Vanilla is a fragrant perennial clinging vine of the orchid family. How vanilla grows in nature and at home

Perennial herbaceous vine of the Orchid family (Orchidaceae). This is the only spice in this family. Its climbing stems, clinging with aerial roots to the trunks and branches of trees, rise up to their crown. Vanilla leaves are juicy, oblong-elliptical. The flowers are large, light green, collected in racemes. Each flower opens for only one day, as if so that small insects of a single species, living only in Mexico, can pollinate it. Thanks to this insect, for 300 years - until the beginning of the 19th century - Mexico maintained a monopoly on the export of this spice. The Aztecs knew this plant and used it to flavor a drink made from the fruit of the chocolate tree - chocoatl - long before the discovery of America.

Vanilla fragrant

Vanilla is a wonderful ornamental plant that can be grown indoors. Its leaves - shiny, dense - remain on the plant for several years. The stem entwines the support located next to the pot. Rarely blooms. The fruit is a capsule that is picked unripe so that it cannot open.

In the summer months, vanilla is fed every ten days with a weak solution of mullein (1:15).

The optimal substrate for cultivation is peat, leaf soil, crushed fern roots in equal parts.

The plant propagates by seeds and stem cuttings. Cuttings should have 2–3 buds. Root them in sand or water.

Ripe vanilla fragrant fruits

Fragrant vanilla fruits

Medicinal properties

Dried and fermented fruits are exceptionally aromatic and are used in cooking, confectionery and perfumery. Vanilla is used in the production of curd and fruit dishes, and for flavoring confectionery products.

In folk medicine, vanilla is indicated for fever, dyspepsia, chlorosis, nervous system disorders, mental illness, drowsiness and rheumatism. It is valued as a stimulant and muscle activity stimulant.

Vanilla fragrant

Morphological characteristics

Vanilla represents perennial liana from the orchid family (Orchidaceae). The root system is fibrous, the bulk of the roots are located in the surface soil horizons. The stem is long, herbaceous, climbing trees to the tops of their crowns, trying to bring its leaves to the light. The vine clings to the support with special thin (up to 0.2 cm in diameter) aerial roots that grow at the nodes of the stem. The leaves are alternate, oblong-oval, large, 8-25 cm long and 2-8 cm wide, dense, shiny.

Large whitish-yellow or greenish-white flowers are collected in racemes emerging from the axils of the leaves. The inflorescence usually contains 20-30 (in some cases up to 200) flowers, but only 6-12 of them set fruit. They open for only one day and are pollinated only by certain types of insects. Artificial pollination is carried out on cultivated plantations. Like all orchids, the flowers are zygomorphic (irregular), with a 6-leaf, petal-shaped, two-circular perianth, one stamen and a pistil. The fruits are long, pod-like boxes 15-30 cm long and 0.7-1 cm in diameter. They develop very slowly - 7-9 months pass from pollination of the flower to ripening of the seeds!

Economic importance and human use

As a spice, called "vanilla", use the powder of dried and ground vanilla fragrant fruits. It contains the aromatic aldehyde vanillin (1.5-3%), which determines the aroma of the spice, essential oil (0.5-0.8%), cinnamon ester, tannins. Vanilla is used to flavor pies, puddings, cookies, cakes, biscuits, creams, ice cream, chocolate, liqueurs and other confectionery products and drinks. There is even a concept of “vanilla smell”. Vanilla spice is also used in pharmacy to impart a decent smell to foul-smelling medicines.

History, origin and current state of culture

The birthplace of vanilla- Central and South America. Long before Europeans arrived there, the Aztecs and other aboriginal tribes knew this spice and flavored the drink from the chocolate tree with it, which we now call cocoa. For a long time, this spice could not be obtained in other places. They learned to grow the vanilla plant itself, but nowhere except in their homeland did it bear fruit. Only in the 19th century did scientists discover that it is pollinated by insects that live only in Mexico and its neighboring countries. As soon as they learned to pollinate flowers artificially with a special brush, the problem of obtaining the fruits of this vine was immediately resolved.

