Membrillos (Cydonia oblonga)

Late Autumn is the time when membrillos (quince, Cydonia oblonga) are reaching their final state of ripeness. The quince (Catalan: codonyer) is a marginal fruit in Mallorca and a bit of an old-fashioned fruit elsewhere, and is often neglected. This was not always the case. Some people say that it was the quince and not the apple that Eve used to seduce Adam with in the garden of Eden. Also, apparently it was not an apple but a quince that Paris awarded to Aphrodite in Greek mythology. In ancient times, the quince was a ritual offering at weddings. Often, a Greek bride would nibble a quince to perfume her kiss before entering the bridal chamber “in order that the first greeting may not be disagreeable nor unpleasant”. In Croatia, a quince tree is often planted as a symbol of fertility, love and life when a baby is born.

The quince tree belongs to the Roseaceae family. The plant has a delicate pink and white flower, rather beautiful in my opinion. The tree is often used as a rootstock for the grafting of pears.

In the olden days, Mallorcan señoras placed membrillos between the linen in the drawers to give their cloths or sheets some of the aromatic fragrance that this fruit possesses. Mallorcan shops still sell Dulce de Membrillo (called Carne de Membrillo in South America), sold in squares or blocks. At home the dulce is then cut into thin slices and spread over toasted bread or sandwiches, plain or with cheese such as manchego, often served for breakfast or as a snack. It is also often used as a filling for pastries.

The fruit is similar to the apple and the pear in all but taste; it is hard and acidy when raw. When cooked with sugar it turns into a pale pinkish sort of colour and makes for a delicious jam or jelly. It is also valued as a flavouring to be added to cooked apples or pears. People in Porreres aparently made an alcoholic spirit from it not all that long ago. In some parts of France and Switzerland, a liqueur de coing is made from quince, drunk as a digestif.

Quinces have long been used as a herbal medicine, as an infusion to treat sore throat, diarrhoea and haemorrhage of the bowel. It is effective against inflammation of the mucous membranes, intestines and stomach. They are also used in the cosmetic industry and for medicinal cosmetics. Long used in Chinese medicine, the stembark is used as an astringent for ulcers, and the fruits are used for their antivinous, astringent, carminative and peptic qualities. The seeds, soaked or boiled in water, release the mucilage from the seed coat and make a jelly-like consistency, which has been used for sore throats and eye lotions. The water used for boiling the fruit was benefitial in the healing of burns.

The quince is an excellent source of Vitamin C.

Hierbaluisa (Lippia triphylla)

There is a wonder herb in Mallorca that you should get to know. The plant is called Hierbaluisa in Castellano, or Marialluïsa in Catalan; you may know it already under its English name, Lemon Verbena (Lippia triphylla).

Lemon Verbena was brought to Europe by Spanish explorers in the 17th century from Argentina and Chile. There it was grown for its fabulous lemony oil that was used in perfume and beverages until cheaper Lemon Grass oil replaced it. Lippia triphylla is named after Maria Louisa the princess of Parma and wife of King Carlos IV King of Spain, and because it has whorls of three (tri) leaves (phylla).

Nowadays a largely undervalued medicinal herb, Lemon Verbena contains a strong lemon-scented essential oil that has calming and digestive qualities. The plant has a gentle sedative action and a reputation for soothing abdominal discomfort. It has a mildly tonic effect upon the nervous system and helps to lift the spirits and counter depression. The leaves and the flowering tops are antispasmodic, febrifuge, sedative and stomachic. An infusion made from the leaves has a deliciously refreshing lemon flavour and is used mainly in treating digestive disorders such as flatulence, indigestion and acidity. The herb is also useful as a stimulant for treating lethargy or depression whilst it is also used to treat feverish colds. The essential oil is used in aromatherapy in the treatment of nervous and digestive problems and also for acne, boils and cysts.

Other indications are said to be digestive disorders, rheumatoid arthritis, anxiety, sleeplessness (insomnia), asthma, cold, gas (flatulence), colic, diarrhea, indigestion, hemorrhoids, varicose veins, skin conditions, and constipation. Some caution is advisable though, since prolonged use or large internal doses supposedly can cause gastric irritation.

The plant is a wonderful addition to your garden thanks to its lovely, fresh smells.

The Medlar (Mespilus germanica)

Anytime soon now, you can find an unusual, small fruit in Mallorca’s markets, the Nespro. Outside of Spain, this fruit is rather known as the Medlar (Mespilus germanica), but it is really quite rarely seen. The Medlar used to be a quite common fruit in times bygone but is very rarely cultivated today to my knowledge. A century ago one might have rounded off dinner with a glass of Port, hazelnuts and a few medlars eaten with a spoon straight out of the skin.

