Autumn is like spring for those living in humid subtropical regions
Vegetable growing guide for the subtropics
Growing vegetables in the subtropics
A ‘Garden of Abundance’
Wild Jute is a nutritious food staple in many regions of the world
Wild Jute, Wilde Jute, molokhia, delele, thelele, gushe - Corchorus olitorius
Corchorus olitorius Picture courtesy Dinesh Valke from flickrCondensed Version:
The leaves of wild jute, are superior in nutritional value compared to cabbage and spinach, and the plant is also used medicinally in many parts of the world.
Wild jute is adapted to a variety of climates, but does best in warm conditions with good rainfall. It requires full sun and should not be planted in the shade. Irrigation is essential after sowing and transplanting as the plant is sensitive to drought. The plant will adapt to most fertile, well drained, humus-rich soils, and the yield of the crop responds more to water availability and good organic matter in the soil than to high mineral nutrient status, and if planted in rich soil, no fertilisers are needed.
Wild jute is treated as a fast growing annual herb that can be harvested within a couple of months from the time of germination, and it is easily propagated from seeds. Leaves or tender shoots can be harvested from 30 to 60 days after planting, and the plants can be harvested by pruning several times during the vegetation period for food production. For jute and seed production the entire plant is harvested at the end of the season. To produce seeds, the fruits can be harvested six weeks after flowering.
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Description, History & Interesting Facts:
Corchorus olitorius is a tropical annual herb or short-lived perennial that is upright, branching, and slightly woody, with shiny green leaves that are harvested and used as a vegetable. In the wild, the plant varies greatly in growth habit, depending on climate and especially rainfall, growing up to 2m tall, but when planted for commercial use, depending on the cultivar grown, can reaching anything from 1.5 to 4m tall.
Small, yellow flowers form singly, or in pairs in the axils of the leaves, and are mostly self-pollinated, but will also attract pollinators. The flowers are followed by elongated, straight or curved, greyish-blue to green fruits measuring 2 to 8cm in length, and which are divided into transverse sections through 5 valves, with each seed chamber containing many seeds, up to 200 per fruit.
Wild jute grows in tropical and subtropical regions around the world, but its exact origin is uncertain as it has been cultivated for centuries in both Africa and Asia, and it occurs in the wild on both continents. It was given the genus name Corchorus, which is derived from the ancient Greek word korkhoros or korkoros, which referred to a wild plant of uncertain identity. The species name olitorius is from Latin and means ‘pertaining to vegetables’.
Wild jute grows well in the lowland tropics, up to an elevation of 1 250m, where it is a common weed of disturbed or cultivated areas, thriving in mineral-rich soil that is well drained, in abandoned fields as well as grasslands. In South Africa it is classified as a naturalized exotic, and it is commonly found growing wild near rural homesteads in KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo, Eastern Cape and Mpumalanga.
Although the origins of Corchorus olitorius are unknown, many believe that it was first cultivated as a crop in ancient Egypt, because in classical antiquity, Gaius Plinius Secundus, called “Pliny the Elder”, a Roman author, naturalist and natural philosopher, and naval and army commander of the early Roman Empire, recorded in his Encyclopedic Naturalis Historia, which became an editorial model for encyclopedia’s, recorded that jute plants were used as food in Ancient Egypt, and why it is sometimes referred to as “Egyptian spinach”, or “molokhia” in Arabic.
Some authorities say that it comes from the Indo-Burmese area, or from India, along with several other related species. It also seems that the plant was grown by Jews living in the Near East and may have played a role in ancient Jewish culture, hence the name “Jew's mallow”.
No matter where it originated, this amazing little herb has been cultivated by humans for millennia, and today it probably grows wild or as a cultivated crop in every country in tropical Africa. Corchorus olitorius goes by many other common names too, including: wild jute, wilde jute, thelele, delele, gushe, Indian jute, bush okra, West African sorrel, and jute mallow.
Uses:
In India, Bangladesh and China it is cultivated for its fibre, for the making of textiles and paper, sacking and cordage, hence its common name “Indian jute”; while the light wood can be used to make matches.
Jute fibre is made from the bark tissue of Corchorus olitorius and Corchorus capsularis, although fibre made from Corchorus olitorius is considered to be of lesser quality. The finished fibres appear golden and silky with a length of up to 3m, and a diameter of 2.4 µm. The micrometre or micrometer, also commonly known as a micron, is a unit of length in the International System of Units equalling 1×10⁻⁶ metre; that is, one millionth of a metre. The plant stalk is cut and then processed by pulling up, rippling, partial retting, breaking, spinning and combing, to obtain fine fibres that are well separated from unwanted woody material. Afterwards the fibres are cured and dried.
