Miracle Fruit (Calabash Tree)

Calabash Tree "Miracle Fruit"

March 2, 2016 Update:


I've found a post about this calabash tree which could be very informative. It talks about how it could help us heal some of our illnesses and how to prepare the juice of the fruit of calabash tree. Please take extra precautions before taking the juice if you have certain allergies on herbal remedies.

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March 26, 2012 UPDATE:

After a long wait, I finally got the name of this tree from a blogger who commented that this tree plant is called a Calabash Tree. Thanks to him... According to some sources, the fruit, bark and the leaves of this plant is widely used.

Plant Botany:

Small tree growing to a height of 4 to 5 meters with arching branches and close-set clusters of leaves. Leaves are alternate, often fascicled at the nodes, oblanceolate, 5 - 17 cm long, glossy at the upper surface, blunt at the tip and narrowed at the base. Flowers develop from the buds that grow from the main trunk, yellowish and sometimes veined with purple, with a slightly foetid odor, occuring singly or in pairs at the leaf axils, stalked and about 6 cm long, and opens in the evening. The fruit is short-stemmed, rounded, oval or oblong, green or purplish, 15 to 20 cm in diameter.

Uses:

Folkloric
• In India, used as a pectoral, the poulticed pulp applied to the chest.
• In the West Indies, syrup prepared from the pulp used for dysentery and as pectoral.
• In Rio de Janeiro, the alcoholic extract of the not-quite ripe fruit used to relieve constipation
• For erysipelas, the fresh pulp is boiled in water to form a black paste, mixed and boiled with vinegar, spread on linen for dermatologic application.
• The bark is used for mucoid diarrhea.
• Fruit pulp used as laxative and expectorant.
• In the Antilles and Western Africa, fruit pulp macerated in water is considered depurative, cooling and febrifuge, and applied to burns and headaches.
• In West Africa, fruit roasted in ashes is purgative and diuretic.
• In Sumatra, bark decoction used to clean wounds and pounded leaves used as poultice for headaches.
• Internally, leaves used as diuretic.
• In the Antilles, fresh tops and leaves are ground and used as topicals for wounds and as cicatrizant.
• In Venezuela, decoction of bark used for diarrhea. Also, used to treat hematomas and tumors.
• In Costa Rica, used as purgative.
• In Cote-d'Ivoire, used for hypertension because of its diuretic effect.
• In Columbia, used for respiratory afflictions.
• In Vietnam, used as expectorant, antitussive, laxative and stomachic.
• In Haiti, the fruit of Crescentia cujete is part of the herbal mixtures reported in its traditional medicine. In the province of Camaguey in Cuba, is considered a panacea.
• In Panama, where it is called totumo, the fruit is used for diarrhea and stomachaches. Also for respiratory ailments, bronchitis, cough, colds, toothaches. headaches, menstrual irregularities; as laxative, antiinflammatory, febrifuge. The leaves are used for hypertension.
Others
• In some countries, the dried shell of the fruit is used to make bowls and fruit containers, decorated with paintings or carvings.
• Used in making maracas or musical rattle.
• In Brazil, the fibrous lining of the fruit is sometimes used as a substitute for cigarette paper.
• A favorite perch for orchids.

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We had this plant they call "miracle fruit" at home and some people told us that its fruit is used to treat some cancer illnesses.

I had asked a friend of mine what is this fruit and she said it's called a grenadillo or "miracle fruit". I browsed the Internet for pictures labelled as miracle fruit and the result showed a picture of these berry plant. They looked almost the same but they differ on the fruit. The one we had at home has a light green color that's as big as a basketball.

Does anybody know what is the real name of this plant?

Read more...

Tuba-Tuba Stems

Tuba-tuba (scientifically known as Jatropha curcas L.) is a drought-resistant perennial shrub with an economic life of up to 35 years and can even extend up to 50 years. Tuba-tuba shrub has a smooth, gray bark which exudes a whitish color, watery latex when cut. The size of the leaves ranges from 6-15 cm in length and width. It sheds leaves in the dry season and rejuvenates during the rainy season.

Tuba-tuba is one of the most promising sources of biofuel today. About 30 percent of the tuba-tuba nut is composed of oil which can be easily processed into fuel that can replace or mixed with petroleum based diesel to save on imported oil and most importantly increase local employment and help the economy to grow.

But tuba-tuba is not only known to be a good future source of biofuel, but it has also been used for quite a long time for health benefits. The leaves of tuba-tuba plant are used as poultices for sprains.

Another health benefit of tuba-tuba is to use its stems to extract excess water from the lungs. Watery lungs when severe requires medical suction which can be very expensive for most people. To save, we resorted to herbal remedies to treat my father's watery lungs. Below are the steps on how to prepare the poultice:

1. Cut two stems of tuba-tuba plant about a foot long.

2. Scrape the outermost thin skin of the plant until a green layer becomes visible. Disregard the scraped skin.

3. Scrape thinly the green and the fibrous white layers of the stem.

4. Divide the output into two and wrap the first half with a leaf of cardava plant.

5. Put it over a burning charcoal to heat. Please do not burn the poultice.

6. After it has been heated for about three to five minutes, combine it with the remaining unheated half mixing it together.

7. Put the mixed poultice evenly on the back right over the lungs area, then put a bandage to keep the poultice in place.

8. It is best to put tuba-tuba poultice before bedtime. You can remove it in the morning.

Read more...

Oxidized Apple against Dengue fever

During rainy days, it can't be helped that dengue-causing mosquitoes are everywhere waiting for poor victims especially children. But when things go out of hand, an oxidized apple is a good source that could help for the fast recovery of the patients with dengue fever. Oxidized apples increases blood platelet levels.

Peel an apple and expose it to air for an hour or until its color turns into brown. Then give it to your patient.

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Malunggay juice

When it comes to first aid remedies for wounds and infections, nothing beats the malunggay juice as an antibiotic. I had even used the juice of fresh malunggay leaves to treat my cat's injured leg. The injury was caused by an unknown puncture. I crushed the leaves and squeezed out the malunggay juice and apply it directly over my cat's pus-filled leg everyday at least three times. Anyway, the application can be done as many times as you want to increase the possibility of fast healing and recovery. Every time I put the malunggay juice over his wound, my cat would scream out and bit my hand. I think the juice brought a smarting pain on my cat's leg. I did not bring my cat to a vet because I know it would cause me a lot for the treatment. Instead I use a plant that is available everywhere. In a week, my cat's injured leg had completely healed.

Related Post: Malunggay-Milk Shake

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