Medlar: beneficial properties and contraindications. Medlar. What is this amazing fruit? What does loquat fruit look like?

In ancient times, medlar was grown by both the Greeks and Romans.

The Persians have also grown them for centuries. Loquat fruits were popular in England in the 17th and 18th centuries, as well as during the Victorian era. Today, in some countries of Asia and the Caucasus, medlar is still grown; in Japan and Israel this fruit is highly valued. However, in Europe it can be found mainly in botanical gardens and in the gardens of lovers of exotic fruits.

What is medlar and what is it eaten with?

Medlar is the closest relative of hawthorn, quince and pear. There are 2 main types of medlar:

German medlar is a short tree 3-4 m. The fruits are distinguished by the fact that they are round in shape, brown in color and the flesh is sweet and sour, but tart. To ensure that the fruits become soft and ready for consumption, they are harvested only after the first frost. If there is no point in waiting for frost, they are collected and stored in a strong saline solution. In this form they can be stored in a cool place for several weeks, and only after that it can be eaten - it acquires its taste, and the center becomes soft and pleasant. Many people describe the taste of German medlar as similar to applesauce.

Now for us that fruit is something unusual and exotic, but just a hundred years ago, for Europeans it was quite common, people ate its fruits fresh, made desserts and jams from medlar.

Japanese medlar is a tree whose height can reach 5-7 meters with a wide, dense crown. The flowers of Japanese medlar are white and fragrant. The fruits are round or oblong with a diameter of about 3-5 cm. The color of ripe fruits is light or orange-yellow, very similar in appearance to apricots. The pulp is white, juicy, sweet and sour with several brown seeds. It is grown in the Caucasus and found wild in China. The harvest is already harvested in April-June, in comparison with the German medlar, the fruits of which become edible only after the first frost.

Japanese medlars can be stored for only a few days as they quickly deteriorate, and they also do not tolerate transportation well. Apparently because of this, the chances of finding these fruits in our stores are very small.

Interesting facts about medlar

• In Israel, the Japanese medlar is called “shesek”. In Spain - nispero.

• Initially, in Japan, medlar trees were grown for decorative purposes.

• Many cosmetic and pharmaceutical companies use medlar leaf extract to make products for hair loss and hair growth.

• A substance that supposedly has the ability to stop the growth of cancer cells was recently discovered in an extract from loquat leaves. They are currently being tested and there are no final results.

Loquat - beneficial properties

Ingredients: Water, dietary fiber, protein, malic and citric acid, fructose.

Vitamins and minerals: Beta-carotene, carotene, niacin, folic acid, vitamin E and A, B vitamins, vitamin K, calcium, phosphorus, iodine, iron, magnesium, potassium.

Calorie content: 100 grams of medlar contains about 42 kcal.

In countries such as Spain, Japan or Israel, Japanese medlar is very loved and appreciated. This fruit is eaten mainly fresh, and also made into preserves and jams, desserts, as well as compotes and liqueurs. The Spaniards manage to make sauces and side dishes for meat from medlar.

Like any other fruit, loquat has many beneficial properties. Due to the fact that medlar contains very few calories, it is perfect for those on a diet.

Loquat is recommended for people who have kidney disease or dysfunction, increasing their filtration capacity. Contains a lot of molecular water, thanks to which it nourishes our body with moisture and helps get rid of toxins.

The main benefit of medlar is that it is very rich in vitamin A, which is essential for the health of our eyes.

Loquat is useful for gastrointestinal diseases as it improves digestion and cleanses the intestines.

Spanish farmers with their medlar harvest (nispero); photo source: laopiniondemalaga.es

How to select and store medlar

When choosing a medlar, you should pay attention to the size; too small ones will be sour, as they may be unripe, and large ones may be overripe, and therefore not entirely juicy. Ideally, you should choose a medium-sized loquat - about the size of a plum.

The color should be even, without signs of the beginning of a decaying process, and of medium softness.

Medlar can be stored for only a few days in a cool place. Can also be stored at room temperature.

It is best to eat medlar fresh, since in this form all the beneficial properties of this wonderful fruit are preserved. Before eating the medlar, do not forget to remove the peel.

comments29

Once, when I was in a sanatorium in the Caucasus, I bought mishmula. I didn't like it, it had no taste or smell. Perhaps I didn't choose it correctly. But they don’t sell it here.

This is the first time I've heard such a name. Although, when I saw the first picture (German medlar), it seemed that once upon a time I tried these fruits, but did not know their name.

But I definitely haven’t met a Japanese one.

I have been to Spain many times, bought various exotic fruits there, but have never encountered medlar.

Thank you, now I will pay attention to this fruit. It’s interesting to try, especially since it’s so useful :)

I'm embarrassed to admit, but I've never even tried it. And I didn’t see it being sold. This is how we learn about new things. Thank you.

This is the first time I’ve heard about what medlar is. Now I’ll know, thanks to your site. And I’ll keep coming back. There is a lot of useful information here!

I would really like to try medlar, but unfortunately we don’t have it for sale.

I heard the word medlar only in the Nikitins’ song - “golden medlar”. But I didn’t even suspect what it was until now.

In Israel, sheseki (aka medlar) appear in the spring around April. If you buy small ones, they are sour and often not ripe. You need to take large and bright orange ones. The taste is juicy, sweet and sour, and does not have a distinct smell like melon or orange, for example.

Veronica, the Nikitins’ song is called “Golden Brich-mulla” and has nothing to do with medlar, except that it also grows in this area (Tajikistan). The fruit has a very interesting taste, I just bought it today, the season is in full swing. In St. Petersburg it costs about 200 rubles per kg (they sell it in markets and vegetable shops), I also saw it in Greece in Crete at this time (May-June) and on a tree, and on sale the cost is 2 euros per kg.

This is Uzbekistan, not Tajikistan - every resident of Tashkent probably knows what Chimgan is and that Brichmula is next to it ((((((

The medlar is still growing and ripening in Abkhazia. I had a house in Gagra after the Georgian genocide in 1992 and two medlar trees. In Moscow you can buy medlar on the market, but this is a pitiful semblance of what I ate as a child, picking the fruits from the tree. It is written medlar but it says medlar

I agree one hundred percent :). As a child, I was on vacation with my grandmother in Gagra, where our landlady had a medlar tree growing in her yard, and she allowed us to pick it straight from the branches :). It was fantastically tasty, honey-sweet and slightly sour with some unearthly aftertaste, juicy, filled with sunshine. What I buy in Moscow from time to time is truly a pathetic semblance of that, a shadow of the shadow of that Caucasian medlar of my childhood. And the point here is not nostalgia, but taste :). Although those fruits, medlars, which are sold in our stores and now on the market, look beautiful, but the taste is not the same, alas :)

I just bought and ate medlar. And I immediately went online to look for her. I liked her. Sweet sour, slightly astringent, like persimmon, but not as strong. There are large bones inside. I read about its usefulness….I’ll buy more tomorrow

medlar grows in every yard in Abkhazia, I write comments sitting in the shade of this tree, these yellow fruits look at me and ask me to sit down.

I was in Moscow and bought this fruit at the market, I liked it, I also liked the last comment “I’m writing a comment sitting in the shade of this tree...”

I saw it here only this year and accidentally noticed it. I bought cherries, and the lady next to me picked medlars and praised them. I asked how it was, how healthy it was, and whether it should be eaten raw. Because I’m pregnant, I need a variety of fresh vitamins and I always want eternal exotics.)) I bought 6 of them to try, devoured them at home instantly, how delicious. Apparently they were of the right maturity. I can describe it as a cross between the taste of an apple and the pulp of a peach. Sweet and very juicy! Overall, I'm now a fan of hers! I just bought another 2 kg, but in the same place, I don’t see it anywhere else, I’ll have to look at the market. I went to read about the benefits, my aunt said that it was very useful for women (apparently due to the folic acid content) and so I decided to write my opinion.

It grows in my garden, no one took it seriously, it could ripen, crumble and rot like a weed, but it turns out to be so useful! Just like feijoa, they hardly ate it themselves, they always gave it away to “apartment” relatives :)

In Moscow. At the Koptevsky market for the first time this year I came across medlar at a price of 250 rubles per kg. and decided to try it. For me, the most delicious fruit of all. It's juicy like a watermelon and tastes better than different peaches. I don’t even know what to compare it with. If you see medlar, don’t hesitate to take it!

We are now on vacation in Abkhazia. In Sukhumi, this fruit grows on the streets (of no one). A local woman who was collecting medlar from a tree gave it to us to try. We liked it. Yesterday we bought it at the Sukhum market for 80 rubles/kg. Yummy. It tastes like applesauce. The peel comes off easily, inside there are huge seeds - like persimmons.

Just wondering, are the seeds edible? The kernel tastes like an apricot... but we didn’t eat it... I was the only one who tried it a little :)

I'll buy more today!

