The cinnamon plant

For ages, cinnamon has been known and used countless times for multiple culinary and medicinal uses. And yes, believe it or not, cinnamon is not only used as another ingredient for the preparation and preparation of dishes and sweets, it also has beneficial properties for the body.

The curious thing about this plant is despite being a widely used species, the vast majority of homes and above all, gardens, do not have this plant anywhere. And that’s not to mention that its cultivation and maintenance is quite easy and that it can be perfectly cultivated both indoors and outdoors.

General data of the plant

Now, have you ever wondered where you get cinnamon ? The tree from which it is extracted is an immense plant, which can reach 15 meters in height. Its leaves are very pretty, lanceolate, dark green.

It is native to Sri Lanka, although today it is cultivated in all tropical and subtropical regions of Asia, that is, all those regions with warm environments where the ambient temperature is between 24 ° and 30 ° C. In any case, let’s learn more about this interesting cinnamon plant.

It must be recognized that this is one of the species that is currently recognized the most worldwide. And it is not for less that it is so, since there are many cultures that use this plant for food or medicinal purposes.

The reason for its widespread use is thanks to the Chinese culture and knowledge of more than 4000 years ago. After this plant was discovered, the Arabs included it in their culture giving it a more environmental use, that is, they used cinnamon to aromatize rooms and rooms.

The cultivation of this plant occurs mainly in tropical and subtropical areas such as those that can be found in India, Madagascar, Brazil, China and other similar areas. And in case you still don’t know, this plant has the ability to generate seeds that can be used to grow it. Although it is not the only way to do it.

characteristics

Despite its great popularity, this plant does not have great attractions, nor showy flowers, much less leaves with a unique and different appearance from the rest of the plants you already know.

What we can tell you is that the scientific name of our protagonist is Cinnamonum verum. This is an arboreal plant with evergreen leaves up to 25cm in length.

As for its trunk, it is usually kept straight, with a brownish-gray bark. What you know as cinnamon stick is taken from the bark or, failing that, from the trunk of the plant.

On the other hand, cinnamon flowers can be self-pollinated and do not need to have any animal to begin this well-known process. Regarding its appearance, it is white or greenish yellow and is covered with hairs.

The fruit is a 10cm berry, bluish-black in color when ripe. This fruit contains seeds that may well be used for the cultivation of new plants of the same species. You just have to follow a series of steps to grow cinnamon by this method.

As mentioned above, cinnamon grows in tropical or subtropical rainforests, whose average annual temperature is at least 24ºC and a rainfall of 2,000mm per year. They do spectacularly well in deep, sandy and fertile soils.

So, unfortunately it is not a plant to have in temperate climates, however and if you are lucky enough to live in an area with mild-warm temperatures, you can grow your own cinnamon plant.

Now, a fact that can be very useful if you live in less temperate areas than the plant needs is to have a nursery or space where you can have it. In such a way that you can create the necessary conditions for its growth.

Key points for a good crop

Now, before going on to the explanation of how to grow cinnamon, below we are going to provide you with some vital points that you must know and always keep in mind when planting and growing this species.

• The best time to grow cinnamon is during the rainy season. Although the ideal would be to do it during the beginning of spring or, failing that, the first days of autumn.
• You can sow them directly into the fertile soil or use a large pot.
• The soil that you should use must have a little clay content, and the soil must also be very fertile.
• In case of planting it directly in the ground, you have to make sure that weeds do not grow around it.
• Irrigation has to be drip or with a container and with an exact measure, in order to avoid flooding.
• After sowing, the first harvest will be at least two or three years later.
• You have to take care that pests and diseases do not affect the plant.

Sowing

To have a healthy plant, it  must be planted in a bright area, so that it is exposed to the sun directly and it must have a crown wide enough (4-5m) to give good shade, so it must also have space to grow..

Watering has to be frequent, watering every 2-3 days in summer and every 4-6 the rest of the year. Likewise, it is advisable to fertilize using a liquid organic fertilizer, such as guano or humus. In this way, your cinnamon plant will not lack anything and will be able to grow without problems.

This is perfectly valid for cinnamon that has been grown using the cuttings or the seeds of the plant. Now, as you already know, you can grow cinnamon by two different methods. If you are interested, you can read how to do it using the two methods that we will detail below.

Sowing cinnamon by cuttings

When choosing or purchasing a branch of the plant, you have to make sure that it has not been processed, that is, that it is no longer prepared and ready for consumption. Therefore, it is better that you choose the cutting yourself since when they are processed, they do not have the particularity of germinating.

After having the cutting, proceed to moisten it and then bury it, either in a pot or in a warehouse. It is best to have it in a container where it can grow and then transfer it directly to the ground where you plan to have it.

Of course, no matter where you are going to have it, it must necessarily be a land with enough fertility. And to achieve this, it is enough that you use organic matter and a little substrate to give more nutrients to your soil.

There will be times when the cutting you have planted ends up germinating, but not a single root has grown. If this happens, do not even think about transplanting it, since it would not resist such a change.

Sowing cinnamon for seeds

All you have to do is take about three seeds at the most and then plant them in your pot at a distance of one centimeter between them. As for the depth, you will have to place them enough to double the diameter of the seeds and that will be the depth at which the three seeds will be.

After this, proceed to cover them with earth but without crushing it. Something that you should remember before putting in your seeds is to have prepared the soil with some compost and the substrate you have chosen.

After such preparation, having planted the seeds and covered them with soil, proceed to water it. At this point you can water it manually without using a hose or use a small container with a little water.

But no matter how you do it, you have to make sure that the water does not fall directly on the place where you have planted the seeds, so you should only water the surroundings of this place and avoid flooding.

Of course, at this point of the initial crop you have to do a daily watering. The reason is that due to the ambient heat, humidity and direct sun on the plant, it will cause the soil to dry out quickly.

And based on the last thing already said, you have to bear in mind that the place where you should have the plant will be in a place where sunlight hits it for at least 6 hours a day, this with the intention of helping it to carry out the photosynthesis process and that the plant does not die in its initial stages.

Would you like to know how cinnamon is extracted? 

Cinnamon is a species that is obtained from the inner bark, which is extracted by peeling and rubbing the branches. When it has detached, it is separated and peeled again.

The crusts are rolled up with each other, in such a way that it ends up forming a 1m long bar. These bars are put out to dry in the sun, and voila! You can now use it to prepare delicious dishes.