Macadamia tetraphylla

Last updated

Macadamia tetraphylla
Macadamia tetraphylla.jpg
Foliage and fruits
Scientific classification Red Pencil Icon.png
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Order: Proteales
Family: Proteaceae
Genus: Macadamia
Species:
M. tetraphylla
Binomial name
Macadamia tetraphylla
Macadamia tetraphylla pink flowers Macadamia tetraphylla flower1.JPG
Macadamia tetraphylla pink flowers

Macadamia tetraphylla is a tree in the family Proteaceae, native to southern Queensland and northern New South Wales in Australia. Common names include macadamia nut, bauple nut, prickly macadamia, Queensland nut, rough-shelled bush nut and rough-shelled Queensland nut.

Contents

This species has dense foliage and grows up to 18 metres in height. The leaves, which have toothed margins, are 7 to 25 cm in length. As the species name "tetraphylla" implies, it usually has four leaves more or less equally spaced around each leaf node, whereas the other main commercial species "integrifolia" has a variable leaf number but usually three. It has long, pendant white to creamy pink to purple flowers, followed by woody, rounded fruits which are 2 to 3 cm in diameter and contain edible seeds. [2] As one common name implies, the shell of this species is often dimpled or "rough shelled" as compared to the integrifolia, which has a smooth shell, and always white flowers.

It has been introduced to Mexico and has done well in the states of Michoacán and Jalisco and has become an important export crop for the Mexican market. [3] Hawaii is the largest exporter of this crop worldwide. Both species of Macadamia have not done well in the pure tropics, with no fully successful plantations less than 15 degrees from the equator. Major plantations in Costa Rica, at 10 degrees north, are said to produce much less than in Hawaii at 19 to 22 degrees north, in one case 20% the production. Plantations in Guatemala at 15 degrees north are successful. However, individual seedling trees have produced well in the pure tropics and need to be selected. One grower noted that the integrifolia flowers in Costa Rica have no aroma, leading to low and erratic pollination. Macadamia tetraphylla has a higher sugar content than integrifolia, leading to problems of burning when baked in cookies and other desserts, thus most commercial macadamias are of the integrifolia species to assure conformity of roasting and baking results. Many tetraphylla or hybrids of tetraphylla and integrifolia are grown in home orchards. The higher sugar content of tetraphylla is preferred by some, especially for eating raw.

First modern Australian native food crop

Macadamia tetraphylla was the first Australian native food plant to be grown by non-indigenous Australians as a commercial crop. The first commercial plantation of macadamia trees were planted in the early 1880s by Charles Staff at Rous Mill, 12 km southeast of Lismore, New South Wales, consisting of M. tetraphylla. [4] Seedlings from the original plantation were used as rootstock for grafted modern varieties well into the 20th century. This original plantation was finally cleared and replaced with grafted modern varieties in the 1990s.

Ironically, even as the macadamia has spread worldwide in commercial agriculture, it is now listed as a vulnerable species in its native Australia due to habitat loss and degradation. The loss and impoverishment of its habitat has resulted from clearance of lowland rainforest for agriculture and urban development; invasive weeds; and poorly-designed fire management systems. [5]

Health claims

Like many other nuts, as well as olives, macadamia nuts are high in monounsaturated fatty acids (containing approximately 86%). Monounsaturated fatty acids have been linked to reduced cholesterol in the blood. [6]

The FDA has approved for manufacturers of macadamia products to use this verbiage, “Supportive but not conclusive research shows that eating 1.5 ounces per day of macadamia nuts, as part of a diet low in saturated fat and cholesterol and not resulting in increased intake of saturated fat or calories may reduce the risk of coronary heart disease. See nutrition information for fat [and calorie] content.” It is important to note that this is a "qualified health claim" and not meeting the rigorous standard of "significant scientific agreement". [7]

Related Research Articles

Pistachio Member of the cashew family

The pistachio, a member of the cashew family, is a small tree originating from Central Asia and the Middle East. The tree produces seeds that are widely consumed as food.