Today we were picking rose hips and accidentally came across a medlar tree, how could we have avoided it, of course we picked it.

A very tasty fruit, just today I devoured two bowls, a jar of 0.7 costs 50 rubles. We simply call them cones. Nalchik

Anyone who hasn’t lived in Sochi doesn’t know what to do with medlar other than eat it alive. It’s very tasty if it’s well-ripened. They bring us to Moscow from the Emirates yellow / not orange / with a green seed. that is, they are unripe. And the meaning is in the bone. It should be brown. For a 3-liter jar, add 1/3 of the berries, 0.5 kg of sugar and fill to the brim with vodka (not scorched) and alcohol. Stands in the dark for 3 months. Then as usual: drain, strain and get an awesome amoretto with the intoxicating smell of stones

very tasty, it grows in my garden in Greece. The very first one ripens, there are several large seeds in it, I throw them into the garden, they grow again. My son loves it when it’s not ripe, but I love it when juice flows out of it. Mmm!!

I eat and admire the taste... Here in Dagestan, these trees grow a lot...

I grew a Japanese medlar from a seed in Cyprus, the tree is four years old, and has been bearing fruit for three years already, very tasty fruits)

I tried this fruit today for the first time in my life, although I have known this plant for more than half a century.

I chose “the best one” - the size of an average chicken egg (6.50Є/kg).

General impression: well, yes, you can eat. But, as Kozma Prutkov said, “for a just man, an unripe pineapple is worse than a ripe currant.” Those. The fruit did not cause much delight. Good peach, melon and apricot (or the same mango - if we compare with exotics), in my opinion, are noticeably better. So those who haven’t tried it yet, don’t be sad: you haven’t lost much.

Great taste! The kids eat like crazy. We are vacationing in Abkhazia and they bring it to us straight from the tree. We'll try to take it with us to hotels for our relatives

First try. Today I bought it for the whole family. Mine are delighted. But for me, something is not my taste. But considering its usefulness and the fact that most people like the taste, I recommend it to everyone. To my taste, it is something between quince and apricot. I ate it with the peel on, I didn’t even know that it needed to be peeled. Yes, and the peel went well. I’d rather have meat pies...

What maximum frosts can this plant tolerate?

It is also called cones, it has a unique taste! Only without the peel, and before eating, if it’s not ripe, you can put it in the freezer. Eat only when it is brown, if not Japanese, but ours from the Caucasus

How to eat medlar

Loquat grows primarily in warm climates. The fruit bush not only has a beautiful appearance, but also delights with delicious fruits. The harvest is usually harvested in the fall, in October. Loquat is incredibly beneficial. It is eaten raw and jam is made from the fruit. The shrub is also used in folk medicine.

Medlar: how to eat?

Medlar fruits are somewhat similar to apricots. They are spherical in shape and yellow-orange in color. The surface of the fruit is covered with a small fluff. Under the skin there is sweet pulp and several seeds. Unripe berries usually have a sour taste, which goes away as they ripen. The taste of medlar is reminiscent of passion fruit. The pulp is eaten and the seeds are thrown away. The most delicious fruits are obtained if they are kept on the tree longer. They become reddish in color. The pulp of such fruits becomes sweeter, and the aroma is even more pronounced.

By the way, medlar can be stored for a long time. To do this, it is washed in a saline solution and thoroughly dried. The juice of medlar berries is quite concentrated. Therefore, it is recommended to dilute it a little with water and add sugar to taste.

However, not everyone can eat medlar. Unripe berries are contraindicated for people with digestive problems, ulcers, gastritis and high stomach acidity. Berries should be given to young children with caution. Possible allergies. Therefore, medlar should be gradually included in the diet of children.

Medlar: beneficial properties

• Medlar has many beneficial properties. Its chemical composition is similar to apples and zucchini. The fruits contain malic acid, pectin, and vitamin C.
• The composition of medlar allows it to be eaten by diabetics. It can also help with indigestion. This effect is explained by the presence of tannins in the fruit, known for their fixing effect. If you have diarrhea, just eat a few berries, and after some time the problem will be solved.
• In folk medicine, there are many recipes for treating health problems with loquat juice. It has a good effect on the nervous system and blood vessels. Berries normalize blood pressure.
• These are not all the beneficial properties of medlar. The leaves of the bush also have a medicinal effect. A decoction is most often prepared from them. It helps fight colds and coughs. Also, a decoction of medlar leaves can stop bleeding.
• For medicinal purposes, the leaves are harvested from spring to late summer (May-August).
• The healing decoction is easy to prepare at home. For this, 1 tbsp. raw materials must be brewed with 250 ml of boiling water and allowed to brew.
• Medlar is low-calorie (about 45 kcal per 100 g), so it can be eaten during a diet.
• Berries are actively used in cosmetology. They are included in cosmetics for sensitive skin. The extract of the fruits of this tropical shrub moisturizes it, making it radiant, fresh and well-groomed. Usually medlar is contained in lotions, creams, and tonics. You can add extract from the leaves of the bush to the cream yourself. To prepare it, dry leaves are poured with hot water. The mixture is boiled for 5 minutes. The broth is cooled and filtered.
• Marmalade, compotes, and juices are made from medlar. For the winter, berries are prepared in the form of preserves and jams.

Medlar is a very healthy and tasty plant, thanks to which you can get rid of many diseases and enrich your body with essential microelements and vitamins. This shrub is native to the North of India, the Himalayas and China. Moreover, it grows, as a rule, on mountain slopes. The tree begins to bloom from the beginning of October, and in the spring the first fruits appear on it, collected in clusters. Their shape can be very diverse, from pear-shaped to spherical. It should also be taken into account that some specimens reach a diameter of 8 centimeters.

How to eat medlar

Please note that the medlar fruit has juicy pulp, in the middle of which there are several large seeds. Its taste is simultaneously reminiscent of strawberries, apples and apricots. As for the chemical composition, the fruit of the plant is very similar to an apple.

The fruit of the plant can be eaten not only processed, but also fresh. However, this bush produces very tasty preserves, juices, jam, wine, liqueur, compotes and even oriental sweets. But the seeds produce aromatic, rich coffee, which is almost in no way inferior to a natural drink.

You should also take into account the fact that the most delicious jam is made from medlar. To do this, just pour water and cook the fruits for about 30 minutes until the fruits soften. Then turn them into a paste by grinding them through a sieve. Now add sugar (2:1 ratio) and cook over low heat, stirring the liquid constantly.

Beneficial features

Japanese medlar is very often used in medicine as a tonic intended to improve digestion and intestinal diseases. Modern medicine also recommends consuming medlar to relieve kidney colic and remove stones. The fruits of this shrub have a strengthening, anti-inflammatory and hemostatic effect. In this case, it is best to make such a “medicine” from honey or sake. By using the prepared product, you will quickly clear your lungs of mucus and make your breathing easier. It also has a beneficial effect on heart disease.

And finally, remember, alcohol tinctures and decoctions are made from medlar. They have healing effects for colds and viral diseases. You need to take this medicine 100 grams three times a day. Plus, it soothes an irritating cough.

Medlar is a tasty, healthy, but not familiar fruit. Outwardly, it resembles cherry plum or apricot. But the taste of medlar is similar to a mixture of apricot with apple and strawberry. Now we will tell you how to eat the medlar fruit and tell you about its beneficial properties.

Useful properties of medlar

The composition of medlar is close to apples - it contains about 7% malic acid, about 15% sugars, pectin, vitamin C and phytoncides. This fruit is extremely healthy, because it is also rich in zinc, manganese, iron, selenium and copper. In addition, it contains macroelements such as calcium, potassium, phosphorus, magnesium, and sodium. This fruit is often used as a medicine: the pulp of a well-ripened medlar is an excellent natural laxative and sorbent. While unripe medlar, on the contrary, strengthens. When you cough, the pulp of this fruit can be mixed with honey - and then you will get an excellent medicine that will not only relieve cough, but also ease breathing and help remove phlegm.

As mentioned above, medlar, like apples, contains a lot of pectin. Therefore, thanks to frequent consumption of this fruit, cholesterol levels are reduced, radionuclides, heavy metal salts and other harmful substances and toxins are removed from the body. Thus, medlar will improve metabolic processes, cure the pancreas from inflammatory processes and improve the health of the liver. Thanks to all this, the body will work more smoothly, and the appearance and skin will become much healthier.

But the beneficial properties of medlar do not end there. This miracle fruit is simply necessary for hypertensive patients - it contains substances that moderately reduce blood pressure.

How to eat medlar?

Like any other fruit, it is better to eat medlar fresh - then it will retain the maximum vitamins and the body will receive more benefits. But you can also make jam, jams and compotes from this fruit - even after heat treatment, medlar has a positive effect on the digestive system.

And in order to eat high-quality medlar, you need to know how to choose it correctly. Ideally, this fruit should be medium in size (like a plum), since loquat that is too small can be sour, and too large can be overripe and tasteless. Medlar should not be stored for a long time; it is better if you keep it for no more than 2-3 days, and then in the refrigerator. And just before use, do not forget to peel it.

