Related species
Description and phenology
Distribution, abundance and ecology
Uses and economic potential
Collection methods and yields
Propagation and cultivation methods
Research contacts
Carlos A. Cid Ferreira & Paulo de T. B. Sampaio
Family: Caesalpiniaceae
Species: Hymenaea courbaril L.
Common
names: jatobá, jute, jutaí-açu, jutaí-roxo,
jutaí-bravo, jataí, jataípeba, jataiuba, jatiuba, (Brazil);
courbaril (Peru, Ecuador, Martinique); guapinol (Colombia,
Mexico, Central America); corabore (Venezuela); copal, abati,
avati (Paraguay); simiri, locust (Guyana); locust-tree (English).
Hymenaea L.
includes 15 American species, 13 of which occur in Brazil. Most
of them have some to considerable economic value: they furnish
good- to high-quality timber, valuable resins, edible fruits,
tannin-rich bark and numerous uses in popular medicine. Two
examples are:
H. stilbocarpa Hayne is native to the dry forests of Brazil's southern-central highlands, in São Paulo, Minas Gerais, Goiás and the Federal District. It is also found in the Brazilian Northeast, where it is known by the names of yellow jutaí, jataíba and jataí. This species attains 18 m in height and 1 m in DBH. The leathery leaves are obtusely pointed. Its fruits measure only 8-12 mm × 3-4 mm and have properties similar to those of H. courbaril, although with less resin. The wood and its uses are also similar (see below). Yellow jutaí flowers in January-February and fruits in October-November. One kilogram of fruit yields about 270 seed, which germinate within 25-28 days (Rizzini 1971).
H.
altissima Ducke is found in Brazil's Atlantic forest, in
Minas Gerais, Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo. Its wood is also
used commercially. Its small leaflets are thin and taper to a
long point; its fruit are smaller than those of H.
courbaril. It flowers in November-December and fruits in
March (Rizzini 1971).
Hymenaea courbaril
L. is generally a large tree, attaining 40 m in height and 2 m in
DBH; the thick bark, up to 3 cm, has a reddish-brown color
internally and contains a gummy resin. In some individuals the
bark cracks longitudinally; this does not appear to have any
relationship with resin production, however. There are two
leathery, smooth leaflets on each leaf, both having an
oblong-lanceolate shape, with a pointed apex more attenuated than
in other species and a heart-shaped base; there are no reticules
and the glands are translucent. The flowers are presented on
terminal corymbs; there are 5 greenish-brown concave sepals and 5
white petals, 10 stamens and an ovary with a unilocular carper
with 6-19 ovules. The fruit is an indehiscent oblong,
subcylindrical pod 8-15 cm long; the thick, rigid, dark
reddish-brown exocarp contains small pockets of resin near the
surface. The seeds are enveloped in a powdery, sweet, agreeably
though distinctively flavored mesocarp.
The
jatobá's phenology varies from region to region, as expected in
such a widely dispersed species. Near Belém, Pará, it flowers
from August to October and fruits in February (Cavalcante 1988).
In Central Amazônia it flowers from August to November and
fruits from February to September (INPA Herbarium).
The jatobá is common from
Mexico to Paraguay; in Brazil it occurs in most regions, with a
uniform distribution in Amazônia. In this region it is generally
found in the forests on the terra firma clay soils,
occasionally in the high varzea (the, levies along the
major sediment-Itch rivers). It is occasionally cultivated and
frequently managed, i.e. protected when a swidden clearing is
opened.
Heinsdijk
& Bastos (1963) estimated a frequency of 0.1-0.2 trees/ha and
a volume of 0.1-1.8 m3/ha for Amazônia as a whole.
Near the city of Manaus, jatobá is not abundant; at the A. Ducke
Forest Reserve (INPA, km 26 AM-010) it was found at a frequency
of 0.2 trees/ha and 0.4 m3/ha, in an inventory of
trees with 25 cm diameter at breast height (DBH) or greater
(Rodrigues 1963). At INPA's Tropical Silviculture Experiment
Station (km 45 BR-174), Jardim & Hosokawe (1987) found an
average of 0.657 trees/ha, while in the forest just to the west
of this station, in an area called Bacia 3, 2 trees/ha were
found, with a volume of 1.806 m3/ha, for plants with
40 cm DBH and above (DST 1982). In the municipality of President
Figueiredo (300 km north of Manaus), an inventory in 8,000
hectares of terra firma forest found 0.143 trees/ha, with a
volume of 0.027 m3/ha, for trees between 10 and 20 cm
DBH (Poyry 1984). In an inventory on the Trombetas River, Pará,
Higuchi et al. (1982) mentioned the presence of the species but
not its abundance, suggesting an extremely low occurrence.
The wood of jatobá is
well-accepted on the local market. The color of the heartwood
varies from rosy-brown to dark reddish-brown; its cut surface is
smooth but lusterless; it is very heavy and durable, and
difficult to work. The relatively thick outer wood is
yellowish-white. It is used in heavy construction, such as
hydraulic work, truck bodies, railroad ties, etc. (Loureiro et
al. 1979).
Jutaica or American Copal is the common name of the resin that: exudes from the trunk, the branches and the fruit pericarp. Sometimes it solidifies on the tree, otherwise it falls to the soil near the trunk in chunks of varying sizes. If it gets covered with soil it can become fossilized, taking on a form very similar to that of amber, produced by various species of Pinus. Langenheim et al. (1973, 1974) concluded that the trunk and fruit resins contain mostly diterpenoides with some sesquiterpenes.
Analysis of fresh resin found 8 to 16% copalic acid. With resin extracted from the bark of young individuals, the quantity of copalic acid varied from 50 to 55%, while in older bark this varied from 55 to 58%. The point of fusion also varies with age of the resin: fresh resins solidify at 180-192°C, while in older resins, especially in fossilized resin, this temperature may reach 265°C or more.
