10/25/2018 Jojoba - Wikipedia

Jojoba
Jojoba /həˈhoʊbə/ ( listen), with the botanical name Simmondsia
Jojoba
chinensis, and also known as goat nut, deer nut, pignut, wild hazel,
quinine nut, coffeeberry, and gray box bush,[2] is native to
Southwestern North America. Simmondsia chinensis is the sole species of
the family Simmondsiaceae, placed in the order Caryophyllales.

Jojoba is grown commercially to produce jojoba oil, a liquid wax ester

extracted from its seed.

Contents Jojoba (Simmondsia chinensis) shrub

Distribution Scientific classification

Description Kingdom: Plantae
Reproduction
Taxonomy Clade: Angiosperms
Uses Clade: Eudicots
Native American uses
Contemporary uses
Order: Caryophyllales
Cultivation Family: Simmondsiaceae
References
Genus: Simmondsia
External links
Nutt.

Species: S. chinensis
Distribution Binomial name
The plant is a native shrub of the Sonoran Desert,[3] Colorado Desert, Baja Simmondsia chinensis
California Desert, and California chaparral and woodlands habitats in the (Link) C. K. Schneid.
Peninsular Ranges and San Jacinto Mountains. It is found in southern
Synonyms[1]
California, Arizona, and Utah (U.S.), and Baja California state (Mexico).

Jojoba is endemic to North America, and occupies an area of approximately Buxus chinensis
260,000 square kilometers (100,000 sq mi) between latitudes 25° and 31°
North and between longitudes 109° and 117° West.[3]

Description
Simmondsia chinensis, or jojoba, typically grows to 1–2 meters (3.3–6.6 ft) tall, with a broad, dense crown, but there have
been reports of plants as tall as 3 meters (9.8 ft).[3]

The leaves are opposite, oval in shape, 2–4 centimeters (0.79–1.57 in) long and 1.5–3 centimeters (0.59–1.18 in) broad,
thick, waxy, and glaucous gray-green in color.

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The flowers are small and greenish-yellow, with 5–6 sepals and no petals. The plant typically blooms from March to
May.[4]

Reproduction
Each plant is dioecious, with hermaphrodites being extremely rare. The fruit is an acorn-shaped ovoid, three-angled
capsule 1–2 centimeters (0.39–0.79 in) long, partly enclosed at the base by the sepals. The mature seed is a hard oval that
is dark brown and contains an oil (liquid wax) content of approximately 54%. An average-sized bush produces 1 kilogram
(2.2 lb) of pollen, to which few humans are allergic.[2]

The female plants produce seed from flowers pollinated by the male plants. Jojoba leaves have an aerodynamic shape,
creating a spiral effect, which brings wind-born pollen from the male flower to the female flower. In the Northern
Hemisphere, pollination occurs during February and March. In the Southern Hemisphere, pollination occurs during
August and September.

Somatic cells of jojoba are tetraploid; the number of chromosomes is 2n = 4x = 52.[5]

Female flower Close-up of male Simmondsia

chinensis flowers

Jojoba fruits Jojoba seed

Taxonomy
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Despite its scientific name Simmondsia chinensis, the plant is not native to
China. The botanist Johann Link originally named the species Buxus
chinensis, after misreading a collection label "Calif", referring to California, as
"China." Jojoba was collected again in 1836 by Thomas Nuttall who described
it as a new genus and species in 1844, naming it Simmondsia californica, but
priority rules require that the original specific epithet be used.

The common name "jojoba" originated from O'odham name Hohowi.[2] The
common name should not be confused with the similarly written jujube
(Ziziphus zizyphus), an unrelated plant species, which is commonly grown in Plaque describing jojoba in the Lost
China. Dutchman State Park (Arizona)

Uses
Jojoba foliage provides year-round food for many animals, including deer,
javelina, bighorn sheep, and livestock. Its nuts are eaten by squirrels, rabbits,
other rodents, and larger birds.