Bon appetit and may this fruit bring you maximum benefits!

We are so used to admiring exotic fruits from overseas that we have stopped paying attention to what grows nearby. Meanwhile, our fertile land presents us with no less useful fruits with a very unusual taste. For example, medlar. Let's talk about this fruit tree.

The location where this amazing plant grows depends on its variety. There are Japanese and German medlars. The latter, by the way, became widespread in Ukraine, Moldova, the Caucasus and in the Caspian regions. Externally, the fruits of these two types of unusual plants differ only in shape: small “apples” hanging in small clusters from the branches of the German medlar, slightly rounder than the fruits of their Asian counterpart. In addition, they differ in the time of flowering and fruiting. Japanese medlar is an evergreen tree up to three meters high, which produces fruits only in the spring. In contrast, the German (Caucasian) beauty bears fruit in the cold season and retains its fruits on the tree until severe frosts.

The list of healing qualities that medlar has, as it exists in nature, is limitless. These fruits, unique in their composition and taste, are recommended to be consumed fresh. The juicy pulp in the thin peel contains a large amount of potassium, which helps the functioning of the nervous system. The high content of beta-carotene and vitamin A, due to which medlar fruits have a rich orange color, allows this plant to be used in the treatment of certain diseases of the organs of vision. In addition, this is one of the few fruits that strengthens the intestinal walls. It is noteworthy that depending on the degree of ripening, the healing properties that medlar possesses also change. How to eat fruits if you have diarrhea? To do this, you need to eat several pieces of slightly unripe fruits several times a day. The dense pulp with a tart, pleasant taste and the tannins included in its composition have an astringent effect on the intestines. Ripe medlar has the opposite effect. How to eat it if you are constipated? A few fruits every morning on an empty stomach are enough.

For treatment in folk medicine, not only the fruit, but also medlar leaves are used. For example, a decoction prepared from them helps with diarrhea. A tablespoon of dry leaves brewed in one glass of boiling water is an excellent remedy for sore throat. An alcohol-based tincture helps with bronchitis and asthma. To prepare it, you need to grind 5-6 fruits with seeds and dilute them with 100 g of vodka and two tablespoons of honey. You need to insist for several days. After which the product is filtered and taken orally 100 grams 3 times a day. For an irritating dry cough, it is recommended to drink this tincture warm through a straw.

The benefits of these wonderful fruits increase significantly if you consume them fresh. However, various dishes prepared from them have no less nutritional value. You can make compotes, preserves and jams from medlar. The pulp of the fruit is used as a filling for delicious baked goods. You can also prepare an incredibly delicious dessert. For it you will need a handful of medlar fruits and a couple of bananas. Grind these ingredients in a blender and place on a plate. Sprinkle the delicious puree with almonds on top. To get the maximum benefit from an exotic delicacy such as medlar, which not everyone knows how to eat and cook, you need to look into Oriental and Asian cuisines.

How to eat medlar. Medlar leaves have healing properties. How to eat loquat fruit. How much medlar should be consumed at what time of day?

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Medlar - what is it, photos, useful properties, how to grow and prepare the fruit

Medlar - the unusual name of the fruit mentally takes you to the orchards of the East, where exotic fruit trees and shrubs grow, mysterious beauties walk, and unprecedented passions boil. This is a fruit that has absorbed the warmth of sunlight and the tenderness of southern nights.

Medlar - what kind of fruit is it, where does the plant come from. How and where it grows

In fact, it is an evergreen tree belonging to the Rosaceae family. The height of trees in the homeland of growth can reach 7-8 meters, depending on the species. There are species that grow as shrubs.

The plant is widespread in Southeast Asia, the Caucasus, and Iran. In Japan and China, medlar is grown on an industrial scale, but the tree is mainly grown as an ornamental green plant.

Loquat is an evergreen tree of the Rosaceae family, the fruits of which combine the flavors of several fruits.

Medlar loves warmth and needs long daylight hours, although it is quite frost-resistant, withstanding temperatures down to -15°C. Severe frosts can cause the tree to stop blooming and bearing fruit.

In mid-latitudes, it will need shelter for the winter, which is almost impossible to provide for an 8-meter tree, so in the middle zone, medlar is grown as shrubs or at home.

Berry, leaves, fruits - what does the fruit taste like?

The fruit is pear-shaped, ranging in size from small, like an apricot, to large, like a peach. There are varieties that are very small, the size of a cherry, round in shape, and also giants the size of an avocado.

Medlar has an unusual taste, different from the usual taste sensations. Gourmets note that the taste is similar to a combination of pear and cherry, or apple and apricot, or strawberry.

Opinions vary, so everyone should try and decide for themselves what this fruit tastes like. The sweet and sour juice of the fruit quenches thirst well; it is cool, delicate, with a delicate aroma. When choosing a fruit, you need to focus on its softness and aroma. The most delicious are considered to be small berries, the size of an apricot. They are juicy and very fragrant.

The leaves of the plant are oval-shaped, glossy, with brightly visible veins. By autumn, the leaves turn purple, which gives the plant a special decorative appearance. It is not for nothing that medlar is grown to decorate parks and gardens in the Caucasus republics.

The plant blooms with beautiful, fragrant, single flowers.

Beneficial properties of fruits

Medlar is considered not only tasty, but also a healthy product. Its effect on the body is determined by the vitamins and minerals it contains, fiber, beta-carotene, phytoncides, etc.

The fruit is used for the treatment and prevention of the following diseases:

• Restoring metabolism, strengthening immunity.
• Diseases of the gastrointestinal tract: it improves the digestion of food, is used for pathologies caused by pathogenic bacteria, removes mucus and other decay elements from the body, etc.
• Diabetes. Eating this fruit promotes the production of insulin in the body.

Medlar promotes the production of insulin, therefore it is used in the treatment of diabetes.

• The fruits, due to their low calorie content, are used in dietary nutrition.
• Inflammatory diseases. Consumption of medlar helps to quickly cure bronchitis, softens the course of urolithiasis, and has a positive effect on male strength.
• The fruit is able to rejuvenate the skin and nourish it with essential vitamins. After using masks made from medlar pulp, the skin becomes smooth, smooth and radiant.

In addition to the fruits, the leaves of the plant also have medicinal properties.

Medlar Japanese, German, Crimean, Caucasian (Abkhazia)

Several types of garden medlar are known. Depending on the species, not only the growth form of medlar changes, but also the appearance of the fruit. The most common are Japanese, which is mainly planted in Japan, China, and German, also called Crimean or Caucasian.

In our latitudes, German medlar is most often grown

The Japanese type of fruit is large, juicy and very aromatic. The tree blooms between September and March, the fruits ripen at the end of June. The German species is small in size, but it is more frost-resistant and unpretentious. Therefore, this plant variety is mainly grown in Russia. This plant variety blooms in May, and fruit maturity occurs in late autumn.

Unlike the Japanese variety, the color of the fruit of the German variety is brownish-red; it is consumed after the first frost.

How to grow at home

As an ornamental tree, the plant can be grown at home from seed or vegetatively. It will decorate the winter garden with its unusual appearance.

One way to grow medlar at home is from seeds

Breeders have bred special domestic plant species: varieties “Morozko”, “Tanaka”, “Premier”, “Champagne”, etc. They are also capable of bearing fruit, but the taste of the fruit is milder and less pronounced. The Japanese species can be propagated by cuttings, which are either planted in drainage or grafted onto an apple or hawthorn tree.

The plant needs sunlight, sufficient air humidity, and for it to bear fruit it is important that it is not exposed to frost. One tree can survive with good care.

Where to buy seedlings. Price

The easiest way to propagate a plant is to buy a seedling. They are grown in special nurseries and sold through specialized stores, including via the Internet:

1. The online store “Gardens of Babylon” offers to purchase medlar seedlings from 1,350 rubles. for 1 piece
2. In the online store "Saplings" the plant is sold at a price of 679 rubles. per piece
3. At the Sign of the Earth Nursery, the cost of a plant is 1,200 rubles. for 1 piece

Before choosing a seedling via the Internet, you need to look at reviews about the quality of the material sent through this Internet portal, which are available not only directly on the site, but also on thematic forums.

Medlar seedlings, growing conditions in an apartment, soil, care

Having purchased a plant seedling, you need to think about its location. The height of a home plant can reach 1-1.5 meters; it needs good lighting, but without direct sunlight. If the plant does not have enough light, it will begin to shed leaves and will not bloom or bear fruit, so lighting may be required.

You can plant any type of plant in an apartment, but if a plant is purchased for planting and growing at home, then preference is given to species specifically designed for indoor conditions.

Cuttings are planted in spring or autumn in slightly acidic soils with good drainage.

