THK NUTMKfJ TREE 



MYRISTICA 

 KRAORANS 



Nutmeg and Mace 



ii., 204; Kew Bull., 18H7. I : 1*95, 208; 1808, 15-8; Morrfc. Cantor I 



m. >'oc. Art*, Oct. 1895, 912 ; Dudge, Vteful Fibre Plant! of the World, 

 148; \V.M.,lr..w. <;,, /..!. 4M'. ; K.-im-ry. L'Abaea aux PhilAp- 



pinet, Bull. Econ. L'Indo-Chinf, July 1903, vi. (n.s.) ; Philippine Bureau of 

 Farmer'a Bull., 1904, No. 12, 9-29 ; RepU. on Admin. Andaman and 



Nicobar Island* ; liunauaok, Micro. Tech. Prod. (Winton and Barber, trannl.), 



1907, 





MYRISTICA, Linn. : Fl Br. Ind., v., 102-14 ; King, in Ann. 



Bot. Gard. Calc., 1891, iii., pt. 3 ; Gamble, Man. Ind. Timba., 1902, 



554-7 ; Prain, Beng. Plants, 1903, ii., 894-5 ; Hooper, Agri. Ledg., 1907, 



No. 3 ; MYRISTICACE.*. A genus of evergreen aromatic trees. According 



to Sir George King, 22 species are indigenous to India and one cultivated. 



M. canarlca, Bedd. ; Talbot, List Trees, etc., 165 ; Gamble, Man. Ind. Timbs., 

 the pindi. This is discussed by Hooper (Kept. Labor. Ind. Mut. (Induct. 

 Sec.), 11)0(1 7, 9) under the name pundi-kai. The seeds are made into candles 

 and they contain half their weight of fat, which melts at 39 C. It saponifies with 

 groat facility, yielding 92 per cent, of crystalline acids, melting at 41 C. The fat 

 ((insists largely of myrlsthln. In another report (I.e. 1903-4, 31) Hooper refers 

 to the juice of M. </<bbow<i. Hook., f. A T., which he describes as the Assam 

 iint me-. The .ferment of the fluid he speak of as resembling that of kin. 



M. malabarica, Lamk. ; kdnagi, shola vengai, pathiri. A large tree of the western 

 coast from the Konkan southwards in evergreen forests. Like the previous 

 species, the seed yields a yellowish oil when bruised or boiled. It is used 

 medicinally and for illumination (Hooper, I.e., 1900-7, 9). The fruit appears 

 to have been used for adulterating the nutmegs and mace of M. fragmn*. 

 The wood is moderately hard and used in building. \Cf. Pharmacog. Ind., 1893, 

 iii., 197.] 



M. fragrans, Houtt. / Nutmeg, and Mace ; jaiphal (nutmeg), jati, jatri (mace). A 

 bushy, evergreen tree, native of the Moluccas. Cultivated in India but not to 

 a great extent. It has succeeded best at the Botanic Garden of Barliyar, in the 

 Conoor Valley at the eastern side of the Nilgiri hills. The fruit yields the valu- 

 able spices " nutmeg " and " mace," the former being the hard ruminated al- 

 bumen and the latter the aril (lavanga, soe p. 313). 



Cultivation. According to Nicholls (Textbook Trop. Agri., 1892, 178-84), the 

 best soil for the nutmeg-tree is a deep, rich loam, with good drainage. It will 

 not thrive on sandy soils, and stagnant water about the roots soon kills it. The 

 climate must be hot and moist with an annual rainfall of 00 to 70 inches. Plants 

 are raised from fresh seeds, sown in nursery beds, sheltered from sun and wind. 

 They require to be watered every day in dry weather. When 2 to 3 feet high 

 they are transplanted at distances of 25 to 30 feet apart. The young trees must 

 be shaded and well watered, and the land constantly weeded. Should dry weather 

 come, the ground around the stems is improved by being mulched with straw, 

 leaves or stable litter. All parasitic or epipyhtic plants on stem or branches 

 should be at once removed. When the trees flower the sexes must be determined 

 and about one male left to every eight or ten females. The males should be on 

 the windward side, so that pollen may be carried to the female plants. The trees 

 commence to bear about the seventh year, and the produce increases till about 

 the fifteenth. 



Manufactures. The fruit is picked up every morning after it has fallen from 

 the tree. From 1,500 to 2,000 nuts should be obtained from each tree in full 

 bearing. The mace is stripped off and the nuts dried in sheds in trays raised 

 above smouldering fires. When dry the shells are broken with mallets, and the 

 nuts rubbed with lime to prevent attack from worms and then packed in tight 

 cases for export. The mace, after being stripped off, is spread on mats or trays 

 to dry, when it turns yellowish brown and becomes the mace of commerce. 



Oil. Nutmeg yields an essential and a fixed oil, while mace also con- 

 tains a peculiar essential oil. The fixed OIL, " nutmeg butter," is obtained by 

 expression, the powdered nuts being steamed and pressed while hot. It occurs 

 in blocks of a yellow colour. The essential oil is obtained by distillation, and is 

 white in colour, with the odour of nutmeg. The essential oils of both nutmeg 

 and mace are largely used in perfumery. 



791 



D.E.P., 

 v., 811-5. 



h n.,,j,. 



Nutmeg 

 and Mace. 



Cultiva- 

 tion. 



Nursery. 



Cro[>. 

 Nutmeg. 



OU. 



" Nutmeg 

 Batter." 



