The jackfruit (Artocarpus heterophyllus or A. heterophylla) is a species of tree in the mulberry family (Moraceae) which is native to parts of South and Southeast Asia. It is well suited to tropical lowlands. Its fruit is the largest tree borne fruit in the world, seldom less than about 25cm in diameter. The jackfruit tree is a multi-purpose species providing food, timber, fuel and fodder, medicinal and industrial products. It is a nutritious fruit, rich in vitamins A, B and C, potassium, calcium, iron, proteins and carbohydrates. Due to the high levels of carbohydrates, jackfruit supplements other staple foods in times of scarcity in some regions. It is also a relatively cheap fruit in some countries such as Bangladesh, where it has been declared the 'national fruit' because of its socioeconomic importance. The tree can be cultivated on marginal lands and does not require intensive management to provide a good crop. It can generate income for small farmers through the sale of its fruits and other products. The tree can also play a role in cropping systems and crop diversification, and has positive environmental benefits.

Common Names:

Scientific Names:

Kingdom: Plantae
Division: Magnoliophyta
Class: Magnoliopsida
Order: Rosales
Family: Moraceae
Tribe: Artocarpeae
Genus: Artocarpus
Species: A. heterophyllus

Synonyms: Artocarpus heterophyllus Lam.

Taxonomy: Jackfruit of genus Artocarpus belongs to the family Moraceae contains about 50 species, most of which are native to Asia and many produce edible fruits which can be used as staple food. Artocarpus heterophyllus is among the most important species. It is a tetraploid (2n=56) and has several synonyms which include A. philippensi, A. brasiliensis and A. maxima. The two other important species are A. altilis (breadfruit) and A. integer (cempedak)

Botany

Tree: With its dense crown and leathery broad glabrous leaves, it is an attractive, handsome and stately tree. It grows to an enormous size up to 30 m high and 80-200 cm in diameter, like a large eastern oak and all parts contain sticky, white latex, very long-lived tree and generally with a life span of 60 to 70 years. Budgrafted trees are usually smaller - measuring 3.0-4.5 m high. The crown is dense and conical in young trees, becoming rounded or spreading in the older trees.

Leaves: The leaves are oblong, oval, or elliptic in form, 10 to 15 cm in length, leathery, glossy, and deep green in color. Juvenile leaves are lobed. New shoots, twigs and leaves are usually glabrous (non-hairy). Young leaves are ocassionally lobed.The leaves are dark green and shiny above, paler green beneath and bluntly tipped; petiole 2-4 cm long and sparsely hairy.

Whorl of jackfruit leaves		A single jackfruit leaf

Inflorescence/Flower: Stout male (5-15 cm long and 2-4.5 cm wide) and dark green cylindrical female flowers (5-15 cm long and 3-4.5 cm wide) are borne in separate flower-heads emerge from the trunk and large branches. The stalks of both male and female flower-heads are encircled by a small green ring (annulus). Male flower-heads are on new wood among the leaves or above the female. They are swollen, oblong, from an inch to four inches long and up to an inch wide at the widest part. When mature the head is covered with yellow pollen that falls rapidly after flowering. The female heads appear on short, stout twigs that emerge from the trunk and large branches, or even from the soil-covered base of very old trees. They look like the male heads but without pollen, and soon begin to swell. The stigmatic surface is composed of papillae that becomes sticky 1-2 weeks after emergence and remains so for a further 2 weeks. After anthesis, the fertillised female heads develop into mature fruit. The female flower, which has a fleshy ring at the base, is larger than the male flower.

Female (left) and Male (right) inflorescence of jackfruit

Fruit: Jackfruit is a multiple fruit formed by the fusion of many flowers. The 'rind' or exterior of the fruit is green or yellow when ripe and composed of numerous hard, cone-like points attached to a thick and rubbery, pale yellow or whitish wall. The interior consists of large "bulbs" (fully developed perianths) of yellow, banana-flavored flesh, massed among narrow ribbons of thin, tough undeveloped perianths (or perigones), and a central, pithy core. Each bulb encloses a smooth, oval, light-brown "seed" (endocarp) covered by a thin white membrane (exocarp).  The fruit hangs from thick stalks on thetrunk and main branches. Jackfruits are broadly classified into two groups: (i) soft fibrous pulp varieties having plenty of sweet juice; and (ii) firm pulp varieties, which are crispy and less juicy. There are also intermediate types.

Bunch of fruits that grow out from the branch (left) and trunk (right)

The composite fruit is the largest tree-borne fruit in the world, may be as large as from 4-27 kg or more in weight and up to 90 cm long and 50 cm in diameter. A few cultivars are small-fruited, weighing 1.5-4.0 kg. The exterior of the compound fruit is green or yellow when ripe and oblong in shape. The interior consists of large edible bulbs (scattered in between the "rag") of yellow, banana-flavored flesh that encloses a smooth, oval, light-brown seed. The skin is extremely rough and thick. When fully ripe, the unopened jackfruit emits a strong sweet aroma, while the crispy, soft or melting pulp of the opened fruit smells of pineapple and banana. Pulp color varies from amber to yellow, dark yellow or orange.

A matured jackfruit		Jackfruit partially cut to show the arils

Seeds: The oval seed is 1.9 to 3.8 cm long and 1.3 to 1.9 cm thick and is white and crisp within. There may be 100 or up to 500 seeds in a single fruit, which are viable for no more than three or four days.

Cut fruit showing the aril and seeds		Whole jackfruit seeds

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