A suitable pot is selected for planting; it should allow the roots of the cutting to be freely placed. Preparing the soil and drainage. Mineral fertilizers are added to the soil, and expanded clay is poured into the bottom of the pot. The plant is carefully placed in the pot.

For medlar grown in a house or apartment, you should select a spacious pot, pouring expanded clay and soil into it

Caring for the plant consists of regular watering and periodically spraying the leaves with warm water. In the summer, the tree can be taken out into the fresh air, increasing watering. In winter, watering is reduced, the plant can be kept on the balcony, up to a temperature of -2°C – +5°C, without watering it.

To form a crown, the plant is pruned by a third in the first and second years, then as needed.

The plant is replanted as it grows, once every 3-4 years.

Growing a tree in the country

If you plan to plant a tree on a personal plot, then it is better to plant German medlar, because it is more frost-resistant and unpretentious. German medlar is planted in open ground as seedlings.

At a summer cottage, medlar should be planted in a spacious, well-lit place

Before planting, it is necessary to take into account that the tree can reach a height of 3 meters or more; it needs space and good lighting. The soil chosen is slightly acidic, without close proximity to groundwater.

First, prepare a hole: peat, humus, and sand are poured into the hole in equal quantities. The dimensions of the hole should be such as to freely accommodate the roots of the seedling.

Water the plant moderately, increasing the watering rate during flowering and fruit ripening. The tree is fed 4-5 times per season with humus and organic fertilizers. To prevent diseases, seedlings are treated with pest control drugs 1-2 times per season.

To form a crown, the plant must be pruned. It is better to do this in the fall after harvesting.

Homemade medlar. How to grow from a seed at home in a pot

An interesting way to propagate a plant is to grow a tree from seeds. This method is only suitable for fresh plant seeds.

If medlar is planted with seeds, it is recommended to scarify the shell before planting in the ground. The top protective layer is removed from the seed using sandpaper. Next, the bones are soaked for several hours in a biostimulator.

The prepared seeds are planted to a depth of 3-4 cm. After planting, the pot with the seeds is covered with glass to create a microclimate and placed in a bright place without direct sunlight. Seeds germinate on average after 1 month.

To germinate seeds, the pot with medlar should be placed under glass in a well-lit place, but without direct sunlight.

After germination, the glass gradually begins to be removed for several hours a day. After 2 true leaves appear, the glass is removed completely. The room temperature should be about 20°C.

Young plants need to be fed 3-4 times a season with mineral and organic fertilizers, make sure that the plant has slightly moist soil, and periodically carefully spray the sprout with warm water.

What harm can it do to the body? Contraindications

Harm from medlar can be caused by overeating it.

If the body is not accustomed to the fruit, it is recommended to consume 2-3 fruits per day, gradually increasing the dose, otherwise it may result in indigestion, colic and pain in the gastrointestinal tract.

The fruit is used with caution in open forms of gastritis, pancreatitis, peptic ulcers of the gastrointestinal tract, and intolerance of the body to the constituent substances.

Cooking recipes

You can make a lot of healthy and tasty desserts with the fruit; it is used to make fillings for pies, jams, sauces, and jams.

Here are some interesting recipes using this fruit.

Jam

Most often, jam is made from medlar. To do this, collect 5 kg of ripe fruits, clean them of debris, wash them and boil them with the addition of 1-1.5 glasses of water. When the fruit becomes soft, rub it through a sieve, add 2 kg of sugar and boil until tender.

If you like a spicy, rich taste of jam, you can add cloves. Lovers of citrus aroma add lemon or orange zest to the jam.

The finished jam is packaged in sterile jars with screw-on lids.

Compote

Fruit compote is prepared in the same way as apple compote. The fruits are placed in sterile jars, filled with sugar syrup and sterilized. in a water bath.

Chicken baked with apples and medlar

This recipe is suitable not only for a quiet family dinner; you can surprise and delight your guests with this dish.

• chicken 1 piece,
• sunflower oil 2 tbsp. spoons,
• salt, garlic, pepper - to taste,
• sour apples 4 pcs.,
• medlar 1/2 cup.

The carcass is soaked in a marinade of oil, salt, pepper and garlic and left for 2 hours. Transfer to a duck dish and cover with chopped apples and whole medlar.

Bake in the oven for 50 minutes to 1.5 hours, depending on the size of the carcass, periodically pouring the resulting juice over the chicken.

You can bake duck and ham in the same way.

Loquats can be frozen for fresh use in winter. To do this, simply put it in disposable containers and put it in the freezer.

Loquat can be frozen for the winter by simply placing it in disposable containers

In winter, medlar can be used to make fresh compote or add to fruit salad. Meddlar is often grown as an ornamental plant, without realizing how healthy and tasty it is. Fans of exotic plants and fruits will certainly enjoy not only growing the tree, but also collecting its fruits and conducting various interesting culinary experiments with it.

What is medlar and how to grow it:

Useful properties of medlar:

2 COMMENTS

I’ve never heard of such a tree, and it can be grown here! It’s very interesting to try what the fruit tastes like)

Indeed, an interesting fruit. I'll have to buy it sometime and try it.

The deciduous plant medlar (Mespilus), also called ezgil, or chishkova (cup) tree, is a member of the Rosaceae family. According to information taken from The Plant List, this genus includes only 3 species. The word “loquat” was borrowed from the Turkish language, but it came from Greek. Gardeners cultivate the common medlar or the German medlar, but the birthplace of such a plant is not Germany, but South-Eastern Europe and South-West Asia. This culture was brought to Germany by the Romans. Today, this plant can be found in nature in South Ossetia, Armenia, on the southern coast of Crimea, Azerbaijan, Georgia, the North Caucasus and in the central regions of Ukraine. Medlar has been cultivated for more than 3 thousand years. The ancient Greeks were the first to grow it, and in the ancient Roman era and the Middle Ages this crop was already considered a very important fruit plant. But after a while, medlar lost its former popularity, due to the fact that it was replaced by other crops, including those brought to Europe from the New World. Today, such a plant is quite rare in gardens.

Medlar is an evergreen fruit tree; its bark is dark gray in color. In good conditions, the height of such a plant can reach 8 m, but as a rule, it does not grow higher than 6 m. The dark green leaf plates have an elliptical shape, their length is 8–15 centimeters, and their width is 3–4 centimeters. In autumn, the foliage changes its color to red. At the end of spring or beginning of summer, medlar begins to bloom. The five-petaled flowers have a white color and scent that attracts pollinating insects to the garden plot. The diameter of the fruit reaches from 20 to 30 mm, it has a spherical or pear-shaped shape. Its sepals are constantly unfolded, and it appears hollow. The color of the fruit is brown-red. The size of the fruit in garden forms can reach the size of an average apple. Even fully ripened fruits are distinguished by their hardness and sour taste; such fruits become edible only after prolonged storage or after frost, as a result of which they wrinkle, decrease in size, and become sweet and soft.

Growing medlar from seed at home

You can grow medlar from a seed indoors. After the seed is removed from the fruit, it can lie for no more than 3 days, and then it must be planted in the substrate. As a rule, seeds bought in a store grow into trees that cannot bear fruit. If you plant a seed that you personally removed from a medlar fruit, then the chances that the plant that grows from it will bear fruit are very high.

If you wish, you can buy a soil mixture for planting ready-made in a special store, or you can also make it yourself; to do this, you need to combine humus, peat, leaf soil and sand, which should be taken in equal parts. Take a pot that has holes in the bottom for drainage. At its bottom, you first need to make a good drainage layer from expanded clay, after which the remaining space must be filled with prepared soil mixture. The seeds are sown in a moistened substrate, and they need to be buried only 20 mm. You can sow up to 6 seeds in one container. The top of the container must be covered with glass or film. Crops are harvested in a well-lit and warm place, for example, on a windowsill. The first seedlings should appear after at least 4 weeks. The plant will need to be protected from direct rays of the sun, ventilated every day, and also remove condensation from the shelter in a timely manner, otherwise the seedlings may develop a fungal disease due to dampness. After the height of the plants reaches 20 mm, the cover must be removed from the container, and the container itself must be moved to a place where the air temperature is never less than 18 degrees. In the summer, containers with seedlings can be moved to fresh air (terrace or balcony), and the plants will need reliable protection from drafts, wind and scorching sun rays. The soil mixture in the container should be slightly moist (not wet) all the time; for this, the seedlings must be watered 2 or 3 times every 7 days.

The emerging seedlings are characterized by relatively rapid growth. So, after 4 weeks, the height of the plants can reach 15 centimeters. Grown plants must be planted in individual deep pots, which are filled with a substrate consisting of peat, coarse river sand and humus. It should be noted that transplanted weak plants most often die. But the transplanted powerful and large bushes will become even stronger over time. Flowering of a bush grown indoors will occur only in the 3rd year after transplanting into an individual pot, and this will happen in the last autumn or first winter weeks. Closer to the New Year, the first fruits may form.

