Description
Grated nutmeg spice is used to flavor everything from many desserts to cream sauces, in meat rubs, eggs, over veggies as well as a dusting over morning coffee.
Wild Nutmeg is a tree up to 20 m tall. Bark is brownish, usually smooth, irregulary flaky; blaze reddish. Branches are arranged in whorls, horizontal. Young branchlets are round, rusty tomentose. Red sap oozed from cut end of bark.
Plant Specifications
| Plant Height | 17 inch (43 cm) |
| Plant Spread | 6 inch (15 cm) |
| Maximum Reachable Height | 30 to 60 feet |
| Flower Colour | Purple |
| Bloom Time | May-July. |
| Difficulty Level | Easy to grow |
Planting and care
Nutmeg care
Nutmeg trees should be planted in rich, organic soil with a medium texture and low salinity. The pH level should be 6-7, although they will tolerate ranges from 5.5-7.5. A soil test will aid in determining if the site is appropriate or if you need to amend it to correct a lack of nutrients.
| Sunlight | Part Shade for first 3 to 4 years |
| Watering | Medium |
| Soil | Well-drained soil |
| Temperature | 40 degrees C and above |
| Fertilizer | Apply any organic fertilizer |
Nutmeg special feature
Female flowers are larger, borne in racemes in leaf axils. Capsules are spherical, up to 3.2 cm across, hairless, with one spherical seed, pale brown with laciniate aril. Kanara Nutmeg is endemic to the Western Ghats.
Nutmeg uses
Ornamental Use:
- The plant is used for ornamental purpose
Culinary Use:
- Leaves