Practical
Plants

Corchorus olitorius

Jew's Mallow

an annual or perennial member of the Corchorus genus in the family Tiliaceae.

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Taxonomy and growth

Family
Tiliaceae
Life cycle
annual, perennial
Growth rate
vigorous
Height
3.5 m
Fertility
Insects
Flower type
hermaphrodite
Pollinators
Insects

Uses

Edible uses

This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.

Leaves - raw or cooked[1][13][14][16]. Young leaves are added to salads whilst older leaves are cooked as a pot-herb[8][6][12]. High in protein[6]. The dried leaves can be used as a thickener in soups[6]. A tea is made from the dried leaves[6]. Immature fruits are added to salads or used as a potherb[6].

Plant part
Leaves
Plant part
Seed
Product or use
Tea

Medicinal uses

Historical medicinal uses. These records describe reported uses. They do not establish safety or effectiveness. Ask a qualified health professional before using any plant medicinally.

This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.

The leaves are demulcent, diuretic, febrifuge and tonic[10]. They are used in the treatment of chronic cystitis, gonorrhoea and dysuria[10]. A cold infusion is said to restore the appetite and strength[12]. The seeds are purgative[10]. Injections of olitoriside, an extract from the plant, markedly improve cardiac insufficiencies and have no cumulative attributes; hence, it can serve as a substitute for strophanthin[12].

Product or use
Demulcent
Product or use
Diuretic
Product or use
Febrifuge
Product or use
Tonic

Material uses

This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.

A fibre is obtained from the stems, it is the main source of jute[14][16][9] but is considered to be inferior to the fibre obtained from C. capsularis[16]. The fibre is somewhat coarse and is used mainly for sackcloth etc[15]. The stems are harvested when the plant is in flower and are then retted (allowed to begin to rot) so that the fibre can be extracted[5]. This species tends to branch making fibre extraction more difficult[2]. Growing the plants very close together will prevent some of the branching. If used in making paper, the fibres are cooked for 2 hours with lye and then ball milled for 4½ hours. The paper is grey/buff[7]. Fibre yields run ca 800-1600 kg/ha with exceptional cases of 2400 in India, and genetic potential of 4000 kg/ha, the fibre representing ca 6% of the green weight[12]. Intercropped with Vigna, jute has yielded 3270 kg compared to 2290 monocropped[12]. The very light and soft wood is used in making sulphur matches[3].

Product or use
Fibre
Product or use
Wood

Environment

Range
Tropical Asia?
Habitat
Original habitat is obscure.
Light
full sun
Shade tolerance
no shade
Water
moderate
Hardiness
Zone 10+
Soil textures
sandy, loamy, clay
Soil pH
acid, neutral, alkaline, very alkaline
Tolerates Nutritionally Poor Soil
No
Drought
intolerant

Propagation

This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.

Seed - sow spring in a greenhouse. When they are large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and plant them out in late spring, after the last expected frosts[9]. In areas with hot summers it should be possible to sow the seed in situ in mid spring.

Cultivation

This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.

Prefers a very fertile soil and a hot humid climate[4]. Tolerates very wet conditions according to one report[15] whilst another says that it does not tolerate waterlogged soils[4]. Jute is reported to tolerate an annual precipitation between 40 and 429m,an annual average temperature range of 16.8 to 27.5°C and a pH in the range of 4.5 to 8.2[12]. Jute is sometimes cultivated for the fibre in its stem and also for its edible leaves[6]. It makes an excellent spinach substitute in areas with hot summers[6]. This species is not hardy in Britain but it can be grown as a half-hardy annual here, though it grows much better in areas that are warmer than typical summers in this country[13]. Some reports say that this plant is an annual whilst one says that it is perennial. Since the plant is not hardy in Britain we can only grow it as an annual. This species is very closely related to C. capsularis

References

  1. F. Chittendon. RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 Oxford University Press 1951-00-00

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  2. Chakravarty. H. L. The Plant Wealth of Iraq.

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  3. Gupta. B. L. Forest Flora of Chakrata, Dehra Dun and Saharanpur. Forest Research Institute Press 1945-00-00

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  4. Buchanan. R. A Weavers Garden.

    ↩1↩2

  5. Hill. A. F. Economic Botany. The Maple Press 1952-00-00

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  6. Facciola. S. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications 1990-00-00 ISBN 0-9628087-0-9

    ↩1↩2↩3↩4↩5↩6↩7

  7. Bell. L. A. Plant Fibres for Papermaking. Liliaceae Press 1988-00-00

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  8. Hedrick. U. P. Sturtevant's Edible Plants of the World. Dover Publications 1972-00-00 ISBN 0-486-20459-6

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  9. Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992-00-00 ISBN 0-333-47494-5

    ↩1↩2

  10. Chopra. R. N., Nayar. S. L. and Chopra. I. C. Glossary of Indian Medicinal Plants (Including the Supplement). Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, New Delhi. 1986-00-00

    ↩1↩2↩3

  11. Flora of China 1994-00-00 http://flora.huh.harvard.edu/china/

  12. Duke. J. Handbook of Energy Crops - 1983-00-00

    ↩1↩2↩3↩4↩5↩6

  13. Vilmorin. A. The Vegetable Garden. Ten Speed Press ISBN 0-89815-041-8

    ↩1↩2

  14. Uphof. J. C. Th. Dictionary of Economic Plants. Weinheim 1959-00-00

    ↩1↩2

  15. Schery. R. W. Plants for Man.

    ↩1↩2

  16. Usher. G. A Dictionary of Plants Used by Man. Constable 1974-00-00 ISBN 0094579202

    ↩1↩2↩3

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