You can start forming the crown only after the bush has faded, but you don’t have to do this. Some flower growers prefer that the medlar bush look natural; to do this, they need to cut out only weakened, injured branches that thicken the crown and are affected by disease.

Landing Features

Seedlings grown from seeds indoors after they are 3 years old can, if desired, be transplanted into open soil. The crop is undemanding in terms of soil composition, but it must be well-drained, slightly acidic or neutral. The suitable site is one where groundwater lies at a depth of no higher than 1.5 m from the ground surface. When planting several plants, a distance of at least 4.5 meters should be maintained between them.

Seedlings are planted in open soil only when they have a dormant period, namely, in spring or autumn. The area chosen for planting must be cleared of weeds and dug up with the addition of bone meal. Prepare an earth mixture, which should include turf and deciduous soil, coarse river sand and humus, taken in equal parts. Prepare a planting pit, the size of which should be 1/3 larger than the plant’s root system, taken together with the lump of earth. A stake must be driven into the middle of the pit; its height should be such that it touches the lower branches of the plant. Then plant the seedling from the container into the hole and fill it with soil mixture. It is necessary to pay attention to the fact that after planting, the root collar of the plant should be flush with the surface of the site. The planted plant needs abundant watering, when the water is completely absorbed into the soil and the earth settles, the bush must be tied to a support. The surface of the soil should be covered with a layer of mulch (rotted manure or compost), its thickness should be from 7 to 8 centimeters. Make sure that the mulch does not come into contact with the loquat trunk.

You need to grow medlar in the garden in the same way as other fruit trees. The watering regime should be such that the soil in the tree trunk circle is always damp, but there is no stagnation of liquid in the root system. When the tree is watered or it rains, it is recommended to loosen the surface around the trunk and also pull out all the weeds.

During the season, the plant will need 2 or 3 feedings; for this, organic matter and mineral fertilizers are used. However, it should be taken into account that young trees need more fertilizing; fertilizers are regularly applied to the soil once every 20 days. Medlar responds well to fertilizing with mullein solution. In the spring, before sap flow begins, it is necessary to carry out sanitary pruning; to do this, you need to cut out all injured branches, damaged by frost or disease, as well as branches that thicken the crown. During the first three or four years, it will be necessary to regularly shorten the skeletal branches by 1/3 of the growth per outer bud. Those branches that intertwine inside the crown need to be trimmed to two or three buds. After 4 years have passed after transplanting the seedling into open ground, it is necessary to begin forming the crown. Once the crown is formed, it should be maintained by pruning.

How to propagate medlar by seeds is described in detail above. This crop can also be propagated by cuttings. To prepare cuttings, you should choose last year's growths. The length of the cuttings should be from 15 to 20 centimeters, and each of them should have 2 nodes. The lower leaf plates must be completely removed, and the upper ones must be shortened by 1/3. This will reduce the amount of evaporated moisture. The cut areas must be treated with wood ash. The cuttings should be planted, placing them strictly vertically. To do this, use pots filled with sand-peat soil and expanded clay. The cutting must be buried 40–50 mm into the soil mixture. Planted cuttings need abundant watering. When caring for cuttings, they need to be provided with systematic watering, and they also need to be regularly moistened from a sprayer with pre-boiled water. The cuttings will take root within 4 weeks. After the roots grow, the plant is planted in a garden plot. After planting, the trees will grow relatively slowly, but there is nothing to worry about. If you do everything correctly and take good care of the medlar, then over time its growth and development will become normal.

Diseases and pests

Medlar has a fairly high resistance to diseases and pests. However, sometimes leaf-eating caterpillars can settle on a tree. To get rid of them, in spring you need to remove all spider nests from the plant and then destroy them. During bud opening, the tree and the soil surface around it should be sprayed with a solution of Chlorophos, Nitrafen (3%) or Karbofos (7%). For prevention purposes, the tree is treated a couple of times per season (at the beginning of spring and after all the leaves have fallen in autumn) with a solution of Insegar (5 grams per 1 bucket of water), Fitoverm (20 grams per 1 bucket of water) or Lepidocide (1 bucket of water 25 grams).

Types and varieties of medlar

There are only 3 types of medlar, while gardeners grow only one, called Caucasian medlar, or German medlar, or Crimean medlar. This species has been described in detail above.

There is also Japanese medlar, or loquat, or eriobothria, or shesek - this is a not very large evergreen ornamental plant, which is also a fruit plant, it is cultivated both indoors and outdoors. This plant is related to the genus Eriobothrya of the Rosaceae family, it is considered a relative of the German medlar, but it is not actually a loquat.

Loquat japonica

Japanese medlar (Eriobotrya japonica)- the height of such a tree is about 8 m. The inflorescences and stems of the plant are colored grayish-red, as they are covered with dense felt pubescence. The shape of the leathery leaf blades is oval, their upper surface is shiny. The leaves are short-petioled or sessile, they reach 25 centimeters in length and 8 centimeters in width. They also have dense pubescence on the lower surface. The paniculate terminal inflorescences consist of five-petal flowers, reaching 10–20 mm in diameter; they are yellow or white in color. The tree is highly resistant to frost, which only increases over the years. Popular varieties:

1. Champagne. Yellow fleecy fruits have delicate pulp.
2. Morozko. This plant is intended for cultivation indoors or in a greenhouse. Its fruits lack astringency.
3. Silas. The weight of fruits, similar in appearance to apricots, can reach 80 grams.
4. Tanaka. The pear-shaped fruits are yellow-orange in color. The taste of the light pink pulp is sweet and sour.

German medlar has a lush, spreading crown, and it attracts designers with its brown-red leaves. Gardeners often plant two or three plants to the north of other crops, since mature trees provide an excellent barrier from the cold wind in winter. The medlar itself will not suffer from the cold, since the adult plant is very resistant to frost. Also, this crop is grown as a central point in a garden plot, which is relatively small in size. The fact is that the crown of such a tree looks very impressive even without foliage, and in spring it is decorated with fragrant, flat, saucer-like flowers, painted white or light pink. Repeated flowering of this plant is observed in August or September. In autumn, the foliage changes its color to yellow-red or brown-red. Unusual fruits make medlar even more spectacular. This plant retains its decorative value throughout the season, so it is recommended to plant it in a row along the path in the garden; the result will be a park alley created from trees with closed crowns and straight trunks.

Properties of medlar: harm and benefit

Useful properties of medlar

The composition of medlar fruits includes iron, calcium, potassium, phosphorus, iodine, magnesium, zinc, selenium, sodium, fructose, sucrose, citric and malic organic acids, vitamins A, C, B1, B2, B3, B6, B9, pectins, tannins and phytoncides that help get rid of gastrointestinal diseases, normalize intestinal function, and relieve pain from stones in the kidneys and urinary tract.

A decoction prepared from unripe fruits eliminates inflammation, and is also used to stop intestinal bleeding. A decoction is also prepared from the foliage collected during flowering, which has a strengthening, anti-inflammatory and hemostatic effect. The fruits are used to prepare a tincture used in Japan during the treatment of asthma or bronchitis.

Such fruits are often included in the diet because they contain a lot of dietary fiber, antioxidants, citric acid and fructose, and they are also low in calories. Loquat helps cure diabetes mellitus, eliminate symptoms of kidney dysfunction, cleanse the body of toxins and waste, eliminate intestinal disorders (for example, constipation) and intestinal colic, strengthen the immune system, increase the filtering capacity of the kidneys, improve the functioning of the digestive organs and vision, normalize blood pressure , preventing runny nose.

Since the fruits contain a large amount of micro- and macroelements, as well as vitamins, experts advise consuming them regularly during pregnancy and breastfeeding, but only for those women who do not have an individual intolerance to this product. Loquat pulp is suitable for making masks that give the skin a healthy color, help smooth out fine wrinkles and eliminate age spots.

Such fruits are suitable for preparing various dishes, for example, jam, jam or compote. The juice obtained from them ferments quite quickly, and therefore it is used to make wine, liqueur or liqueur. The seeds of this plant are used to prepare a drink that is very similar to coffee.

Contraindications

Giving medlar to children should be done with great caution, as there is a high risk of an allergic reaction. Fruits, especially unripe ones, should not be eaten by those who have gastritis with high acidity, inflammation of the pancreas, or peptic ulcer of the duodenum and stomach. Even with such diseases, you should refrain from drinking medlar juice and wine. It should be taken into account that jam and preserves from medlar have a beneficial effect even on a sick and weakened body.

Many lovers of gardening and floriculture know such an ornamental plant as the home medlar. This is a tropical crop, it is not suitable for the climate of mid-latitudes, but it is quite possible to grow an exotic plant from a seed in a pot on a balcony or loggia. What species exist, how to propagate and properly care for seedlings, what properties the fruits have - all the information about the plant is collected in the material.

