Common Name: Bael Tree

General Information

Aegle marmelos is a slow-growing deciduous shrub or tree that can reach an eventual height of 10 - 15 metres. The bole, which is usually fluted at base, can be 50cm in diameter[]. The tree is armed with 1 - 2cm long spines on older branches and also produces very spiny basal suckers[].
The bael tree is is harvested in large quantities from the wild for its many uses and is traded in national markets[], It is also frequently cultivated on the plains of Pakistan and India for its fruit[], and is also sometimes cultivated outside its native range[]. Considered a sacred tree in the Hindu culture, the leaves are indispensable offerings to the Lord Shiva. The tree is commonly grown in the grounds of temples in countries such as India and Thailand, where the fruit is used to make a very refreshing drink for the monks[].

Known Hazards

The leaves are said to cause abortion and sterility in women[]. The bark is used as a fish poison[].

Botanical References

Range

E. Asia - India, Nepal, Myanmar, Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

Habitat

Dry forests on hills and plains, also in mixed deciduous and dry dipterocarp forests[].

Properties

Edibility Rating
Medicinal Rating
Other Uses Rating
Habit	Deciduous Tree
Height	10.00 m
Growth Rate	Slow
Cultivation Status	Cultivated, Wild

Cultivation Details

The plant is a hardy, deciduous tree that can be grown in tropical and sub-tropic areas, being tolerant of harsh conditions, including extremes of temperature[]. It succeeds from sea level to an elevation of 1,200 metres where the mean annual temperature can range from -6 to 48°c[]. In Thailand, it only flowers and fruits well where there is a prominent dry season[].
Does best on rich, well-drained soils[], but can tolerate poor soils and alkaline conditions[]. It also grows well in swampy, alkaline or stony soils having pH range from 5 to 8[]. It has gained the reputation of thriving where other fruit trees cannot survive[]. Plants are very drought tolerant[].
Seedling trees begin to crop when 6 - 7 years old, vegetatively propagated plants bear fruit after 5 years and full bearing can be attained in about 15 years[].
A tree may yield as many as 800 fruits in a season but an average crop is 150 to 200, or, in the better cultivars, up to 400[].
The fruit ripens in the dry season when most leaves have been shed in anticipation of bloom for the next crop[].
The plant responds well to coppicing[].

Edible Uses

Fruit - eaten raw or made into marmalades, jams, jellies, drinks etc[, ]. The orange fruits have an aromatic, pleasant-flavoured yellow pulp[, ]. At ripening the pulp contains scented mucilage, which has a sweet flavour[]. The fruit may be cut in half, or the soft types broken open, and the pulp, dressed with palm sugar, eaten for breakfast[]. It contains a significant quantity of vitamin C[]. The fruit is a subglobose berry 50 - 125mm in diameter with a hard woody shell[].

Young leaves and shoots - cooked as a vegetable or used as a condiment[, ]. They are said to reduce the appetite[].

An infusion of the flowers forms a refreshing beverage[].

Medicinal

The fruits, leaves, twigs and root of the bael tree are used medicinally[]. They contain coumarins, flavonoids, alkaloids, tannins and oil[].

The dried pulp is astringent. It reduces irritation in the digestive tract and is an excellent remedy in cases of diarrhoea and dysentery[, ]. A decoction of the astringent unripe fruit, combined with fennel and ginger, is prescribed in cases of haemorrhoids[]. A decoction of the unripe fruit is highly valued as an aphrodisiac and has gained a reputation of being the viagra of the plant world[].
The ripe fruit is also laxative and demulcent[]. It eases stomach pain and supports healthy function of the stomach[].
It has been surmised that the psoralen in the pulp increases tolerance of sunlight and aids in the maintaining of normal skin colour[]. It is employed in the treatment of leucoderma[].
Marmelosin derived from the pulp is given as a laxative and diuretic[]. In large doses, it lowers the rate of respiration, depresses heart action and causes sleepiness[].
For medicinal use, the young fruits, while still tender, are commonly sliced horizontally and sun-dried and sold in local markets[]. They are much exported to Malaysia and Europe. Because of the astringency, especially of the wild fruits, the unripe bael is most prized as a means of halting diarrhoea and dysentery, which are prevalent in India in the summer months[].

The leaves are astringent and are used in the treatment of peptic ulcers[].
A paste made from about 100g of the leaves is mixed in a cup of water and administered orally once a day for 3 days in the treatment of diabetes[1386[

The dried root is used in the treatment of earache[]. It is dipped in the oil of the neem tree (Azadirachta indica) then set alight - the oil from the burning end is then dripped into the ear[]. This practice is not recommended![].

Agroforestry Uses:

The plant has sometimes been used as a hedge - the spiny branches serving to make an effective barrier[].

Other Uses

The stems are used as chewsticks[].

There is as much as 9% tannin in the pulp of wild fruits, less in the cultivated types[]. The rind contains up to 20%[], whilst it is also present in the leaves[]. The rind of the unripe fruit is employed in tanning and also yields a yellow dye for calico and silk fabrics[].

The essential oil of the leaves contains d-limonene, 56% a-d-phellandrene, cineol, citronellal, citral; 17% p-cyrnene, 5% cumin aldehyde. The limonene-rich oil has been distilled from the rind for scenting hair oil[].
A pungent essential oil obtained from the fruit rind is used in making perfumes and soap[].

A leaf extract from the plant has been found to have insecticidal activity against the brown plant hopper, an important pest of rice plant in Asia[].

The shells of the dried fruits with the pulp removed are used as cups and small containers[]. They have been fashioned into ornamental pill- and snuff boxes, sometimes decorated with gold and silver[, ].

The mucilage, or gum, around unripe seeds is used as an adhesive and household glue[, ]. The gum enveloping the seeds is most abundant in wild fruits and especially when they are unripe. It is commonly used as a household glue and is employed as an adhesive by jewellers[]. It is mixed with lime plaster for waterproofing wells and is added to cement when building walls[]. Artists add it to their watercolours, and it may be applied as a protective coating on paintings[].

The gum around the seeds is sometimes resorted to as a soap-substitute[]. The fruit pulp has detergent action and has been used for washing clothes[].

The grey-white wood is strongly aromatic when freshly cut. It is fine-grained, hard, but not durable; takes a fine polish. Generally available in smaller dimensions, it is often utilized for carving and making small objects such as small-scale turnery, tool and knife handles, pestles and combs. When larger sizes are available it has been used for carts and construction, though it is inclined to warp and crack during curing[, , ].
The wood can be used for fuel[].

Propagation

Seed - the plant is commonly grown from seed in nurseries and transplanted into the field[]. Seedlings show great variation in form, size, texture of rind, quantity and quality of pulp and number of seeds[].
Root suckers[].
Budding onto seedling stocks.

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