Only Bailey's pocket mouse, however, is known to be able to digest the wax
found inside the jojoba nut. In large quantities, jojoba seed meal is toxic to
many mammals, later this effect was found to be due to simmondsin, which
inhibits hunger. The indigestible wax acts as a laxative in humans.

Native American uses

Native Americans first made use of jojoba. During the early 18th century Jesuit
missionaries on the Baja California Peninsula observed indigenous peoples
heating jojoba seeds to soften them. They then used a mortar and pestle to
create a salve or buttery substance. The latter was applied to the skin and hair
to heal and condition. The O'odham people of the Sonoran Desert treated
burns with an antioxidant salve made from a paste of the jojoba nut.[2]
Jojoba oil in a clear glass vial
Native Americans also used the salve to soften and preserve animal hides.
Pregnant women ate jojoba seeds, believing they assisted during childbirth.
Hunters and raiders ate jojoba on the trail to keep hunger at bay.

The Seri, who utilize nearly every edible plant in their domain, do not regard the beans as real food and in the past ate it
only in emergencies.[2]

Contemporary uses
Jojoba is grown for the liquid wax, commonly called jojoba oil, in its seeds.[6] This oil is rare in that it is an extremely long
(C36–C46) straight-chain wax ester and not a triglyceride, making jojoba and its derivative jojoba esters more similar to
whale oil than to traditional vegetable oils. It has been discussed as a possible biodiesel fuel.[7][8][9] Jojoba cannot be
cultivated on a scale to compete with traditional fossil fuels, and its use is regulated to personal care products.[10]

Cultivation

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Plantations of jojoba have been established in a number of desert and semi-

desert areas, predominantly in Argentina, Australia, Israel, Mexico, Peru and
the United States. It is currently the Sonoran Desert's second most
economically valuable native plant (overshadowed only by Washingtonia
filifera—California fan palms, used as ornamental trees).

Jojoba prefers light, coarsly textured soils. Good drainage and water
penetration is necessary. It tolerates salinity and nutrient-poor soils. Soil pH
should be between 5 and 8.[11] High temperatures are tolerated by jojoba, but
Wild jojoba seed market on the San
frost can damage or kill plants.[12] Requirements are poor because jojoba
Carlos Apache Indian Reservation
plants do not need an intensive cultivation. Weed problems only occur during in Arizona
the first two years after planting and there is little damage by insects.
Supplemental irrigation could maximize production if rainfall as less than
400 mm.[11] There is no need for high fertilisation, but, especially in the first year, nitrogen increases growth.[13] Jojoba is
normally harvested by hand because seeds do not all mature in the same time. Yield is around 3.5 t/ha depending on the
age of the plantation.[11]

Selective breeding is developing plants that produce more beans with higher wax content, as well as other characteristics
that will facilitate harvesting.[2]

Its ability to withstand high salinity (up to 12 dS m−1 at pH 9) and the high value of jojoba products make jojoba an
interesting plant for the use of desertification control. It has been used to combat and prevent desertification in the Thar
Desert in India.[14]