What is medlar

An evergreen plant in the form of a tree or shrub from the Rosaceae family, a fairly close relative of the apple tree (subfamily Appleaceae). The homeland of medlar is considered to be Southeast Asia - India, China, Japan. In these countries it grows on mountain slopes in the form of dense thickets.

It also grows well on the Black Sea coast - in the subtropical regions of the Caucasus, Azerbaijan, Crimea, as well as in the USA, Italy, Australia, and Israel. In each locality and culture, the plant acquired its own name. So, medlar is also called ezgil, cup or chishkovo tree, shesek, eriobothria or Japanese winter flower.

Interesting. In China, the plant was called “pipa” due to its similarity with the 4-stringed lute-type musical instrument of the same name, and in the Caucasus and Crimea it is called shishkovnik.

Japanese medlar or loquat, which is an ornamental low fruit-bearing tree, is usually grown as a house plant. This unpretentious house plant is often found in offices, schools, and social facilities.

What does the plant and its fruits look like?

Under natural conditions, a chinese tree can reach 8 meters, but during breeding it is rarely possible to grow a specimen higher than 150–200 cm. Crown rounded, becoming tent-shaped with age. The twisted trunk is covered with brown, rough bark; in the natural environment there are thorns; ornamental plants do not have this rudiment.

Japanese lokva resembles apricot in appearance and taste.

Leaves oval or oblong, large (20 cm long and 7–8 cm wide), leathery, rich green in color. They have a short stalk or are sessile. The foliage is glossy on top and velvety on the back. The shoots are fluffy.

Flowers Both sexes can be white or creamy-yellow in color and have a pronounced aroma, vaguely reminiscent of the smell of almonds. The flower size is small - up to 2 cm in diameter. In one panicle-shaped inflorescence, similar to a bird cherry, there are up to 80 flowers. Eriobothrya blooms from November to December, and the fruiting period occurs in May–June.

Interesting. Cup tree flowers are used in perfumery to create citrus scents. Some of the most popular perfumes with notes of loquat include Missoni Colori Arancio, Lili Bermuda Calypso and Elizabeth Arden Sunflowers Sunlight Kiss.

Ovary formed by self-pollination and cross-pollination. The tree produces its main harvest between the ages of 6–7 and 40 years.

Fruit round or pear-shaped, the size of a five-kopeck coin, bright orange, depending on the variety, they look like apples or apricots, with several (usually three) large seeds inside. The pulp resembles an apricot in appearance, slightly sour, with a pear and pear flavor. Inside the fruit there are from 1 to 8 large brownish seeds.

Types of garden medlar

There are about 30 species of Eriobothria in the world, but the three most popular among indoor plant breeders are:

• Japanese
• Germanic
• grayish (Sterna)

Japanese loqua

Japanese medlar or loquat (Chinese, Maltese plum) - grows naturally in China and Japan. It is quite problematic to grow in open ground conditions due to the high demands of the plant on temperature conditions and the frequency of watering. Withstands temperatures down to -20 degrees, then the above-ground part dies.

Every year, up to 30 thousand loquat fruits are harvested in Japan. Syrups and wine have been made from fruits in this country for 1 thousand years.

A characteristic feature of the species is larger, wrinkled leaves. The main flowering occurs from September to March. Fruiting occurs in June and, as a rule, is abundant - up to 8 large orange fruits in a bunch. Loqua fruits taste like a mixture of pear, cherry and strawberry with noticeable sourness.

Germanic eriobothrya

German or ordinary ezgil is considered an ornamental plant and grows no higher than 3 meters. The variety got its name because the Greeks brought medlar from Asia to German lands. This is an unpretentious and frost-resistant tree.

In May, white single flowers appear, then turn pink and begin to exude a persistent aroma that attracts pollinating insects. The leaves are bright green, changing color to burgundy in the fall. The species bears fruit in November. For comfortable growth of Eriobotria germanica, a warm winter and cool summer are needed.

This type of ezgil is also called Abkhazian or Crimean medlar according to its place of growth - Crimea, the Caucasus, the Balkan Peninsula, Iran, and the countries of Asia Minor.

The fruits are hard, brownish, and unlike other varieties, their appearance and taste are more reminiscent of a combination of apple and quince. The taste of ripe fruit is not very pleasant, but after storing in the freezer or refrigerator for 3-4 months, the taste improves noticeably.

Grayish variety of cup tree

Stern's loquat or grayish (discovered in 1990) is a large deciduous shrub, but can also take the form of a small tree.

The flowers are snow-white and appear in late spring. The fruits resemble leathery reddish apples measuring 3 cm.

Growing seedlings in open ground

German eriobothrya is suitable for planting in open ground, as it is a more frost-resistant, tenacious and unpretentious species. A significantly grown plant with a height of 30 cm or more should be planted. The location on the site must be chosen carefully - the survival rate of eriobothrya depends on this.

It is better to choose slightly acidic or alkaline soil, where groundwater does not approach the surface closer than 1.5 meters. A bush will do well in a well-lit corner. When planting, you should take into account the comfort zone of 1.5 by 1.5 meters and do not plant other ornamental and fruit-bearing plants nearby.

The decorative properties of eriobothrya are highly valued in landscape design. Using a tree, you can frame a garden path or zoning an area.

To properly plant winter flowers, you need to follow simple rules:

1. Dig a hole 1/3 larger than the volume of the seedling's earthen ball.
2. Pour sand drainage into the bottom, then add complex fertilizers and a handful of bone meal.
3. Place the seedling in the hole.
4. Fill with a mixture of regular soil, peat, humus and sand, and water generously.
5. Dig a support for the tree nearby.
6. Flatten the soil under the trunk and mulch with compost or humus.

Seeds that have undergone the stratification process can also be planted in open ground, but in this case the first shoots will not appear earlier than in a few years.

Plant propagation

There are several main ways to reproduce eriobothrya:

1 Seed or using a seed. Under normal conditions, seeds germinate within 3 years. By accelerating the stratification process, it is possible to achieve seedling pipping within a few months. A plant grown in this way will be decorative and, most likely, will not bear fruit.

2 Cuttings. To do this, take the top or cut a branch of the plant at an angle of 45 degrees into pieces 12 cm long with 2-3 buds on each. The lower leaves are removed, and the cut site is treated with crushed charcoal to prevent rotting. The cuttings are planted in open ground or a pot and greenhouse conditions are created, maintaining high temperature and humidity. If all conditions are met, the branches will take root in 30–35 days. It is recommended to darken the cuttings, which will promote root formation.

3 Air layering. The method is used to accelerate the fruiting of eriobothrya. A ring of bark is removed from the tree trunk and a plastic bottle with soil is attached to the cut site so that the cut site touches the ground. The soil is regularly watered, and after the cutting takes root in the bottle, it is cut off from the trunk and planted like a regular cutting.

For rooting cuttings and layering, it is best to use a soil mixture of sand and peat in equal proportions, and carry out the procedure itself in August–September.

It will be possible to preserve the properties of a certain variety of cup tree only if cuttings are taken and layering is formed. In case of seed propagation there is no such guarantee. If you need to get cuttings for budding, you can grow a cheeshkovo tree on the rootstock of common quince, pear, hawthorn or rowan.

How to grow exotic from seed

To propagate medlar (it is better to take the Japanese variety) in an apartment, they use seeds extracted from ripe fruits. They need to be planted in the ground immediately, because over time they lose half their ability to germinate. If it is not possible to place the grain in the ground, then it can be stored in a wet rag for 2–3 months before planting at a temperature of 4–5 degrees.

To increase the chances of seed germination, it is recommended to break the integrity of its shell by rubbing it with sandpaper or a file from different sides. Then the nucleolus is filled with clean water at a temperature of 20–25 degrees for exactly one day. If the seed floats up, it is thrown away - it is hollow inside and will not give life to a new plant. The seed can also be pickled in a solution of potassium permanganate.

Each kernel must be planted in a separate pot with a top diameter of 8 cm - ezgil does not like transplants. For planting, the usual mixture of high-moor peat with mineral additives and microelements is used for seedlings. It is very important that the pot has adequate drainage to allow excess moisture to drain away.

The depth of immersion of the seed in pre-moistened soil is small - only 2 cm. Then the container is covered with plastic film or glass to create a greenhouse effect. If condensation appears, the homemade dome is removed and the soil is ventilated to avoid mold.

The crops need to be watered once every two days, and the top layer should be sprayed daily from a spray bottle with pre-softened water at room temperature.

Caring for a plant indoors

Despite the fact that the plant is considered exotic, caring for it cannot be called very difficult, and the medlar itself is too capricious. It is important to follow the basic rules of agricultural technology, and the plant will delight the owner with a beautiful exterior and, over time, a good harvest.

Priming

The cup tree is unpretentious in choosing soil for growth; both loamy and sandy loam soil is suitable for it. But eriobothria feels best in neutral soil, which you can prepare yourself using available ingredients:

• plant humus mixed with soil
• sand
• leaf soil (compost from fallen leaves)
• sod land

The basis of such soil is turf and leaf soil (the former needs to be taken twice as much as the latter), sand provides a drainage effect, and compost serves as a natural fertilizer.