Now vanilla They are cultivated on plantations not only in America, but also in tropical countries of Asia and Africa. Madagascar has now become the largest producer of this spice - for example, in 1987. he exported 1220 tons of vanilla. It is also exported to other countries: Sri Lanka, India, Indonesia, Seychelles, etc. Vanilla is imported to Russia from various tropical countries. To obtain the spice, vanilla fruits are picked unripe when they begin to turn yellow. Fresh fruits are almost odorless. For its appearance, special processing of the collected fruits is carried out. They are immersed for 20 minutes in hot water at a temperature of 70-80°C, and then wrapped in special woolen blankets and kept in the sun for a week.

In the fruits fermentation takes place, as a result of which the natural glucovanillin contained in unripe fruits is broken down into free vanillin and glucose. The fruits turn brown and acquire that very vanilla smell to which they owe their wide popularity. After this, they are dried in the open air until a white coating appears on the surface of the boxes. This is where vanillin crystals are deposited. Drying can last from one to five months. The whitened fruits are packed in a tight container that does not allow air to pass through, so that the smell does not evaporate. In good packaging, vanilla fruits do not lose their aroma for 30 years!

To obtain commercial spice The boxes are ground with sugar (one box is enough for 0.5 kg of sugar). This powder is called vanilla. This is a very expensive spice. Nowadays, instead of natural vanilla, they often use its substitute vanillin, which is obtained chemically, but gourmets prefer, of course, natural vanilla.

Biological features and cultivation techniques

Vanilla is cultivated in areas with an average annual temperature of approximately 27 ° C, with its fluctuations in different months from 2 G to 32 ° C. In such areas there is a lot of precipitation - about 2000-2500 mm per year. Heavy rainfall, unfortunately, has a negative impact on the quality of the spice if it falls during the fruiting phase. The best vanilla is obtained in areas with a fairly dry period of up to two months, which coincides with the ripening of the fruit.

Vanilla is propagated by cuttings, which are segments of stems 30-100 cm long (or even better, 250-300 cm). As a rule, cuttings take root by the end of the second week. The liana grows very quickly - growth in favorable conditions is up to 1 m per month! In the 2nd to 4th year after planting, the plants begin to bear fruit. Around the 8th year there is a peak in yield, but fruiting continues up to 20 years (individuals are known that bear fruit up to 50 years). The yield of vanilla spice is 1.5-2 c/ha.

To the question What is the plant whose fruit is vanilla? given by the author Eurovision the best answer is

wikipedia(c)
pod... x)

Answer from White angel[newbie]
vanilla plant

Answer from Qui2ble[guru]
Vanilla (lat. Vanilla) is a genus of perennial vines of the Orchidaceae family, the fruits (pods) of which are also called vanilla and are used as a spice.
The Latin generic name comes from Spanish. vainilla - pod.
More than a hundred types of vanilla are known, of which only three are cultivated for the production of spice:
Vanilla planifolia - produces several cultivated varieties of vanilla of the best quality, with long pods of 20-25 centimeters;
Vanilla pompona - short pods of lower quality;
Vanilla tahitensis - Tahitian vanilla.
Other types of vanilla are considered decorative.

Answer from Dry out[active]
Vanilla is a gift from the tropical forests of Central and South America. It is there that flat-leaved vanilla, or fragrant vanilla (Vanilla planifolia), grows - a plant from the orchid family, the fruits of which are one of the most expensive and fragrant spices.
Vanilla is a powerful perennial vine that, clinging to the trunk of the host tree with thin aerial roots, carries its fleshy leaves and greenish or whitish-yellow flowers to the light.
These flowers, usually collected in inflorescences of 20–30 pieces, open for just one day and are pollinated by certain types of insects. Since not all flowers can be pollinated in such a short time, a very small number of fruits develop on each vine, which are pod-like boxes 15–30 cm long and about 1 cm in diameter. Fruits develop extremely slowly - from pollination of the flower to ripening seeds take from 7 to 9 months.
To obtain the spice, vanilla fruits prepared in a special way are dried and ground together with sugar. The main smell of vanilla comes from the aromatic oxyaldehyde vanillin, but the natural spice also includes essential oils, cinnamon ester, and tannins... Without the wonderful aroma of vanilla it is difficult to imagine many pies, cakes, puddings, pastries, creams, liqueurs, ice cream and much more. Vanilla aroma is also used to scent candles, some perfumes, and medicines.
The Aztecs discovered vanilla and used it to flavor their favorite drink, chocolate. The Indians believed that chocolate flavored with vanilla “gives the body strength, takes away fatigue, drives away fear and strengthens the heart.” The Spanish conquistadors learned about vanilla in 1520, having already become acquainted with the drink made from cocoa fruits. Soon the Europeans wanted to grow vanilla in their homeland, but all attempts were unsuccessful. Only in 1807 did this liana take root in a botanical garden in England, and later they learned to grow it in other botanical gardens in Europe. But vanilla could only be propagated vegetatively - it refused to bear fruit in a foreign land. Scientists tried to bring some insects along with the vines - supposed pollinators of the plant, but these attempts were not crowned with success. And only when they thought of pollinating vanilla artificially, using a brush, the problem of obtaining fruit was solved. Vanilla fruit – fresh (top) and dry (bottom)