Many textiles are made of jute, such as yarn, twine, sacking, carpet backing cloth and other blended textiles. It is also used as raw material for cords and strings.
In Africa and the Middle East, a different type is grown with the leaves and shoots being used for food while the fibre is considered of little importance.
Health Benefits:
A study conducted by the University of Fort Hare has shown that the leaves of wild jute are superior in nutritional value compared to cabbage and spinach. The leaves are high in protein 4.5% and rich in beta-carotene, thiamine, riboflavin, niacin and ascorbic acid, fat, carbohydrates, iron, calcium, potassium, sodium, phosphorus, B-vitamins, folate, vitamin C and E, and dietary fibre.
All the parts of the plant are still used medicinally in many parts of the world, and Ayurveda’s use the leaves for ascites, pain, piles, and tumours. In South Africa the leaves are used for the treatment of bladder inflammation, gonorrhoea and painful urination.
In the Kitchen:
Corchorus olitorius is still used as a leafy vegetable in most parts of Africa, including South Africa, where it falls under the collection of leafy vegetables commonly called “morogo” or “imifino”.
Its culinary use goes back at least as far as the Ancient Egyptians, and today it is cultivated in Syria, Lebanon, Palestine and Egypt as a potherb. A traditional dish made of the leaves called “mulukhiyah” remains a popular dish across the Arab world, with cooking methods differing from one region to another. Basically it’s a thick green soup or stew made from minced wild jute leaves cooked in meat or chicken broth, and served over rice or with a whole roasted chicken on the side. It is traditionally prepared by simmering the leaves in the stock briefly, so that it doesn’t become excessively slimy
The Egyptian version may have tomato and rabbit meat in it. In Tunisia and Morocco mulukhiyah is crushed finely and mixed with beans; and an old Palestinian vegan recipe uses the dried leaves mixed with dry fava beans called “bissara”.
Corchorus olitorius is an important leafy vegetable in Côte d'Ivoire, Benin, Nigeria, Ghana, Cameroon, Sudan, Uganda, Kenya and Zimbabwe. In Nigeria, the leaves are boiled to make a sticky, mucilaginous sauce which is served with balls of cassava, which are otherwise rather dry.
In Vietnamese cuisine, it is known as “rau đay” and made into a soup with shrimp; and it’s also a special favourite of the Boros of northeast India, who make a mucilaginous preparation with the dried leaves mixed with fatty pork and lye called “narji”.
It is also cultivated and eaten in the Caribbean and Brazil, Bangladesh, Japan and China.
Although best eaten fresh, the shelf life of the plant can be extended by drying the leaves, which are used to thicken soups and stews. The dried leaves are also ground into ‘flour’ for extended storage. The drying process is unusual, as either fresh or cooked leaves are used, and are rolled into balls before being dried in the sun. Even the unripe fruits may be dried and ground into a powder to use in sauces, soups or stews.
Cultivation/Propagation:
If you wish to grow Corchorus olitorius, you will not find seeds at garden centres, but there are SA seed suppliers online who do stock them, so do a search.
Wild jute is adapted to a variety of climates, but does best in warm conditions with good rainfall. It grows well in the lowland tropics, ranging from warm temperate zones through tropical desert to wet forest life zones. For optimal growth it requires temperatures between 16 and 27℃, and an annual precipitation between 400 and 1 000mm per year.
Interestingly, Corchorus olitorius can be grown in water in a floating system with nutrient solution to produce baby leaves, which would be great to experiment with at home, and for commercial purposes, could prove very profitable for the fresh cut, leafy vegetable industry.
It requires full sun and should not be planted in the shade. Irrigation is essential after sowing and transplanting, as the plant is sensitive to drought. Some cultivars are sensitive to waterlogging, especially when they are young, so ensure that the soil drains well.
The plant will adapt to most fertile, well drained, humus-rich soils, but for commercial farmers a soil pH of 4.5 to 8.2 is needed. Wild jute thrives on alluvial soil, and the word “alluvium” comes from the Latin alluvius, from alluere, which means 'to wash against', referring to loose clay, silt, sand, or gravel that has been deposited by running water in a stream bed, on a floodplain, or in an alluvial fan or beach, or similar settings.
