Bilimbi/Irumban Puli

Scientific name : Averrhoa Bilimbi Linn.

English : Bilimbi/ Cucumber tree

Ayurvedha : Karmaranga/ Karmsaraka

Tamil : Irumban Puli/ Bilimbi

Bilimbi is a tropical plant. It is found throught Malaysia. Especially grown in vilages or housing areas. It grows in any type of soil and does not require intensive care. Bilimbi tree is a medium tall tree with lots of branches. Its leaf has two small strips leaflets and stacked neatly on both sides of the vein. This leaves easily fall from the stalk. Flowers of the tree are appear either on the tree trunk or on matured branches. It is red in color.

The tree Bilimbi fruits are often found in in a clusters. The fruits are available throughtout the year and it bears hundreds of fruits per year. The fruits are very crunchy when unripe. The tender fruits are bright-green in colour and turn  to yellowish-green, when they are ripe. Once ripen they fall on the ground. The outer skin is shiny, very thin and gentle, and the flesh will be greenish-white in color which will be very juicy and extremely sour.The fruit has a few flattened seeds which is brown in color.

            The fruit has a high concentration of oxalic acid. It is very useful for cleaning and bleaching especilly brasswares. Since brass is made of zinc and copper, its tarnishes easily. A non-coated brassware need a a good work to bring back its shine. A natural ingredient or cleaner at home like tamarind, lemon and rock salt will do the best. As far as I know, the the fully ripen bilimbi fruit  is one of the best natural cleaner for brassware. I use to clean my prayer vessels by squizing the fruit with rock salt on the prayer vessels and clean with water and dry it. And, the shine is back as newly bought. You may try it at home. No harm trying as the fruit can be a natural mosturaizer to your hands as well.

There are some other benefits of the fruit:-

Cosmatic

1. Facial Cleanser  

Pound some fresh and tender fruits. Mix it with the home-made body powder (bedak sejuk). Make it a mask, leave it for 10 minutes. Then rinse with warm water. You can feel the smootheness of the skin.

2. Eliminate acne

Grind or mash some fresh fruits. Add a little lemon juice. Apply on the infected acne. Wait a few minutes and rinse with running water. Do three times a day.

4. Ringworm

Pound a few pieces of fresh fruit and add a little white lime paste (Sunnnambu) and dab on infected skin. Let stand for 5 minutes and rinse off with water. Do it daily.

Health

1. Lowering blood pressure

Mash some fresh fruits. Drink the extraction mix with water for 2-3 times a day. 

2. Cough / phlegm

Pound few pieces of fresh fruit and the get the juice. Add 2 tablespoons of salt water and drink 2 times a day or boil some fresh fruits, leaves and flowers in equal quantities and drink the water 2 times daily or boiled some flowers with a little handful of pennywort (vallarai) juice (pounded and take juice), 2 red onion and 1 cinnamon stick. Filter the broth and mix it with honey before drinking. Drink it three times a day.

3. Toothache

Pound some flowers and paste it on the aching tooth or chew some fruit with salt.

4. dizziness

Pound some fruits to make a drinks or brew some leaves to make a drinks.

4. Diabetes

Drink the fruit juice (do not over-drink as fruit juices contain high oxalic content which can have side effects such as kidney disease of the urinary tract)

5. Hypertension

Boil some fresh fruits. Drinking the water after breakfast every morning.

6. Infant jaundice

Bath the baby with decoction of the leaves

7. joint pain
Make a fine paste with the leaves and  apply on the body. Wait for few minutes before taking a hot bath. Also good for the skin and get rid of ringworm.

8. High fever
Pound or crush the leaves with a little water. Place on a cloth. Place the cloth on his head. It helps to cool fevers.

9. Relieve itchiness

Make a paste with the fruits and apply on the body before bath. Good for the new mothers. It is used as soap as it has anti bacterial properties.

Food

1. As a syrup full of vitamin C

2. Replace vinegar or tamarind