In studies done in Central America, Amazônia and elsewhere in South America, the foliar resin composition of H. courbaril varied more between populations than within, although within populations variation was greater in Amazônia and South America than in Central America. This may be due to local environmental effects, although it is more likely a genetic effect, probably reflecting the narrow genetic base of the Central American populations due to a founder effect. In Amazônia the composition of the resin is generally more variable than in other areas in South America; the greatest morphological variation is also found in this region (Langenheim et al. 1977).
The resin is used industrially in the fabrication of varnishes. In some areas of the interior of Amazonas, Brazil, it is used in the fabrication of ceramics, mostly kitchen utensils, as a sealant to reduce or eliminate water penetration.
The foliar
resin has toxic and repellent effects on at least one important
crop pest, the caterpillar of Spodoptera exigua,
and may have similar effects on other leaf-eating insects
(Stubblebine et al. 1977).
In popular medicine the
jatobá is used in several ways. The bark is boiled and the tea
i. used to treat cystitis, as well as being an excellent
vermifuge, pectoral astringent and general stomach cleaner. The
sap', when mixed with bee's honey, is used to treat bronchitis
and various heart ailments.
In some areas the pulp is used in substitution of cassava flour or out of hand as an agreeably flavored fruit. The pulp is a dry powder, with the consistency of flour when taken from the fruit; it is greatly appreciated by children in the interior of Amazônia and has served as famine food when other foods are absent. While no nutritional or quality information is known to us, jatobá fruit flour might have potential as a specialty flour for confectioneries. In order to penetrate this market, however, chemical-nutritive and safety data will be essential.
Hubbell et
al. (1983) observed that the leaf-cutter ants (Atta
cephalotes) do not attack the jatobá in Costa Rica
and discovered that the leaves contain a terpenoid
"caryophyllene epoxide" that inhibits the growth of the
fungus that the leaf-cutter ants cultivate. Additional tests
determined that this terpenoid ha" a wide spectrum
fungicidal effect. This terpenoid and other leaf chemical
compounds are worth further study (Robinson 1988).
No specific collection
technique has been defined for jatobá resin since it is
generally collected only when found in the forest. In some areas
of Amazônia attempts at collection have been made by cutting
longitudinal slashes along the trunk, unfortunately without any
positive results (O.P. Monteiro, pers. com.); the same happened
with the trees at the INPA Tropical Fruit Experiment Station (C.
Clement, pers. com.). Nonetheless, at the Maracá Ecological
Station (Roraima, Brazil), there are trees that naturally produce
up to 15 kg of resin. This same productivity has been observed in
trees found in Santarém (Pará) (D.F. Coêlho, pers. com.). If
the resin of this species is to find a larger market, research
needs to be done to develop adequate harvest methodology and
determine the environmental conditions and plant genotype most
appropriate for harvesting this material.
The jatobá
fruits prolifically, although yield estimates could not be found.
Very roughly, it is estimated that a mature (10-year-old) tree
grown in the open may yield 1,000-2,000 fruit, each weighing
about 50 g; hence one tree yields 50-100 kg of fresh fruit each
year (@100 trees/ha = 5-10 MT). Most of the fruit is composed of
the pod (probably 50-70%), and seed (25-40%), so there is very
little floury mesocarp (5-10%). Thus, one tree may yield 2.5-10
kg of flour (250 kg to 1 MT/ha/yr). On most of the poor soils of
Amazônia the lower estimates are more likely or may even be
high.
The jatobá is generally
propagated from seed. Its natural regeneration is limited,
probably because of seed predation. Seed germination varies from
30 to 100%, taking approximately 17 to 20 days to start.
Germination can be accelerated by submerging the seeds in boiling
water, followed by adding sulfuric acid (Loureiro et al. 1979).
Seeds are sown in beds or directly in plastic nursery bags; there
are about 480 seeds/kg (SUDAM 1979a). When juvenile the seedling
exhibits a robust taproot and large, persistent cotyledons. Seed
should be stored at 26°C and 12% humidity (Loureiro et al.
1979).
Almeida (1943) observed the following growth data from 34 trees of about 16 years of age in wild environments in Gávea (Rio de Janeiro): maximum height - 18.5 m, minimum - 3.0 m; maximum diameter - 40 cm, minimum - 5 cm. In full sun at Curuá-Una (Santarém, Pará), on an acidic (pH 4-4.5) yellow oxisol, jatobá had a good survival index (80-90%) with 75% crown, a total height of 7.6 m and a DBH of 7 cm, at 15 years (SUDAM 1979b). For a legume (and apparently a facultative heliophyte), this is relatively slow growth. On a similar soil at the Tropical Fruit Experiment Station (INPA, km 41 BR-174), three trees planted in 1979 had dimensions of ± 10 m in height, ± 8 m in crown diameter and DBH of ± 50 cm in 1990 (C. Clement, pers. com.).
Given
jatoba's apparent resistance to some pests and diseases conferred
by its secondary metabolites, it is likely that this species
could be planted in monocultures, as well as in agroforestry
systems and in forest management areas. Only a few silvicultural
experiments have been done (cited above), so that research and
development of this species needs to start at a very preliminary
stage. If methods for tapping the trees can be developed, it is
worth pursuing this research; if not, it may not be worthwhile.
MSc. Carlos A. Cid
Ferreira, Depto. Botânica, Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas da
Amazônia - INPA, Cx. Postal 478, 69011 Manaus AM Brazil.
MSc. Paulo
de T. B. Sampaio, Depto. Silvicultura Tropical, Instituto
Nacional de Pesquisas da Amazônia - INPA, Cx. Postal 478, 69011
Manaus AM Brazil.