About 100 species are known, distributed in the tropics of both hemispheres.

It should be noted that out of the entire variety of species, only three are used, and the quality directly depends on the geographical location of the plant:
Vanilla planifolia - produces several cultivated varieties of vanilla of the best quality, with long pods of 20-25 centimeters.
Vanilla pompona – short pods of lower quality.
Vanilla tahitensis - Thai vanilla. It is distinguished by a reddish-brown color, the length of the pods is 12-14 cm. As a spice, it is the least valuable of those listed.

The best varieties grow in Mexico. The next best quality is the so-called Bourbon or Reunion - from the name of the island where it grows. Its fruits are a third smaller than those of the Mexican variety, and the color is darker. A similar species grows on the islands of Java and Ceylon. Mauritian vanilla from the Seychelles consists of cylindrical pods about 15 cm long. It is lighter than Mexican vanilla and has a weak aroma.
Other types of vanilla are considered decorative.

A little about the history of the discovery of vanilla. It is known that vanilla served as a valuable spice among the Aztecs long before the conquest of their territory by the Spaniards. The first people to grow vanilla were the Totonac people, who lived in what is now Mexico, off the coast of the Gulf of Mexico. It was they who taught other South American tribes to cultivate the fragrant pods, which they considered a divine gift.

Later, the Aztecs paid vanilla tribute to the Spaniards. By that time, Europeans had already recognized the taste of the drink made from cocoa beans. And the first European to try vanilla was Columbus. It was to him that the Aztec ruler presented a cup of chocolate with vanilla, which was added to the drink to improve the taste. I liked the drink, the Spaniards brought it to Europe, bringing vanilla with it. The new spice was called “vanilla.” The word comes from the Spanish Venilla - a pod, which in turn is a diminutive form of the Spanish version of the Latin word Vagin.

At the very beginning of Vanilla's European history, the spice was used exclusively to flavor cocoa. But later they began to use it to flavor baked goods. Europeans also added vanilla seeds to tobacco and smoked or chewed it and considered it a magical drug. German researcher Bizar Zimmermann found that vanilla is an exceptionally strong aphrodisiac. In the 18th century, vanilla was credited with healing stomach ulcers and being a good antidote.

