This is the time of harvesting nutmeg. When they are ripe the nut drops down with its pulpy shell split open exposing the nut and the maize covering it.
I was keen to observe the stages of the ripening process. What was distinct was the appearance of grove in the centre of the globular shell dividing the shell into two equal halves. As the nut gets fully ripened the pulp separates at the grove allowing the nut to separate from its shell easily.
The nut with it s bright red coloured maize covering it usually drops with the shell, but widely open to be able to separate the nut from the shell.
It takes about five months for the nut to be fully ripe from the stage of flowering. From the appearance of a grove in the centre of the shell of the nut and its separation in to two halves at the grove to expose the fully ready nut and maize would normally take about two months.
My parents who planted about fifty nutmeg trees about sixty years ago did wisely as it is a steady source of income. It is a tree with does not need lot of care, The fruit is not a common target of pests as its pulp is bitter and has a strong odour which I presume keeps away the pests.
What surprised me while I was understanding the process of maturation of the fruits is a pattern that it follows. All the steps till the nuts are ready to be taken from the shell are pre-programmed.
It brought another level of consciousness about he richness of order and structure that we see all around us. Our world is an orderly environment for humans. That is why keeping the environment to preserve this order is significant.
The health of the environment is a critical factor for the health and well being of all humans globally.
M.C.Mathew (text and photo)
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