As we know, the earth is densely blessed with numerous plants. Some are useful while others are seen as weeds simply because no one has discovered their usefulness. On our herbaria work today, we will be looking at the plant “Lemon”. Lemon happens to be one of the plants I worked on during my herbaria work back then in school and I have taken to this page to share my little knowledge and researched work on Citrus limon. First, let’s see how lemon originated or discovered in different regions of the world.
Origin Of Lemons
Lemon trees are fruit bearing trees which produce small, oval, yellow citrus fruits. The scientific name is Citrus limon. The lemons are a type of berry called hesperidium. They grow in sub-tropical and tropical areas. They were originally from southeast Asia between south China and northeastern India near the Himalaya. They were brought to Europe about the time of the Crusades. An Italian navigator, Christopher Columbus, brought lemon seeds to America and lemons were well established in Florida. The first commercial lemon orchards were planted in the late 1800’s in the United states. Now the lemons are produced in India, Mexico, Brazil, Iran, Turkey, Egypt, Argentina, Spain, Italy and the United States. The world’s three leading lemon-producing countries are Argentina, Spain, and the United States. The lemon is very rich in vitamin C, so it is used in many ways such as food, beauty products and so on.
Scientific classification of Lemon
- Kingdom……………….Plantae
- Division…………….. ..Tracheobionta
- Class……………………. Magnoliopsida
- Order…………………….Sapindales
- Family……………………Rutaceae
- Genus………………….. Citrus
- Species………………....C. limon
Anatomy
Lemon trees reach 10 to 20 feet (3 to 6 meters) in height. They have thorny twigs and large, pointed leaves, which are reddish when young and become dark-green above and light-green below. The leaves are about 2 1/2 to 4 1/2 inches long with wings on the petioles. Buds are red, and the flowers have 4 or 5 petals which are 3/4 inches (2 cm) and about 2O to 40 stamens. The lemons are about 2 3/4 to 4 3/4 inches (7 to 12 cm) long. The peels are yellow and 1/4 to 3/8 inches (6 to 10 mm) thick. Lemons have a bulge at one end. The interior of the fruit includes eight to ten segments, which contain the pulp, juice, and seeds. Some lemons do not have seeds inside. The yellow outer part has many tiny glands that contain fragrant oils.
Cultivation
Every plant have areas where they thrive. So you dont don’t just get a seed and decides to plant. You will have to put certain things into consideration. When I was working on lemons for the first time, I made whole lot of mistakes and the seeds never germinated until I carried out a research. See the proper ways of cultivating lemons below.
Lemon trees are mostly planted in sub-tropical or tropical areas. They prefer medium to heavy soils which are both well-drained and moist. They cannot be grown in shady areas. The trees reach a height of 22 to 25 feet (6.8 to 7.6 meters). They produce purple-tinged white, fragrant flowers. They bloom most abundantly in the spring. It depends on the climate. Only 2 percent of the blossoms produce fruit, but that number still can bring a lot of harvest. Lemons develop from the ovaries of the blossoms and ripen about seven to eight months after the flowers bloom. The trees often have blossoms and fruit at the same time. They are grown from buds from trees that produce the type of lemon. The buds are grafted to rootstocks, which are seedling lemon trees. The trees start to produce fruit about 2 years after grafting and continue to produce fruit for 100 years.
Lemons grow in tropical areas. The cold conditions can kill or damage severely the lemon tree. The tree can die at temperature 22º to 24º F (-5.56º-4.44º C). The flowers and young fruits can be killed at 29º F (-1.67º C). Growers use many methods to protect the trees from the frost. For example, some growers use oil-burning heaters to warm the cold air near the ground. Other growers use large fans called wind machines to mix the cold surface air with the warm air above it. Water sprays under the trees also help protect against cold. Lemon trees may be attacked by agricultural pests such as mites, scale insects, and thrips. Mites and scale insects feed on the leaves, fruit and twigs. Thrips attack the buds and the fruit. Growers grow varieties of trees that resist pests and spray the trees with insecticides to protect the trees.
As an individual, I like lemons a lot and so I put to use every part of the fruit except the seeds. In fact, the uses of lemon in our daily lives can not be over emphasized. Despite its sour taste, we still find them very relevant. They are used in so many ways. Below are some of the uses of lemon. As a biologist, I will be using certain terms which you may not be familiar with. So it is important you search for the meaning of these terms.
The sour juice when taken, helps to relieve gingivitis, stomatitis, and inflammation of the tongue.
They can also be used for food like cakes, juice and beverages. The taste and scent of the lemon help food better.