There is a legend about the origin of vanilla.
Once upon a time, in pre-vanilla times, in the city of Papantla (which would later be called “fragrant”) a girl of unprecedented beauty was born. Moreover, she was born into a difficult family - her father was the ruler Tenitsli the Third. The princess was so incredibly beautiful that her parents could not even bear the thought that she would have to be given as a wife to a mortal man. Therefore, the girl, by the will of her ambitious mother and father, became the priestess of the harvest goddess Tonoakayohua, on whose favor the survival of the entire people depended. The duties of the Morning Star (as the royal family named their daughter) included decorating the temple and making sacrifices.
Once in the forest, where the girl went to buy flowers for the goddess, she was seen by a young prince named Young Deer, who instantly and passionately fell in love. He knew that he could pay with his life even for watching the priestess, but he could not refuse the pleasure of seeing his beloved. Soon he hatched a plan to kidnap the Star. When she once again came to pick flowers, the Deer, who was hiding in the bushes, jumped out of his hiding place, confessed his feelings, grabbed the princess by the hand and dragged her away into the tropical forest. At first the girl did not understand what was going on, but she soon became imbued with a mutual feeling and willingly allowed herself to be kidnapped.
However, when they reached the mountains, a terrible monster came out of the cave to meet them. His fiery breath forced the lovers to return back to the road, where the priests of the tribe were already waiting for them, offended by the unworthy behavior of their colleague. The servants of Tonoakayohua seized the young lovers and cut off their heads. The priests took out the trembling hearts and placed them on the altar of the formidable goddess so that she would not be too angry, and, as unnecessary, they threw the bodies into a deep crevice.
Some time later, in the place where the blood of the Deer and the Star was shed, the grass began to dry. In its place, an unknown bush began to grow at fantastic speed. In a few days it reached the height of a man and was covered with dense foliage. Soon a bindweed grew next to the bush, which touchingly twined itself around the branches. The plants looked like tender lovers locked in an embrace. Everyone watched this phenomenon in amazement, and then one morning flowers appeared on the vine, looking like a young woman dreaming of her lover. After they bloomed and dried, thin graceful pods appeared in their place. They gave off an incomparable aroma that the best incense from the Tonoakayohua Temple could not compare with.
The priests realized that the blood of the young princess and her groom was reborn into a powerful, dense bush and a delicate orchid. Both plants came to be considered sacred, and vanilla was called the “nectar of the gods” and has since been brought as a gift to the goddess of the harvest.

The historical homeland of vanilla is the tropical forests of Eastern Mexico. And now it is cultivated in different parts of the globe - in many Caribbean countries (Jamaica, Haiti, Guadeloupe, Martinique), in the tropical part of South America (especially in Guiana), in Ceylon, Malaysia, Madagascar, Reunion, Seychelles, Comoros islands, on the island of Mauritius and in Polynesia - in Tahiti and Hawaii. Moreover, 50% of all world production is concentrated on the islands of Madagascar and Reunion.

The liana grows very quickly, up to a meter per month, under good conditions. And, as you read in the introduction, it took root quite easily in other parts of the world. But this was not enough. It wasn't just mature plants that were needed, it was necessary to get pods. But this turned out to be much more difficult.
The vanilla ovary ripens very slowly - 7-9 months after fertilization (almost like a human embryo). But getting this ovary is even more difficult than waiting for the fruit to ripen.

The vanilla flower is pollinated by bees of the genus Melipona, which live only in Mexico, and by one species of hummingbird. But with their help you can pollinate only 5%!!! colors. And the Mexicans got used to pollinating plants by hand. This is done by children who can process about a thousand flowers in a day. The vanilla flower only blooms for ONE day. Flowers open in the afternoon and close at night. And you need to have time to pollinate the flower in half a day. In the 19th century, Europeans discovered the secret of pollination, after which vanilla began to be collected in various parts of the globe.

Vanilla fruits are picked unripe, when they are still odourless. This is usually done manually - using scissors. And to obtain the “spice” they perform a whole ritual! The pods are immersed in hot (80-85°C) water for 20 seconds. They are then wrapped in wool blankets and stored at 60°C. After a day, they are taken out into the sun for exactly one hour. The next day - for an hour and ten minutes. And so on for a month, increasing the time by 10 minutes every day. The pods begin to turn brown and a spicy, bitter taste appears. The pods are then dried in the shade in the open air until a white coating appears. No more than 1/3 of the original weight remains, and, most importantly, during this entire month of working with vanilla, only the peasant’s intuition influences the quality of the final product.

In addition to growing, harvesting and preparation, storage also affects quality. Real vanilla, properly prepared for use and storage, is simply amazing in its durability. There is a known case when, after 36 years of storage, the spice retained all its properties. But if storage rules are violated, the pods become fragile, lose their elasticity, crack, and lose their color. At least half of the properties of vanilla are lost.

Remember that high-quality pods should be soft, elastic, slightly curled, oily to the touch, dark brown in color with small, barely noticeable, white crystals on the surface. And depending on the deviation from the standard, vanilla is divided into 8 grades (exquisite long, fine long, quite fine, good, etc.).

