The medlar – an almost forgotten fruit!
The medlar (Mespilus germanica), which presumably comes from Asia, was already a popular fruit tree in the Middle Ages, but is hardly known today.
Magnificent growth – healing effects
The medlar Medlar, belongs to the pome family, the Rosaceae family (Rose Family). The shrub-like tree grows to a height of six meters and develops a widely spreading crown as it ages. It thrives best in warm and dry areas. Its wood is very hard and the annual bark can be seen very well in the felled wood. Their leaves are up to 15 centimeters long and are slightly hairy on the underside. The crooked trunk and the broad crown make it look almost bizarre. The young shoots are furry and interspersed with thorns. Between May and June, however, the tree surprises with a creamy-coloured apple-like bloom. Individual flowers reach a size of up to 5 cm. They are hardly at risk of late frost due to the late flowering period.
Hildegard of Bingen also recognized the positive properties of the medlar and recommended consumption for strength: “The fruits of the medlar tree are useful and good for healthy and sick people, no matter how much one eats. ”
The medlar is very high in vitamin C and also the well-known healthy pectin is present.
Sour-tasty vitamin bombs
The fruits ripen towards the end of October / beginning of November. Their rough skin turns yellow to orange-brown. At this point, however, the fruits are still rock hard and taste very tart. It is only by frost that the flesh becomes soft and pleasantly sour. If it is wild medlars, short and mild night frosts (approx. -3 ° C) are not sufficient. If you don’t want to wait, you can still pick the fruits, put it in them freezer (-18 ° C) for about four hours and then let them thaw again. Less severe frost suffices for most cultivated varieties. As in the old days, medlars are still used today to make jams and jellies.
How can one eat medlars?
The medlar fruits are very sour. However, the longer you store them, the mellow and milder the flesh becomes. If you want to enjoy healthy treats, you can find them in our online shop as medlar full fruit juice or medlar jam!