The Medlar tree is not widely seen nowadays, even though it would be quite attractive in one’s garden.

The fruit can be harvested in late autumn whilst still hard and then needs to be bletted before it can be eaten raw. This involves storing it, stalk end upwards, in a cool place for a short while until it is on the point of (but not quite) rotting, a state described as incipient decay. At this stage the flesh turns from white to brown, becomes very soft and is quite sweet with a delicious flavour that somewhat resembles a luscious tropical fruit. Nespros can be eaten raw or cooked and would make a nice jelly due to the high concentration of pectin in them, to be eaten with roast pork, for instance. Apparently, the Medlar fruit is also used in the winemaking process, but I am not sure that this is the case in Mallorca. I will have to find out.

The Medlar is a relatively slow-growing tree, which means that the wood is rather hard. In earlier days, this wood was used to make spearpoints, clubs and fighting sticks for the hunt and for warfare. Later the wood was used for making parts of windmills, especially some of the turning wheels.

The pulp of the fruit is laxative. The leaves are astringent. The seed is lithontripic. It is ground up for use, but caution should be employed since the seeds contain the toxin hydrocyanic acid. The bark has been used as a substitute for quinine, but with uncertain results.

The Gínjol (Zizyphus jujuba)

You may have come across a strange looking, small fruit in Mallorcan shops and local markets called Gínjol, especially at this time of year. This fruit (Zizyphus jujuba) is also known as Jujube, Red Date, or Chinese Date. In Spain, the fruit is called Azufaifo; here in Mallorca you’ll find the fruit always under the Catalan name, Gínjol for the fruit and Gínjoler for the tree.

The jujube originated in China where they have been cultivated for more than 4,000 years. The plants travelled beyond Asia centuries ago and today are grown to some extent in Russia, North Africa, Southern Europe, the Middle East and the Southwestern USA. Jujube seedlings were perhaps introduced to Europe by Marco Polo and carried to the United States during the 19th century.

The fruit seems quite popular amongst the Mallorcans, but frankly, I do not exactly know how they eat or use it. I would rather suspect that its main use is as a desert, for cakes and for sweet syrups or jellies. I’ve also seen the fruit in its dried version here in Mallorca, when it has a distinctly red colour; dry Gínjol is sold as a dàtil (date).

I have eaten the fresh Gínjol fruit myself once, years ago, and I do remember neither liking nor disliking it. The Gínjol that I had then simply did not win me over. If I would know what to do with the fruit I would happily have another go.

The crop ripens non-simultaneously, and fruit can be picked in Autumn for several weeks from a single tree. If picked green, jujubes will not ripen. Ripe fruits may be stored at room temperature for about a week.The fruit may be eaten fresh, dried or candied. Fresh fruit is much prized by certain cultures and is commonly sold in Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese and Indian markets. Tree-dried fruit stores indefinitely; it dries on the tree without the use of a sulfur preservative.

The fruits are said to cure coughs, resolve any other lung complaints, soothe the internal organs and reduce water retention. The fruit is used in Chinese and Korean traditional medicine, where they are believed to alleviate stress. The fruit apparently also has laxative properties.

A 17th century herbalist (Gerard) is quoted as saying: “The fruit of the jujube tree eaten is of hard digestion, and nourisheth very little; but being taken in syrups, electuaries, and such like confections, it appealeth and smootheth the roughness of the throat, the breast and lungs, and is good against the cough, but exceeding good for the reines of the back, and kidneys and bladder”.

In Korea, the wood of the Zizyphus jujuba tree is used to make the body of the Taepyeongso, a double-reed wind instrument.

The Carob Tree (Ceratonia siliqua)

The Algarrobo tree (Ceratonia siliqua, Carob tree) is very characteristic of the Mediterranean region. The plant is also prolific all over the Middle East, where it has been in cultivation for at least 4,000 years. The plant was known to the ancient Greeks who planted the seeds in Greece and Italy.

The Carob tree provides one of Mallorca’s traditionally most important crops, the algarroba fruit (carob fruit, also known as locust bean).

Carob trees grow well where citrus fruit is grown. They prefer dry climates that receive more than 30 centimetres of annual rainfall. In other words: the Mediterranean-type climate.

During September and October you will see Mallorcan farmers (or their wives) beating long dark carob beans off their trees with long sticks. Unfortunately, in Mallorca over the last few years algarrobo trees are more and more neglected. The cost of manpower is too high nowadays to harvest the carob pods with the wholesale price per kilo of carob beans being as low as 18 Euro Cents. Not worth one’s while really, unless one does the job oneself.