The lemon peel oil is used in soaps and shampoos. I said earlier that no part of the plant is useless. So even the peel we usually throw away or dispose is very important.
The petitgrain oil, which is from the leaves, twigs, and immature fruits, are important in colognes.
The tree’s woods are also very useful in furniture.
Those are my ways of outing lemons to use. If there are other uses you know, please let us know in the comment box. Now let’s move to the health benefits of lemon. I am not a health specialist but I will be sharing the health benefits with you from a reliable source. See health benefits of lemon below.
Health Benefits of lemon
Besides the general uses of lemon, there are also great health benefits from its consumption. The antioxidants nature of lemon help remove free radicals that can damage cells from the body. These nutrients can help prevent diseases and boost health and wellbeing.
Below are some of the possible benefits of consuming lemons as stated from medical news today:
1) Lowering stroke risk
According to a 2012 study, the flavonoids in citrus fruits may help lower the risk of ischaemic stroke in women.
A study of data from nearly 70,000 women over 14 years showed that those who ate the most citrus fruits had a 19% lower risk of ischemic stroke than women who consumed the least.
Ischemic stroke is the most common type of stroke. It can happen when a blood clot blocks the flow of blood to the brain.
A 2019 population study showed that long term, regular consumption of foods that contain flavonoids might help protect against cancer and cardiovascular disease. However, the study indicated that people who smoked or consumed a lot of alcohol were less likely to benefit.
Potassium may help lower the risk of stroke.
2) Blood pressure
One 2014 study found that women in Japan who walked regularly and consumed lemon every day had lower blood pressure than those who did not.
More research is needed to identify the role of lemon in this improvement and to discover whether consuming lemon can help reduce blood pressure since walking daily can also lower blood pressure.
3) Cancer prevention
Lemons and lemon juice are an excellent source of the antioxidant vitamin C.
Antioxidants may help prevent free radicals from causing cell damage that can lead to cancer. However, exactly how antioxidants can help prevent cancer remains unclear.
4) Maintaining a healthy complexion
Vitamin C plays a vital role in the formation of collagen, the support system of the skin.
Sun exposure, pollution, age, and other factors can result in skin damage. A 2014 mouse study suggested that either eating vitamin C in its natural form or applying it topically can help prevent this type of damage.
5) Preventing asthma
People with asthma who consume higher amounts of vitamin C and other nutrients when they have a cold may experience fewer asthma attacks, according to one review.
The authors found evidence that vitamin C also benefitted people with bronchial hypersensitivity when they also had a common cold.
However, they called for more research.
6) Increasing iron absorption
Iron deficiency is a leading cause of anemia.
Pairing foods that are high in vitamin C with iron-rich foods maximizes the body’s ability to absorb iron.
However, a high intake of vitamin C can trigger gastrointestinal problems in people who are taking iron supplements. For this reason, it is best to obtain iron from dietary sources, such as beef liver, lentils, raisins, dried beans, animal meats, and spinach.
Squeezing a little lemon juice onto a salad containing baby spinach leaves can help maximize the intake of both iron and vitamin C.
7) Boosting the immune system
Foods that are high in vitamin C and other antioxidants may help strengthen the immune system against the germs that cause the common cold and the flu.
Findings also reviewed that vitamin C supplements do not appear the reduce the incidence of colds in a population, they may help reduce the length of time a cold lasts. Vitamin C may also help boost immunity in people who are undergoing extreme physical activity.
Squeezing a whole lemon into a glass of hot water with a large spoonful of honey makes a soothing drink for someone with a cough or cold.
8) Weight loss
In a 2008 study, rodents who consumed lemon peel phenols with a high fat diet for 12 weeks gained less weight than those who did not consume lemon.
In 2016, 84 premenopausal Korean women with a high body mass index (BMI) followed a lemon detox diet or another diet for 7 days. Those who followed the lemon detox diet experienced greater improvement insulin resistance,, body fat, BMI, body weight, and waist-hip ratio than those on the other diets.
Scurvy
It is expected that people consume the require amount of vitamin C. Failure to do so may cause them to develop a deficiency, which is known as scurvy. It is rare in the United States, but it can affect people who do not have a varied diet.
Symptoms can start to appear within a month of not consuming vitamin C, and they include:
- fatigue
- malaise (a feeling of being unwell)
- inflammation of the gums or bleeding gums
- red patches on the skin due to blood vessels breaking beneath the surface
- joint pain
- slow wound healing
- loosening of teeth
- depression
Many of these happen when the connective tissues weaken due to the lack of vitamin C.
Since vitamin C helps the body absorb iron, people who are deficient in iron may also develop anemia.
https://www.medicalnewstoday.com
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