General Information :

• Wild Jack is an evergreen tree, up to 50 m high,
• Bark dark grey, smooth when young, later scaly/flaky, lenticellate; blaze cream
• Latex white, profuse.
• Leaves are simple, alternate; stipules up to 4 cm long, lateral, densely tawny bristly.
• Flowers are unisexual, minute, yellowish-green; male in leaf-axils, drooping, in narrowly cylindric spikes upto 15 cm long.
• Fruit is a fleshy multiple fruit (like mulberry), 6-7.5 cm across, spherical or ovoid, echinate, yellow when ripe.

Distribution :

• Wild Jackfruit is endemic to the Western Ghats and are found in its evergreen forests.

Habitat : This species grows on the banks of freshwater rivers, the edges of freshwater swamps and lagoons and on seasonally flooded lowland plains.

Soil : Succeeds in most soils, preferably well-drained

Altitude :Up to 1,300 metres

Rainfall :2,500 - 3,500mm

Temperature : 22 - 32°c

Terrain : Hills

Tree Characteristics :

• Older plants succeed in full sun or moderate shade, but younger trees require reasonable levels of shade

Habit : Evergreen tree

Natural Regeneration :

• Naturally regenerated by seeds.

Artificial Regeneration :

• Direct sowing and vegetative propagation.

Seed collection and Storage :

• Flowering and fruiting: December-March
• Ripe fruits are collected and cut open for seed extraction.
• The seeds are dried in the shade and used in the same season as being oily loses their vitality after about a month.
• About 45 to 90 seeds weigh one kg.

Seed Treatment :

• No Pretreatment.

Nursery Technique :

• Seedlings can be raised in big sized polybags.
• Sowing can directly be done in each Poly bags
• Germination starts after 10 days and is completed in a month.
• Fresh seed gives germination percentage of 70 – 75 %.

Plantation technique :

• Dig pits of 30 cm3.
• Fill up the pits with top soil mixed with 10 Kg of FYM and 1 Kg of Neem cake per pit.
• Plant preferably grafts during June – December at 8 x 8 m spacing.
• Planting is done in July after the commencement of rains at a spacing of 5m x 5m,
• For fruit protection, the spacing usually resorted is 12 m x 12m for healthy growth of plants.

Care & Disease Control :

• In early stages weeding is necessary. In second year, soil working is important.

Major uses :

• The seed is used medicinally.
• Chief value lies in fruit only.
• The wood is moderately hard, durable, it lasts well in water and is not attacked by white ants. It is used to make valuable timber, it is used for house and boat building, furniture, etc.
• The concreted juice forms a waxy, tough, light brown substance, which, when melted, is used as a cement to join broken earthen-ware and stoned ware.