Photo courtesy: Shree Padre, 2011

Shree Padre from Kerala, India, has sent us this attractive promotional booklet on jackfruit (Artocarpus heterophyllus). He also settles the eternal question about the “king of fruits” or “raja buah” as we say in Malaysia. He writes: “In India mango is the king of fruits. In Southeast Asia it is durian. Others argue that mangosteen is the king [...]. If all these are kings, then jackfruit is the kingmaker”. We agree jackfruit is a worthy contender for botanical royalty, but for the time being we suggest to keep the contest open… In a new edition, Shree might want to explain the significance of the book’s title to a non-Indian audience. According to Wikipedia  Kalpavriksha is a mythical wish-fulfilling divine tree in ancient Sanskrit literature. Here is Shree’s jackfruit-Kalpavriksha connection:

“Jackfruit [...] can fulfill the hunger of an entire family. Imagine a Jackfruit tree in your homestead garden. It gives shade. Keeps your micro climate cool. Sheds bagful of dry leaves for you to mulch your vegetable and flower plants. Green leaves and roots are used as medicine. Goats relish these leaves. The tree remains for centuries and offers very valuable timber when grown. Jack timber, very expensive and durable, is used in making furniture and musical instruments”. There is a very useful list of jackfruit Internet resources on the last page of the book, notably this blog. We look forward to further Jackfruit news from Kerala!