The fruit of carob is a pod, technically a legume of 15 to 30 centimetres in length, fairly thick and broad. Pods are borne on the old stems of the plant on short flower stalks. Carob trees can have both, male and female flowers. The dark-brown pods are eaten directly by livestock (horses, mules, sheep, pigs, goats), but us humans know carob mainly because the pods are ground into a flour that is a cocoa substitute. Good for people who suffer from diabetes, for instance.

The carob bean is widely used as a substitute for chocolate. Although this product has a slightly different taste than chocolate, it has only one third of its calories. It is virtually fat-free (chocolate is half fat), is rich in pectin, is non-allergenic and has no oxalic acid, which interferes with absorption of calcium. Carob is also rich in sucrose (almost 40 %, plus other sugars) and protein (up to 8 %). The pod has vitamin A, several B vitamins, and a number of important minerals. As a consequence, carob flour is widely used in health foods for chocolate-like flavouring.

There are plenty of other uses of carob as well, medicinal, pharmaceutical, cosmetic and industrial.

The seed of the Carob tree is the ancient weight used by goldsmiths in the days of yore to weigh gold and precious stones. The seed of the carob fruit is always of the same weight, hence the word carat (from Ceratonia).

There are references to the carob in the Bible. For example, this plant is also called St. John’s Bread or locust bean because of the pods which were thought to have been the locusts that were supposedly eaten by John the Baptist in the wilderness. Some people think that it is the carob fruit that is referred to in the Bible as the Manna from Heaven, both, for its nutritional value and also for its easy availability.

Mohammed’s army ate kharoub, and Arabs planted the crop in northern Africa and Spain when the Iberian peninsula was invaded by the Moors. The Spanish later carried carob to Mexico and South America, and the British took carob to South Africa, India, and Australia.

The Sea Daffodil (Pancratium maritimum)

The Sea Daffodil (Pancratium maritimum) is also known as Sand Daffodil, Sand Lily and the Lily of St. Nicholas. In Catalan, the flower is called Assutzena d’arenal, Lliri d’arenal or Lliri de mar, whilst in Castellano it is called Azucena marina, Nardo marino or Amor mío. This wild flower is an endangered member of the Amaryllidaceae family and as thus, is protected. Do not pick it if you see one.

The beautiful and fragile Pancratium maritimum grows along the Mediterranean sea shore just above the high tide mark and in sandy dunes. It is also native to the shores of the Black Sea in Bulgaria and Turkey. The flower has a pleasing, exotic and very subtle lily scent, which only becomes apparent during still, windless summer nights that allow its delicate fragrance to become perceptible. The lovingly named Amor mío’s leaves often die back during hot summers as was the case with this flower photographed at the beach between Platja Es Dolç and Platja Ca’n Curt, near Colònia de Sant Jordi, in South East Mallorca (photo on top).

The word Pancratium is Greek in its origins meaning all-strength. Apparently, Pancratium was the best liked of all the ancient Olympic contests, a combination of boxing and wrestling between two heavily oiled, naked bodies.

Pancratium maritimum is said to help diminish tension or pressure in a person. Parts of the plant are said to have a purgative action and to stimulate evacuation of the bowels. P. maritimum is also said to help against inflammation of the spleen. Several alkaloids with pharmacological activity can be found in this plant. Another compound of interest is lycorine. An African variety of this plant (Pancratium trianthum) is considered to be psychoactive by the Bushmen in Botswana. The bulb of this perennial is reputed to induce visual hallucinations.

An incredible wealth of information can be gathered from the maltawildplants.com website. There you can see photos of the plant’s stamen, its bulbous fruit capsules, and its strange charcoal-black, somewhat soft seeds. Many thanks for some helpful input.

Walnut Trees (Juglans regia)

When I first came across a walnut tree (Juglans regia) in Mallorca, I couldn’t believe it. I thought that walnuts were native to the eastern Mediterranean and to the Balkans, to Persia, the Himalayas, China and so forth, but hot and sunny Mallorca?

But the walnut tree seems common in Mallorca (nogal in Castellano, noguer in Catalan). I must have seen a few dozen of them by now in various parts of the island. However, I have not yet come across a Mallorcan walnut tree with nuts of a pleasant or a satisfactory taste. Perhaps the tree is grown here mainly for the wood and not for the fruit. The wood is used in Mallorca for fine furniture as well as for rifle and shotgun handles.

Most walnuts sold in the Mallorcan shops seem to be imported from abroad.

The Caper (Capparis spinosa)

The caper (Capparis spinosa) is one of the most characteristic plants of the Mediterranean islands. In its natural habitat this plant lives in the walls of ancient city walls as well as on rocky, coastal cliff faces. Capers used to be cultivated for their flower buttons and unripe fruits, which are eaten once pickled in brine. The large flowers with white petals and lots of stamens that open in the Summer are quite beautiful. The flower is fragile and short-lived, though. The delicate, cream-white petals and lively purple stamens persist only a few hours.