Lighting

The plant is light-loving, so it is better to choose a south or south-east window sill to grow it at home. Under direct rays of the sun, the formation of flower buds of the cheeshkova tree occurs better.

Before the flowering period and during it, flower growers recommend increasing the daylight hours for medlars to 12 hours, illuminating it with a fluorescent lamp. One adult individual will need two additional light sources. Additional illumination can be stopped at the end of January.

Temperature

The tropical ornamental tree loves a moderately warm climate and therefore is optimally kept at a temperature of 18–20 degrees. During the hot summer period, decorative medlar should be taken out onto the balcony or into the garden. Air baths promote the growth of seedlings, so you can also ventilate the room more often.

As soon as the night temperature drops to 7-8 degrees, the pot needs to be brought back into the house. Although an adult plant can withstand sub-zero temperatures, sudden temperature changes should not be allowed; the tree may die.

Watering

The watering schedule for an adult plant depends on the season: in winter - twice a week, in summer - more often, depending on the rate of moisture evaporation. It is recommended to cover the soil surface with a layer of moss to prevent rapid drying.

It is best to water with settled, clean water slightly warmer than the room temperature. It is not recommended to spray the plant due to the pubescence of the crown. To remove dust from the foliage, you can wash the tree in the shower once a month.

If ezgil overwinters on the balcony, then watering should be stopped completely until the ambient temperature increases. From time to time, a pot of Japanese winterflower should be placed on a mat with moss, expanded clay or small pebbles.

Top dressing

The cup tree responds well to fertilizing, which is best done in the off-season: in spring or autumn with an infusion of organic fertilizers. One of the acceptable feeding options is an infusion of cow manure in a ratio of 1 to 10 with water. The decorative properties of eriobothrya can be improved by adding a little crushed dried plaster to the soil.

During the flowering period, phosphorus fertilizers should be used, and potassium fertilizing should be postponed during active growth.

Young plants are fertilized once a month, adults – three times during one season. In winter and at rest, Eriobothrya is not fed. Once a week, the top layer of soil is loosened, providing oxygen access to the roots.

Flowering and dormancy

Medlar usually blooms at 3–4 years of age in late autumn or winter., when other ornamental and fruit plants have already bloomed and bear fruit. During the cold season, the plant does not need to be watered or fertilized; dormancy for winter flowers during this period is the basis for future abundant flowering and harvest.

Fruiting

The chishkova tree produces its first fruits already at 4–5 years of age, with the peak occurring at 10–15 years. If the first fruiting is too abundant, it is better to remove some of the fruits, then the fruits will be larger and the load on the tree will be reduced.

The Abkhaz writer and poet Fazil Iskander in the story “House in the Lane” described the period of fruiting of the cup tree: “At the beginning of summer, the medlar lanterns began to light up with yellow lights, then they turned orange and did not change for a long time after that...”

Trimming

The cup tree does not require mandatory pruning, but if such a procedure is carried out, the yield of the exotic tree will increase. Cut branches are used for cuttings.

The plant perceives all manipulations with the crown painlessly, which is successfully used in landscape design. At home, the traditional spherical shape of the deciduous part looks best.

In the first years of the plant's life, experts advise cutting off half the length of the branches of the seedlings.

The branches are pruned immediately after the end of fruiting so that the plant has time to lay buds for a new harvest. Sanitary removal of dry and damaged sprouts occurs regardless of the season and period of medlar development.

Young plants need to be replanted once a year

Ezgil tolerates replanting quite hard and stops bearing fruit during this period, however, for young plants this procedure must be carried out annually. For adult plants, the growing medium and pot should be changed less often - once every 3 years, but the top layer of soil should be updated regularly.

When replanting, we must not forget about creating a high-quality drainage layer from small stones: expanded clay or gravel; the use of sand is allowed.

Transplantation is carried out by transshipment, so as not to damage the delicate roots, into a container slightly larger than the previous one. The Japanese winterflower will best tolerate the “relocation” after the end of the fruiting period.

Crown formation

The owner of the ezgil needs to decide on the shape of the crown at the stage of formation of 3 leaves. If the preferred option is a bush, then the sprout needs to be pinched. When choosing the shape of the tree, at the age of 7 months, the lateral shoots begin to be removed.

At home, plants rarely grow higher than 1.5-2 m, so in any case there should be no problems with care and harvesting.

The beneficial properties of medlar have been known since ancient times. People to this day use the fruits to get rid of ailments of various etiologies. Another name for medlar is Japanese plum, loquat. To have a more accurate idea of ​​what benefits you will get from consuming fruits, let’s consider the main features in order. So, let's begin.

Composition and characteristics of medlar

1. Loquat is an evergreen shrub that has thorns on its branches and grows in large clusters. The fruits have a sour aftertaste, their flesh is tender, pleasant to eat, and does not tie the tongue. In terms of taste, medlar resembles a trio - ripe strawberries, banana, sweet and sour apple.
2. Today, more than 30 species of this plant are known to man. Medlar spreads throughout the world and is widely cultivated in private plots. The most popular and sought-after varieties of shrubs are the Caucasian and Japanese medlar.
3. The beneficial properties of the fruit are made possible thanks to the composition of medlar. So, it includes flavonoids, protein, phenolic compounds, some fats, carbohydrates, amygdalin.
4. The fruits are not deprived of vitamins. Among them are group B, PP, A, C. Of the mineral elements, it makes sense to highlight the following: iron, potassium, iodine, magnesium, sodium, zinc, calcium, selenium.
5. As for organic acids, medlar is rich in malic, oxalic, tartaric and citric. It contains quite a lot of natural saccharides, which are presented in an easily digestible form. The bush is not deprived of tannins, pectin, dietary fiber, and phytoncides.
6. The bark, foliage, seeds and fruits of the plant are of particular value. Some traditional healers claim that the leaves of the bush are much more valuable than the pulp and other parts of the medlar. They argue this by the fact that unique acids are concentrated in the medlar foliage: pomolyic, ursulic, corosolic and others.
7. The foliage also boasts the inclusion of plant polyphenols, glycosides, and carafolline. The listed substances fight foreign bodies in the body. Studies have been conducted in which scientists have proven that foliage can combat the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV).
8. The foliage of the shrub has the ability to suppress the action of free radicals and completely remove them. The green part contains a triterpene, which is responsible for the synthesis of sugar and increases the volume of insulin.
9. Pectin fights toxic compounds, heavy metal salts, and radionuclides. It acts as a brush that carefully passes through the cavity of the internal organs. Despite the abundance of valuable properties, medlar is not very high in calories. In a serving weighing 100 g. about 50 kcal accumulates. It all depends on the specific variety.

1. The fruit is contraindicated for use by people with high blood pressure. Medlar has a diuretic effect and thereby fights hypertension.
2. The fruits have a similar effect on patients with constant migraines and headaches. The fruit reduces intracranial pressure and improves the patient's condition.
3. Medlar is prescribed for consumption by those who are at risk of developing a heart attack, stroke, or coronary artery disease. Fruits improve the health of the heart muscle and the entire circulatory system in particular.
4. The composition contains flavonoids and phenolic compounds. Together, they prevent oxidative processes, preventing diabetes, eye diseases, and cancer.
5. Medlar frees the cavity of internal organs from free radicals. The fruit is useful for elderly people who are at risk of developing senile dementia.
6. The fruits help cope with diarrhea and general stool upset. They normalize digestive processes, remove stagnation, and have anthelmintic properties.
7. Medlar enhances the production of the hormone insulin, making life easier for patients with diabetes. Along with this, blood glucose levels are monitored.
8. Organic acids remove cholesterol from the cavity of blood channels, improve protein metabolism, and transform carbohydrates into energy. On this basis, the risk of atherosclerosis is reduced and natural weight loss occurs.
9. Medlar is used to remove small stones and sand in the cavity of the urinary system. The fruit is responsible for the correct functioning of the pancreas and thyroid glands.
10. Decoctions, teas, and freshly squeezed juices are prepared from the plant. The listed drinks remove mucus from the respiratory tract, alleviate asthma and reduce body temperature during fever.
11. Fruits strengthen the immune system during viral infections, and also help to recover from a protracted illness. Medlar enhances wound healing, so lotions based on it are used for skin ailments.
12. Interestingly, the unripe fruit is effective against diarrhea. Ripe specimens, on the contrary, have a laxative effect and normalize intestinal function. Loquat prevents food from fermenting in the esophagus.