Peanut Legume cultivated as a grain and oil crop

The peanut, also known as the groundnut, goober (US), pindar (US) or monkey nut (UK), is a legume crop grown mainly for its edible seeds. It is widely grown in the tropics and subtropics, being important to both small and large commercial producers. It is classified as both a grain legume and, due to its high oil content, an oil crop. World annual production of shelled peanuts was 44 million tonnes in 2016, led by China with 38% of the world total. Atypically among legume crop plants, peanut pods develop underground (geocarpy) rather than above ground. With this characteristic in mind, the botanist Carl Linnaeus gave peanuts the specific epithet hypogaea, which means "under the earth".

Sunflower seed Seed of the sunflower (Helianthus annuus)

The sunflower seed is the seed of the sunflower. There are three types of commonly used sunflower seeds: linoleic, high oleic, and sunflower oil seeds. Each variety has its own unique levels of monounsaturated, saturated, and polyunsaturated fats. The information in this article refers mainly to the linoleic variety.

Mount Bauple is a scientific national park in the Fraser Coast Region, Queensland, Australia, 190 km north of Brisbane.

<i>Juglans</i> Genus of trees

Walnut trees are any species of tree in the plant genus Juglans, the type genus of the family Juglandaceae, the seeds of which are referred to as walnuts. All species are deciduous trees, 10–40 metres (33–131 ft) tall, with pinnate leaves 200–900 millimetres (7.9–35.4 in), with 5–25 leaflets; the shoots have chambered pith, a character shared with the wingnuts (Pterocarya), but not the hickories (Carya) in the same family.

Pecan Species of hickory native to the southern USA and northern Mexico

The pecan is a species of hickory native to the southern United States and northern Mexico in the region of the Mississippi River. The tree is cultivated for its seed in the southern United States, primarily in Georgia, New Mexico,and Texas, as well as Mexico, which produces nearly half of the world total. The seed is an edible nut used as a snack and in various recipes, such as praline candy and pecan pie. The pecan, in various aspects, is included in state symbols of Alabama, Arkansas, California, Oklahoma, and Texas.

Nut (fruit) In botany, type of dry indehiscent fruit

A nut is a fruit consisting of a hard or tough nutshell protecting a kernel which is usually edible. In general usage and in a culinary sense, a wide variety of dry seeds are called nuts, but in a botanical context "nut" implies that the shell does not open to release the seed (indehiscent).

<i>Macadamia</i> Genus of plants indigenous to Australia

Macadamia is a genus of four species of trees in the flowering plant family Proteaceae. They are indigenous to Australia, native to northeastern New South Wales and central and southeastern Queensland specifically. Two species of the genus are commercially important for their fruit, the macadamia nut. Global production in 2015 was 160,000 tonnes. Other names include Queensland nut, bush nut, maroochi nut, bauple nut and Hawaii nut. In Australian Aboriginal languages, the fruit is known by names such as bauple, gyndl or jindilli and boombera. It was an important source of bushfood for the Aboriginal peoples who are the original inhabitants of the area.

Mink oil

Mink oil is an oil used in medical and cosmetic products. It is obtained by the rendering of mink fat which has been removed from pelts destined for the fur industry.

<i>Canarium ovatum</i> Species of flowering plant

Canarium ovatum, the pili, is a species of tropical tree belonging to the genus Canarium. It is one of approximately 600 species in the family Burseraceae. C. ovatum are native to the Philippines. They are commercially cultivated in the Philippines for their edible nuts and is believed to be indigenous to that country. The fruit and tree are often vulgarized with the umbrella term of "Java almond" which mixes multiple species of the same genus, Canarium.

Bush tucker Food used as sustenance by Indigenous Australians

Bush tucker, also called "bush food", is any food native to Australia and used as sustenance by Indigenous Australians, the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, but it can also describe any native flora or fauna used for culinary or medicinal purposes, regardless of the continent or culture. Animal native foods include kangaroo, emu, witchetty grubs and crocodile, and plant foods include fruits such as quandong, kutjera, spices such as lemon myrtle and vegetables such as warrigal greens and various native yams.