Alluvium is typically fine-grained fertile soil that is geologically young and is not consolidated into solid rock; and what is referred to as an “alluvial fan or beach” is typically found along the base of mountain fronts, and the alluvial soil in a fan or beach is created by fluvial fans (streamflow-dominated fans) receiving most of their sediments in the form of stream flow rather than debris flows.
The yield of the crop responds more to water availability and good organic matter in the soil than to high mineral nutrient status, and if planted in rich soil, no fertilisers are needed. However, for commercial farmers, research has shown that the plant responds well to applications of fertiliser, and especially nitrogen. Nitrogen is also reported to influence the nutritional value such as nitrogen (N), calcium (Ca) and phosphorus (P) content, while adding calcium (Ca) and magnesium (Mg) to the soil can improve the development of fibre as well as the yield and quality of the leaves.
Cultivated wild jute is treated as a fast growing annual herb that can be harvested within a couple of months from the time of germination, and it is easily propagated from seeds. Twenty four hours before seeding, the seeds must be pre-soaked for ten seconds in hot water, around 93°C, to overcome dormancy
A good time to sow the seed is at the start of the warm, rainy season, and if the soil is wet, germination will take place two to three days after sowing. Before sowing, the soil is prepared carefully, and farmers will plough the soil over and broadcast the seeds by dribbling them into the soil behind the plough. If the small seeds are mixed with sand, it makes it easier to sow them, and for rural farmers, you will need 5 to 6kg per hectare.
If planted in the dry season, controlled watering is necessary as the plant will not do well if the soil is too dry. However, the soil should drain well, as the plant does not like waterlogged soils either.
The seedlings are thinned out to space them correctly, so check on the variety you are sowing for more information on spacing. Once the seedlings are around 8 to 10cm tall they are thinned out and weeded. Studies done in Kenya showed that for rural farmers a wider spacing improved yields, and a spacing of 30 to 40cm between seedlings, and 40 to 50cm between the rows is recommended.
Cow dung, wood ashes, or rotted water hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes) or its ashes are used as manure to mulch the soil and keep weeds down.
Water hyacinth was first recorded in South Africa during the early part of the 20th century. The plant has since spread across the country and is found in water bodies in both sub-tropical and temperate areas. I think it’s marvellous that this very invasive water plant can be dried and then used as nutritious mulch for gardens and farms. And current efforts to eliminate it have so far failed, so why don’t we all, city gardeners and rural farmers alike, start harvesting as much as we can to use in our gardens and farmsteads, much like the current gardening trend in coastal regions of collecting seaweed for the same purpose. It’s free and could be great fun for the family to collect. Click here to see Google images of water hyacinth
Harvesting:
Leaves or tender shoots can be harvested from 30 to 60 days after planting, and the plants can be harvested by pruning several times during the vegetation period for food production. Frequent harvesting, every two or three weeks, prolongs the season. However, the shoot regeneration depends on soil fertility, adequate water supply, and control of weeds and pests, and will reduce with each harvest.
Under farming conditions the yield usually reaches around 2.5 t per hectare of edible leaves. Experiments have shown that with very high soil fertility and fertiliser applications, yields of about 28 t per hectare can be attained. For fresh consumption the leaves should be stored above 8°C and below 15°C. Low temperatures from 1 to 8°C lead to browning of the leaves, while storage temperatures higher than 15°C result in leaf yellowing.
For jute and seed production the entire plant is harvested at the end of the season. To produce seeds, the fruits can be harvested six weeks after flowering. The dried capsules are threshed and can be stored for eight to twelve months in well-sealed jars.
Problems, Pests & Diseases:
The most serious pests are nematodes from the genus Meloidogyne, which can be minimized by crop rotation. Other common pests include grasshoppers, leaf-eating beetles and caterpillars, army worms, and flea beetles.
Eight to ten weeks after planting, if the weather is very dry, yield losses can occur due to leaf bugs and spider mites attacks, resulting in terminal shoot wilt.
Damping off of seedlings can be averted by using humus rich soils with good drainage.
Stem rot disease (Sclerotium rolfsii) occurs in the dry weather of the late season, and can lead to wilts at the stem collar. This can be managed by crop rotation and by growing crops in raised beds.
Anthracnose spots caused by Colletotrichum gloeosporioides may infect the crop but can be easily controlled by spraying with copper oxychloride.
Caution:
The information contained within this website is for educational purposes only, documenting the traditional uses of specific plants as recorded through history. Always seek advice from a medical practitioner before starting a home treatment programme.