மறந்தாலும்
நற்றவத்தவர் உள்ளிருந்தோங்கும் நமச்சிவாயத்தை நான்மற வேனே.
"புழுவாய்ப் பிறக்கினும் புண்ணியாவுன்னடி
யென்மனத்தே வழுவா திருக்க வரந்தர வேண்டும்
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