Big Pineapple Historic site in Queensland, Australia

The Big Pineapple is a heritage-listed tourist attraction at Nambour Connection Road, Woombye, Sunshine Coast Region, Queensland, Australia. It was designed by Peddle Thorp and Harvey, Paul Luff, and Gary Smallcombe and Associates. It is also known as Sunshine Plantation. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 6 March 2009.

Macadamia oil Non-volatile oil expressed from the nut meat of the macadamia

Macadamia oil is the non-volatile oil collected from the nuts of the macadamia, a native Australian plant. It is used in food as a frying or salad oil, and in cosmetic formulations as an emollient or fragrance fixative.

<i>Macadamia integrifolia</i> Species of flowering plant in the family Proteaceae

Macadamia integrifolia is a small to medium-sized tree, growing to 15 metres in height. Native to rainforests in south east Queensland and northern New South Wales, Australia. Common names include macadamia, smooth-shelled macadamia, bush nut, Queensland nut, Bauple nut and nut oak.

<i>Acrocercops chionosema</i> Species of moth

Acrocercops chionosema is a moth of the family Gracillariidae. It is known from Queensland and New South Wales, Australia.

Walnut Nut of any tree of the genus Juglans

A walnut is the edible seed of a drupe of any tree of the genus Juglans, particularly the Persian or English walnut, Juglans regia.

H2 Hinde Tree Historic site in Queensland, Australia

The H2 Hinde Tree is a heritage-listed tree of the species Macadamia integrifolia at Colliston, 926 Gilston Road, Gilston, City of Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 14 August 2008.

<i>Macadamia jansenii</i> Species of tree in the family Proteaceae native to Queensland in Australia

Macadamia jansenii is an endangered and poisonous tree in the flowering plant family Proteaceae, native to Queensland in Australia. It was only described as a new species in 1991, being first brought to the attention of plant scientists in 1983 by Ray Jansen, a sugarcane farmer and amateur botanist from South Kolan in Central Queensland. Closely related to the cultivated and recently domesticated macadamia nut, it has small 11–16 mm diameter nuts that have a smooth, hard, brown shell enclosing a cream, globulose kernel that is bitter and inedible. In the wild it grows as a multi-stemmed 6–9m tall evergreen tree, with leaves having entire margins and generally in whorls of 3. An extremely rare species, it was discovered as a single population of around 60 plants in the wild in Eastern Australia. In 2018 about 60 new mature Macadamia jansenii trees were located, although a quarter of these were destroyed in the bush fires of 2019.

References

  1. Forster, P.; Ford, A.; Griffith, S.; Benwell, A. (2020). "Macadamia tetraphylla". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2020: e.T113180222A113310175. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2020-3.RLTS.T113180222A113310175.en . Retrieved 18 November 2021.
  2. "Rough-shelled Bush Nut - profile". Department of Environment & Climate Change NSW. Retrieved 2008-01-26.
  3. Marisela Taboada & Rogelio Oliver Guadarrama. 2004. Cultivos alternativos en México. Universidad Autónoma del Estado de Morelos. Centro de Investigaciones Biológicas. AGT Editor S.A. Mexico City, Mexico. ISBN   968-463-120-0
  4. Power, J., Macadamia Power in a Nutshell, 1982, ISBN   0-9592892-0-8, p. 13.
  5. Threatened Species Scientific Committee (2008). "Approved Conservation Advice for Macadamia tetraphylla (Rough-shelled Bush Nut)" (PDF). Species Profile and Threats Database. Government of Australia. p. 2008adi. Retrieved 23 June 2015.
  6. "Macadamia Nuts in the Diet Lower Cholesterol". www.medicinalfoodnews.com. Archived from the original on 2001-09-10.
  7. Nutrition, Center for Food Safety and Applied. "Constituent Updates - FDA Completes Review of Qualified Health Claim Petition for Macadamia Nuts and the Risk of Coronary Heart Disease". www.fda.gov. Retrieved 2019-02-05.
Macadamia tetraphylla flower & branch Macadamia tetraphylla branch & flower1.JPG
Macadamia tetraphylla flower & branch