| This member of the Myrtaceae is botanically identified as Syzygium samarangense Merr. & Perry (syns. S. javanicum Miq.; Eugenia javanica Lam. in part; E. alba Roxb.). Among its various vernacular names are: samarang rose apple, djamboe semarang (Indonesia); jambu ayer rhio (Malaya); pini jambu (Ceylon);jumrool, jamrul, or amrool (India); chom pu kao, or chom pu kio (Thailand); makopa (Philippines); cashu di Surinam, or Curacaose appel (Curacao); wax apple, wax jambu and water apple, generally. The tree, 16 to 50 ft (5-15 m) tall, has a short trunk 10 to 12 in (25-30 cm) thick, and open, widespreading crown, and pinkish-gray, flaking bark. The opposite leaves are nearly sessile, elliptic-oblong, rounded or slightly cordate at the base; yellowish to dark bluish-green; 4 | |
The tree is indigenous from Malaya to the Andaman and Nicobar Islands
where there are wild trees in the coastal forests. It was introduced into
the Philippines in prehistoric times and is widely grown throughout those
islands. It is common in Thailand,
Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam and Taiwan, frequently cultivated in India
and in Zanzibar and Pemba, but primarily as an ornamental, seldom for its
fruits which are little valued. It was introduced into Jamaica before 1903
and also into Surinam and the islands of Curacao, Aruba and Bonaire. A
few trees have been grown in Israel but have borne sparsely.
The Java apple is extra-tropical, growing only at the lower altitudes–up
to 4,000 ft (1,220m)–in India. It does best in parts of the Philippines
that have a long dry season. The soil must be fertile, or the crops
will be small and the fruit quality poor. The trees grow spontaneously
from seed. Preferred types are reproduced by layering, budding onto their
own rootstocks, or onto seedlings of S. densiflorum A. DC., (the beautiful
Wild Rose Apple of Malaya, which has edible flowers, undesirable fruits,
but is not attacked by termites). Sometimes the Java apple is grafted onto
the cultivated Rose Apple (q.v.). If planted in orchards, the trees
are spaced 26 to 32 ft (8-10 m) apart and are given a minimum of attention.
In Ceylon, the fruits are ripe from March to May; in India, the tree blooms
in March and April and the fruit ripens in May and June; in Java, flowering
occurs from April to June and fruiting from June to August. The Java
apple is a heavy bearer on good soil. When 5 years old it may yield a crop
of 700 fruits. In Malaya, the greenish fruits are eaten raw with
salt or may be cooked as a sauce. They are also stewed with true apples.
The pink fruits are juicier and more flavorful and suitable for eating
out-of-hand or cooking without accompaniments except sugar. Medicinal
Uses: The flowers are astringent and used in Taiwan to treat fever and
halt diarrhea. Investigators have found their principal constituent to
be tannin. They also contain desmethoxymatteucinol, O-methyl-4'-desmethoxymatteucinol,
oleanic acid and B-sitosterol. They show weak antibiotic action against
Staphylococcus aureus, Mycobacterium smegmatis, and Candida albicans.