I think that all of the above explains well the high cost of this spice.

Please note that real vanilla is expensive. And what we usually sell in stores is not vanilla, but vanillin. In technical reference books they wrote about it as follows: “a by-product in the production of rosin from pine resin.” A cheap surrogate was invented simultaneously in England (Gobley, 1876), in Germany (Tiemann and Germany 1874, 1876) and in France (de Leer, 1891). And what we buy under the guise of vanilla sugar is a mixture of synthetic vanillin powder and powdered sugar.

The smell of vanillin lacks the subtlety of the aroma of real vanilla, but it is so sharp and strong that one gram of it is replaced by fifty grams of vanilla sticks.

What is contained in these pods that gives such an ordinary-looking plant such properties?

“The fruits contain the glycoside glucovanillin, essential oil (0.5-0.8%), mucous and tannins. During fermentation, glucovanillin is broken down into vanillin and glucose. The main aromatic substance of vanilla is vanillin-4-hydroxy-3-methoxybenzaldehyde. Its content ranges from 0.75-2.9% (up to 12.5%).”
Smart. It may not be clear to everyone, but it is accurate.

In folk medicine, vanilla is used for fever, dyspepsia, chlorosis, nervous system disorders, mental illness, drowsiness, and rheumatism. Used as an aphrodisiac.

Vanilla is practically the finest spice used in cooking. It is added to all possible sweet dishes: jam, cookies, pastries, cakes, muffins, gingerbread cookies, Easter cakes, sweet pies, puddings, curd products, creams, jelly, compotes, mousses, cocoa, dessert dishes made from fruit, sweet fruit and dairy products. soups, sweet sauces, jellies.

In addition to using vanilla in cooking, it is actively used in perfumery, aromatherapy, and love magic.

Vanilla is considered a plant of Jupiter, the element is fire, the aura is warm.
Vanilla is most actively used in magic for two purposes - love potions and restorative ones. Vanilla increases vitality, improves mental abilities, and is used in rituals aimed at gaining strength. Vanilla oil has a stimulating effect on women, which is what is used in the preparation of love potions. The aroma of this spice relieves irritation, brings a feeling of spiritual comfort, and soothes. Whole beans are added to love talismans or worn on the body (for the same purposes).
The magic of vanilla corresponds to the concept of purity, feminine attractiveness and affection.

Vanilla fragrant – Vanilla planifolia

Perennial herbaceous vine of the Orchid family (Orchidaceae). This is the only spice in this family. Its climbing stems, clinging with aerial roots to the trunks and branches of trees, rise up to their crown. Vanilla leaves are juicy, oblong-elliptical. The flowers are large, light green, collected in racemes. Each flower opens for only one day, as if so that small insects of a single species, living only in Mexico, can pollinate it. Thanks to this insect, for 300 years - until the beginning of the 19th century - Mexico maintained a monopoly on the export of this spice. The Aztecs knew this plant and used it to flavor a drink made from the fruit of the chocolate tree - chocoatl - long before the discovery of America.

Vanilla fragrant

Vanilla is a wonderful ornamental plant that can be grown indoors. Its leaves - shiny, dense - remain on the plant for several years. The stem entwines the support located next to the pot. Rarely blooms. The fruit is a capsule that is picked unripe so that it cannot open.

In the summer months, vanilla is fed every ten days with a weak solution of mullein (1:15).

The optimal substrate for cultivation is peat, leaf soil, crushed fern roots in equal parts.

The plant propagates by seeds and stem cuttings. Cuttings should have 2–3 buds. Root them in sand or water.

Ripe vanilla fragrant fruits

Fragrant vanilla fruits

Medicinal properties

Dried and fermented fruits are exceptionally aromatic and are used in cooking, confectionery and perfumery. Vanilla is used in the production of curd and fruit dishes, and for flavoring confectionery products.

In folk medicine, vanilla is indicated for fever, dyspepsia, chlorosis, nervous system disorders, mental illness, drowsiness and rheumatism. It is valued as a stimulant and muscle activity stimulant.