References
1. "Simmondsia chinensis" (http://www.tropicos.org/Name/4900022?projectid=). Tropicos. Missouri Botanical Garden.
2. Phillips, Steven J.; Comus, Patricia Wentworth, eds. (2000). A Natural History of the Sonoran Desert. University of
California Press. pp. 256–257. ISBN 0-520-21980-5.
3. Gentry, Howard Scott (July 1958). "The natural history of Jojoba (Simmondsia chinensis) and its cultural aspects".
Economic Botany. 12 (3): 261–295. doi:10.1007/BF02859772 (https://doi.org/10.1007%2FBF02859772).
4. "Simmondsia chinensis" (http://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/cgi-bin/get_IJM.pl?tid=44601). Jepson eFlora (TJM2). The
Jepson Herbarium.
5. Tobe, Hiroshi; Yasuda, Sachiko; Oginuma, Kazuo (December 1992). "Seed coat anatomy, karyomorphology, and
relationships of Simmondsia (Simmondsiaceae)". The Botanical Magazine Tokyo. 105 (4): 529–538.
doi:10.1007/BF02489427 (https://doi.org/10.1007%2FBF02489427).
6. "Jojoba" (http://www.ienica.net/crops/Jojoba.pdf) (PDF). IENICA. Retrieved 2011-02-16.
7. Franke, Elsa; Lieberei, Reinhard; Reisdorff, Christoph (24 October 2012). Nutzpflanzen: Nutzbare Gewächse der
gemäßigten Breiten, Subtropen und Tropen (https://books.google.com/books?id=SvKBgdI7-foC&pg=PA399).
Stuttgard: Georg Thieme Verlag. p. 399.
8. Al-Hamamre, Z. (July 2013). "Jojoba is a Possible Alternative Green Fuel for Jordan". Energy Sources, Part B:
Economics, Planning, and Policy. 8 (3): 217–226. doi:10.1080/15567240903330442 (https://doi.org/10.1080%2F1556
7240903330442).
9. Al-Widyan, Mohamad I.; Al-Muhtaseb, Mu’taz A. (August 2010). "Experimental investigation of jojoba as a renewable
energy source". Energy Conversion and Management. 51 (8): 1702–1707. doi:10.1016/j.enconman.2009.11.043 (http
s://doi.org/10.1016%2Fj.enconman.2009.11.043).
10. Uwe Wolfmeier, Hans Schmidt, Franz-Leo Heinrichs, Georg Michalczyk, Wolfgang Payer, Wolfram Dietsche, Klaus
Boehlke, Gerd Hohner, Josef Wildgruber (2002). "Waxes". Ullmann's Encyclopedia of Industrial Chemistry. Weinheim:
Wiley-VCH. doi:10.1002/14356007.a28_103 (https://doi.org/10.1002%2F14356007.a28_103)..

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11. Yermanos, D. M. (1979). "Jojoba – a crop whose time has come". California Agriculture.
12. Borlaug, N. (1985). Jojoba. New Crop for Arid Lands, New Raw Material for Industry. National Academy Press.
13. Nelson, M. (2001). "Nitrogen fertilization effects on jojoba seed production". Industrial Crops and Products. 13: 145–
154. doi:10.1016/s0926-6690(00)00061-3 (https://doi.org/10.1016%2Fs0926-6690%2800%2900061-3).
14. Alsharhan, Abdulrahman S.; Fowler, Abdulrahman; Goudie, Andrew S.; Abdellatif, Eissa M.; Wood, Warren W. (2003).
Desertification in the third millennium. Lisse: Balkema. pp. 151–172. ISBN 978-0-415-88943-8.

External links
USDA Plants Profile for Simmondsia chinensis (jojoba) (http://plants.usda.gov/java/profile?symbol=SICH)
Calflora Database: Simmondsia chinensis (jojoba) (http://www.calflora.org/cgi-bin/species_query.cgi?where-taxon=Si
mmondsia+chinensis)
Jepson Manual (TJM93) treatment of Simmondsia chinensis (http://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/cgi-bin/get_JM_treatment.pl?
7622,7623,7624)
Selected Families of Angiosperms: Rosidae (https://web.archive.org/web/20070904223601/http://www.life.umd.edu/e
meritus/reveal/pbio/pb450/rosi17.html) — an explanation of the scientific name
Newscientist.com: Jojoba oil as biodiesel (https://www.newscientist.com/article/dn3464-jojoba-oil-could-fuel-cars-and-
trucks.html)
Hort.purdue.edu: Alternative Field Crops Manual (http://www.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/afcm/jojoba.html)
"Glossary" (https://web.archive.org/web/20060720174526/http://ijec.net/ijec_glossary.html). International Jojoba
Export Council. Archived from the original (http://www.ijec.net/ijec_glossary.html) on 2006-07-20.
Howser, Huell (January 14, 2009). "Jojoba – California's Gold (11014)" (http://blogs.chapman.edu/huell-howser-archiv
es/2009/01/14/jojoba-californias-gold-11014/). California's Gold. Chapman University Huell Howser Archive.
Uses and Benefits of Jojoba Oils (https://beautyshortcutips.com/best-jojoba-oil-brand/)

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