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Nutmeg
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Nutmeg
ntroduced Photo: Dinesh Valke
Common name: Nutmeg • Assamese: জাইফল jaiphol • Bengali: জাতিফল jatiphala, জায়ফল jayaphala • Garo: joipol • Gujarati: જાયફળ jayaphala • Hindi: जातीफल jati-phal, जायफल jayaphal • Kannada: ಜಾಕಾಯಿ jakayi, ಜಾತೀಫಲ jatiphala • Khasi: jaiphol • Konkani: जायफळ jayaphal • Malayalam: ജാതി jathi, ജാതിക്കാ jathikka • Manipuri: ꯖꯥꯌꯄꯍꯜ Jayphal • Marathi: जातीफल jatiphala, जायफळ jayaphala • Nepali: जाइफल jaiphal • Oriya: ଜାଇଫଳ jaiphala • Sanskrit: जातिफल jatiphala • Tamil: சாதிக்காய் cati-k-kay • Telugu: జాజికాయ jajikaya • Urdu: جائيپهل jayaphal
Botanical name: Myristica fragrans    Family: Myristicaceae (Nutmeg family)
Synonyms: Myristica aromatica, Myristica moschata, Myristica officinalis

Nutmeg is a tropical evergreen tree that reaches about 65 feet tall. It native to Indonesia and cultivated widely in India for its fruit. The bark is greyish black. The leaves are elliptic or oblong-lanceolate and leathery. The flowers, borne in umbel-like cymes, are creamy yellow and fragrant. The nutmeg fruit is similar in appearance to an apricot. When fully mature it splits in two, exposing a crimson-colored edible pulp surrounding a single seed, the nutmeg. Dried nutmegs are grayish-brown ovals with furrowed surfaces about 1-1.5 inches long. The spice consisting of the seed has a characteristic, pleasant fragrance and slightly warm taste; it is used to flavor many kinds of baked goods, meats, sausages, sauces, vegetables, and such beverages as eggnog.

Identification credit: Chinmay Tanshikar Photographed at Tanshikar's Spice Farm, Netroli, Goa.

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