How to Grow Jamun from Seed (7 Simple Steps)
To grow jamun from seed, you’ll need to:
- Harvest the seed from a jamun fruit or purchase some seeds
- Pick the right container
- Pick the right soil
- Plant your jamun seeds
- Water your jamun seeds and keep them damp
- Wait for your seedlings to sprout leaves and re-pot
- Care for your mature plant
In this article, we’ll explore the steps to successfully grow jamun from seed through maturity.
What Is Jamun?
Jamun, or black plum, is a fruit grown chiefly in India and other Southeast Asian countries that ripens in the early summer months.
While its flesh is a whiteish color, the skin of the jamun is almost black, giving it its signature name.
And most amazingly, you can grind dried seeds into an edible powder, which can aid in digestion, toxin removal, lower high blood pressure, and provide powerful antioxidants for people with cancer.
Its leaves are also edible year-round.
Plus, black plum is a popular ingredient in Ayurvedic medicine and in treating diabetes.
7 Steps to Grow Jamun From Seed
Step One: Harvest Your Jamun Seeds
To harvest the seeds, take a fully grown jamun fruit and remove the seed from the center of the flesh.
Remove as much pulp from around the seed as you can.
Then, allow the seeds to dry out for at least 24 hours.
After 24 hours, the seeds should look more like light brown pods, kind of like tiny potatoes.
You can then plant these seeds immediately or anytime in the next two weeks.
Step Two: Pick the Right Container
To start, you need to pick a container that isn’t too big and has good drainage.
Then, as your plants grow and mature, you can re-pot them into bigger containers and eventually plant them in the ground.
But, for now, a small pot will suffice and ensure your seeds don’t get too much water.
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Step Three: Pick the Right Soil
To pot your jamun seed, use a combination of 60 percent gardening soil, 20 percent organic compost, and 20 percent fine sand.
And then, mix your soil and fill your pot with your mix.
Step Four: Plant Your Jamun Seeds
Now, you should create holes about a half-inch (1 cm) wide in the soil and an inch (3 cm) deep.
These dimensions will let your seeds fit comfortably in the pot while still allowing space on top for more soil.
You should also remember only to put one or two jamun seeds per container, depending on the size of the pot you have.
Then, place a jamun seed in each hole and cover them with the same potting mix you used in the rest of the pot.
If possible, you should plant your jamun indoors to keep a constant eye on their soil’s moisture content as they grow.
Step Five: Water Your Jamun
When your seeds are still new, you want to keep the soil moist by watering it daily.
Thus, water your jamun seeds in their pots until the soil is completely damp.
But do not overwater to the point that the soil gets soggy.
Additionally, you should keep developing jamun in partial sun with some shade.
Step Six: Re-pot Your Jamun or Transplant Outside
It will take 10 to 15 days for your jamun to begin sprouting, but you should avoid repotting your jamun until the seedlings are sturdy enough.
Seedlings are usually ready for transplant at around six months old.
Once you feel the seedlings are ready, move them to a larger pot that will provide enough space for a full-sized jamun tree, or plant them in the ground.
And when re-planting, use the same well-draining soil you used during germination.
Also, if you are going to transplant your jamun outdoors, you should do so in the warm, wet months, which vary depending on your location.
In Southeast Asia, this is monsoon season, and the rain keeps the soil nice and wet for the young jamun.
Thus, those conditions are what jamun plants need to grow well.
Additionally, once the jamun has grown strong enough to live outside on its own, it is fairly resistant to cold but thrives best in tropical or subtropical environments.
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Step Seven: Care for Your Mature Jamun
Keep your jamun tree in soil that has good moisture and salinity, with a pH range of 6.5 to 7.5.
A jamun tree will begin producing its signature black plums approximately six to eight years after planting.
So, you can enjoy your fruit every June and July once the plant reaches maturity.
And the jamun tree will continue producing fruit for up to 60 more years, so you’ll have fruit for decades to come.
Where Can I Get Jamun Seeds?
The best place to get jamun seeds is from someone else who has a jamun seed tree with fruit.
The window for jamun fruit is small, though, so you’ll want to seek out someone with a fruit tree during the early summer months when the tree is bearing black plums.
And, getting your seeds from someone nearby is best because jamun seeds are only good for 14 days past the date that you air-dry them.
So, it is difficult to purchase these seeds online or even in-store.
However, some people still sell them online and can typically get them to you before they go bad.
In the US, you can find jamun seeds on Etsy.
Why Should I Grow My Own Jamun?
You should grow your own jamun because, if you do, you’ll have a tree that will produce fruit for decades.
And you can benefit from the fruit’s powerful medicinal properties.
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Conclusion
Learning how to grow jamun from seed is an inexpensive and straightforward process if you live somewhere with a climate that is appropriate for this plant.
And overall, jamun makes for a beautiful addition to a legacy fruit tree garden and will continue to produce delicious black plums for most people throughout their entire lives.
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