1. Various tonics, lotions and facial compresses are prepared using green leaves. Such products help eliminate dermatological problems, smooth out the relief and whiten the skin.
2. The decoction also copes well with diarrhea. To prepare the drink, brew the leaves in 300 ml. boiling water, let stand for 4 hours and strain. Drink 45-50 ml. 20 minutes before meals.
3. An infusion according to the recipe described above also effectively cleanses blood channels of cholesterol, cleanses the body of toxic substances, and promotes recovery from stress and illness.
4. Elderly people need to prepare decoctions and infusions to relieve pain from osteoporosis, arthrosis and other ailments of this type.
5. The powerful effects of loquat foliage and inflorescences encourage people to use these parts of the bush to prepare cold remedies. It's all about the ability of medlar to disinfect and relieve inflammation.

The harm of medlar

1. There are a number of restrictions under which medlar is contraindicated. Its use should be limited in case of pancreatitis, peptic ulcer of the duodenum and stomach, allergies to the fruit itself, gastritis.
2. To avoid causing significant harm to health, start taking it with small amounts. Listen to the state of your body, stop taking it at the slightest sign of allergy.
3. If you have any chronic diseases, use medlar after consulting your doctor. Don't forget that the fruit can be presented in the form of dried fruits, marmalade, jam and other forms.

Despite the variety of medlar varieties, their chemical list remains virtually unchanged. Only the appearance and taste differ. To avoid harm to yourself and your loved ones, take precautions when consuming medlar. Then you will definitely reap all the benefits.

Video: beneficial properties of medlar

Do you know what medlar is? What is it - a musical instrument, an oriental beauty or a delicacy? Or maybe medlar fruit? Hearing this chanted name, one immediately remembers Sergei Nikitin’s song “Brichmulla”, before one’s gaze stands an oriental bazaar, embossed dishes, on them are baklava, churchkhela, and the mysterious unknown medlar. But because You can’t live in ignorance; you have to thoroughly understand this unfamiliar concept.

What is medlar

What is medlar? This cute fruit has many names: Eriobotria japonica, loqua, biwa, shesek. First of all, medlar is a fruit tree reaching 10 meters in the wild of the Rosaceae family, subfamily of the Appleaceae. Despite the fact that there are many varieties and bred varieties, there are about 1000 of them in China, and about a hundred in Algeria and the Iberian Peninsula; Japanese medlar and Caucasian (German) are distinguished. Japanese biwa (loqua), being an evergreen tree, has also become widespread in landscape design.

Where does it grow

The climate where the Japanese lokva grows is milder and wetter than the one where the Caucasian (German) one grows. Although the tree itself is winter-hardy and can withstand short-term cold snaps. China is considered its homeland, from which it was brought to Japan, where it has been growing for more than 1000 years. The distribution area is extensive: China, Japan, Asia, warm Mediterranean countries: Spain, Israel, Algeria, and the Black Sea coast: Turkey, Abkhazia. The Caucasian variant is found in the Balkans, northern regions of Iran and Transcaucasia. This plant prefers mountainous terrain, and originally came to Europe and was grown for ornamental purposes.

What is this fruit

So, what is this fruit that grows from the Japanese archipelago to the Atlantic? The Japanese name for the biwa fruit is also the name of the national plucked instrument, of the lute family, shaped like a round one. The fruits of loquat resemble in color and size.

Taste

The taste of the fruit is fresh, juicy, depending on the degree of ripening and variety, sweet, sweet or slightly sour, reminiscent of a ripe, fleshy pear.

As it is

When choosing lokva, you need to pay attention to the skin. It must be free of cracks, damage and stains. Because Fresh fruits are of the greatest value; during the harvesting process they are removed in clusters along with the stalk. The brushes are cut with a knife or pruning shears. Afterwards the fruit is separated from the brush. Before eating the fruit, remove the seeds. When a Caucasian woman eats medlar, which has a dense, hard peel, the fruit is also cleared of it. Peeled fruits are eaten fresh, added to fruit salads, and sprinkled with grated coconut. Medlar contains a significant amount of pectin, so excellent jams and dodder are made from it, compotes are made, and added to liqueurs and tinctures.

In Spain, this fruit is used as the main ingredient for preparing a sauce for meat, and in eastern countries chutney with medlar, cloves, cinnamon, etc. is popular.

What does medlar look like?

Loquat grows on evergreen trees of average size 4-7 meters; due to the dense pubescence, the inflorescences have a reddish-gray color, resembling panicles in appearance.

The leaves of the medlar are thick, hard, leathery with distinct veins, a rich dark green color with a short stem.

Flowering is slightly fragrant.

Medlar fruits are collected in clusters of 5-30 pieces. Most often it is a bright yellow fruit measuring 3-5 cm.

The skin is yellow, orange, rarely red. The pulp of the fruit ranges from white to yellow with an orange tint.

Beneficial features

Medlar (loquat) has a rich vitamin composition, thanks to which it is a very popular product in Japan. And as everyone remembers, the Japanese are famous for their longevity. This fruit contains a large amount of water, more than 80%, it perfectly quenches thirst, and low sugar content, so it will not affect your figure in any way. The triterpente contained in the composition stimulates the production of insulin, so medlar can be eaten by people with diabetes. Active substances such as phytoncides inhibit the growth of bacteria and microscopic fungi.

Ground medlar seeds are brewed into coffee, or whisked into foam, which is added to the finished dish. Lokva is the most valuable honey plant in subtropical climates.
Medlar is useful not only from a nutritional point of view. Souvenirs and kitchen utensils are made from reddish wood. The bark and leaves are used for tanning leather.

Calorie content

Medlar and its per 100 grams of product is: 45-48 kcal.

Compound

• water – 87%,
• fats – 0.1%,
• carbohydrates – 10%,
• proteins – 0.4%,
• dietary fiber – 2%, ash – 0.5%

Vitamins

Vitamins that this fruit is full of: beta-carotene (vitamin A), B vitamins, incl. folic acid, ascorbic and malic acids.

Microelements

This fruit is also rich in macro and micro elements: iron and copper, potassium and calcium, iodine and selenium, phosphorus and sodium, manganese, etc.

What are the benefits of medlar?

So what are the special benefits and is there any possible harm to the body when consuming this little-known fruit? In the east, medlar has long been used in folk medicine and cosmetology. A rich set of acids gives the body energy and supports the immune system, being a natural antioxidant.

Loquat flowers have expectorant properties, so a decoction of flowers is used to treat bronchitis, cough and asthma, and relieve the body of mucus.

Don't forget about a comprehensive approach to health. If you overuse fried, fatty, spicy and salty foods, you should not expect that high consumption of fruits will solve your problems. A balanced, varied diet is the key to health.

Using the medlar fruit and its beneficial properties, you can gradually and systematically improve your body’s health step by step. By saturating the body with the fluid it needs and regularly removing toxins from the body, you cleanse the intestines. Considering that it is in the intestines that up to 80% of the cells responsible for immunity are formed, by improving the absorption of nutrients, you help the nutrients to be better absorbed. Eating healthy and being mindful of your body helps keep your heart and circulatory system in good condition.

In what other cases is this tasty fruit useful? Loquat - its benefits and harms.

Loquat during pregnancy

The load on a woman’s body increases. All pre-existing diseases appear. And drug treatment is often not recommended. Therefore, the fruit is also useful for the expectant mother, saturating the body with essential vitamins and microelements. Proper nutrition and following the recommendations of the attending physician are the key to the health of the expectant mother and baby.

Loquat for beauty

As noted earlier, all parts of this plant are used in cosmetology and home skin care products. Face masks are made from the pulp, and decoctions and extracts from the leaves are used for lotions designed to combat problem skin, including during adolescence. There are options for face masks and lotions on the Internet. But do not forget that they can only be used fresh, and in no case is it recommended to store them, because... instead of benefit or burn.

Loquat to maintain a slim figure

If you are maintaining weight or want to adjust it downward, Loquat can help you. It nourishes the body with nutrients, saturates cells with moisture, cleanses the intestines and removes toxins with a very low calorie content.

Treatment of diabetes and heart disease

By removing excess fluid from the body and improving kidney filtration, this exotic fruit reduces blood pressure and the load on blood vessels. Malic acid is involved in the breakdown of fats and leads to a reduction in bad cholesterol in the blood.

Polysaccharides are neutral substances that have no taste, color or odor. They have preventive properties: antitumor, because polysaccharides increase the effectiveness of drugs, reduce the effect of radiation on the human body, increase the number of red blood cells, and reduce fatigue.

For diabetics, it is important to consider the glycemic index of the product and the carbohydrates it contains. It is very easy to distinguish simple carbohydrates from complex ones. Simple ones are products that have a sweet taste, increase blood glucose, complex ones are not sweet, slowly turn into energy and the sugar level does not rise sharply. Therefore, diabetics and people suffering from pancreatic diseases consume medlar.

Harm and contraindications

Medlar, having beneficial properties, also has contraindications.

First of all, this applies to people with high stomach acidity. It is not recommended to eat fruits during periods of exacerbation of peptic ulcers and gastritis.

Young children are advised to start with one piece of fruit per day.

Good health to you! And taste variety!