Jamblon

Yesterday I discovered a new fruit we had never seen, tasted, or heard of in the garden ! It is called Jamblon in French, Java plums or Jambolan in English.

This is the story of this tree that sprouts in the garden by the sea. Many years ago, it caught my attention, and by rubbing its leaves I had the intuition it was a fruit tree. However it did not give fruits, and we could not discover what it was.

Yesterday while taking care of the orchard section of the garden, I passed underneath this tree and discovered like a black olive on the soil. I was really intrigued, and all of a sudden understood it was not an olive, but a fruit I had never seen in my entire life, resembling grape in appearance, but with a larger seed.

I did not know if it was edible or not, and after some research we discovered it is edible, and it is called Java Plum or Jamblon.

This fruit comes from South-eastern Asia, but also widely sprouts on the Reunion Island. It is edible raw, and really very good for the health. It is used as a natural cure for diabetes and high blood pressure, and it is a strong antioxidant. It is also used to produce alcohol and perfume and color rums.

It's really very interesting to discover a new fruit you have never heard of in the garden. And it seems that more than a decade ago it is a cousin of my grandparents who gave them the little plant. Nobody remembered what it was.

And if I was not so passionate by plants, nobody would have noticed those fruits, as the garden is large, and I am the only one who regularly tours it. 

Everything of this tree is edible. The seeds of the fruits are edible, and used in medicine, as well as its leaves. 

We live in a rich climate where trees from many different regions of the world can grow and thrive. I invite you, dear Red-Oak, dear Green-Rose, dear Little-Flute, to come visit!