It is quite plausible that the caper was first introduced to Mallorca by the Moors during their 300 year long reign at the beginning of the second Millenium. The Arab name al-Kabara (alcaparra in Castellano, taparera in Catalan) seems to suggest an Arab origin.

When propagated and farmed the Capparis spinosa is a remarkable plant as you can see from the photo below. The evergreen plant spreads in circular lumpy bushes of up to 2 m in diameter and is planted in rows, often amongst trees such as almonds. In Mallorca, the areas of Campos del Port, Santanyí and Llubi are particularly reknowned for their alcapparas production. But, in a way it seems that capers may lately have gone out of fashion. The harvest is rather strenuous with lots of bending down being involved.

Capers are a common ingredient in the Mediterranean cuisine. In Mallorcan markets, you can buy fresh (unripe) capers. Smaller buds (nonpareilles with less than 1 cm diameter) are considered more valuable than the larger ones (capucines and communes with more than 1.5 cm diameter). The salted and pickled caper bud is used as a seasoning or garnish. In some markets you can find capers readily prepared in a brine solution and sold in glass jars; these are also known as caper berries in English. Their flavour is rather intense.

Capers are said to reduce flatulence and to be anti-rheumatic in effect. Capers have reported uses for arteriosclerosis, as diuretics, kidney disinfectants, vermifuges and tonics. Infusions and decoctions from caper root bark have been traditionally used for dropsy, anemia, arthritis and gout. Capers contain considerable amounts of the anti-oxidant bioflavinoid rutin.

In ayurvedeic medicine, capers are recorded as hepatic stimulants and protectors, improving liver function (Capers = Himsra).

Caper extracts and pulps have been used in cosmetics.

The medicinal properties were quoted from the www.purdue.edu website. Thank you.

Hibiscus rosa-sinensis

One of the nicest flowers that I know has to be the Hibiscus flower. The plant grows as a bush, a shrub or as a small tree which is in leaf all year round. There are some 300 varieties known of the Hibiscus; the plant commonly grown here in Mallorca is the Hibiscus rosa-sinensisæ, also known as Chinese Hibiscus or China Rose. The plant belongs to the family of Malvaceæ. Its magnificent flowers are up to 15 cm in diameter with colours ranging from pink to white, and from yellow to red.

The Spanish call this plant Rosa de China (Chinese Rose), whilst the Mallorcans call it Hibiscus de Xina. The plant is in full bloom now; flowers are out from April through to September. If you own a Mediterranean garden, the Hibiscus is a must, even though it is not native here but hails from East Asia.

The flowers are edible. Young leaves are sometimes used as a spinach substitute.

Chinese hibiscus is a sweet, astringent, cooling herb that checks bleeding, soothes irritated tissues and relaxes spasms. The flowers are aphrodisiac, demulcent, emmenagogue, emollient and refrigerant. They are used internally in the treatment of excessive and painful menstruation, cystitis, venereal diseases, feverish illnesses, bronchial catarrh, coughs and also, to promote hair growth. The leaves are anodyne, aperient, emollient and laxative. A decoction is used as a lotion in the treatment of fevers. The leaves and flowers are beaten into a paste and poulticed onto cancerous swellings and mumps. The flowers are used in the treatment of carbuncles, mumps, fever and sores.

Thanks are due to arbolesornamentales.com for the bottom photograph. Muchas gracias. The details on medicinal properties were taken from the ibiblio.org website. Many thanks.

The Rubber Plant (Ficus elastica Moraceæ)

Some of the biggest Ficus elastica Moraceae trees you will ever have seen can be found in Palma de Mallorca at the beginning of the Passeig des Born, near Plaza de la Reina, or a bit further down the street, in Passeig de Sagrera, near La Llotja. The plant is also called the rubber fig, rubber bush, rubber plant, or Indian rubber bush.

I particularly love the adventitious aerial roots grown by the plant for additional support to carry its heavy branches. Botanists say that this tree is a bush, really.

Over the years I have witnessed these giant plants being pruned and cut back rigorously at regular intervals, probably as a precaution against stormy weather. The tree has a tendency to break apart in strong winds.

The Ficus elastica is an evergreen tree with a height of 6 – 10 m. The thick trunk is short and at times very branched from a very small height. It has a wide crown and the external branches are slightly hanging.

The alternate leaves have a petiole reaching up to 5 cm in length. The leaves measure 12 – 30 cm long and are elyptical, coriaceous, shiny bright green on the upper side and paler on the lower side, although there are other varieties with other shades. The venation is very fine and the margin is smooth. Before opening, the leaves are wrapped in a long, reddish or pinkish stipule. The sessile fruits are spherical, 1 cm or more in diameter, with a smooth, greenish, pitted surface.