Coix lacrima jobi
Syn. Coix lacrima

French names : Job's tears, rosary grass, teardrop, Indian teardrop, Job's grain, coix, Job's seed, collared grass, rosary seed, Virgin's tears
Creole names : Grenn a chaplé, gwenn chaplé, gwenn maldyoc, gwenn job
English names : Job's tears, mary's tears, adlay, rosary plant
Spanish names : Lagrimas de san pedro, camándulas, lagrimas de Job, lagrimas de Moises, zacare de perla, cuenta de la virgen, santa lucia, santa maria, nossa senhora
Other names : Duai, jali, yi yi ren, yi mi

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FAMILY

POACEAE

ETYMOLOGY

Coix could derive from the Greek "kóïx" which designates a palm tree, in relation to the diaspores which resemble the fruit of the latter.
Lacryma means "tears", referring to the shape and color of the seeds.
Job is a biblical character famous for his misfortunes.

ORIGIN

Tropical Asia.

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HABITAT

Cultivated and escaped, waste places, wet ditches and flooded areas.
Widespread in all tropical countries.

Altitude 0-800m.

DESCRIPTION

Large monoecious and perennial grass that can reach 3m in a hot and humid climate. It is grown as an annual in cooler climates and rarely exceeds 1.50m in height.
The leaves resemble those of corn and form a sheath from which the flowers emerge. They measure 20-50cm by 5cm and are flat, narrow and lanceolate.
The flowers are grouped in unisexual spikelets.
The seed is the fruit (cup), it is teardrop-shaped and varies in color from blue to white to gray (some are brown). They measure between 8 and 12mm.

MULTIPLICATION

Propagation is by seed . You can soak the seeds in lukewarm water overnight, sow in a terrine, lifted in 2-4 weeks at 15°C (January to March).
When the plants are manageable (5cm high), individualize them in pots.
Plant in the ground after the last frosts.
In a hot climate, you can sow in place in March and thin out a month later.

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NEEDS

This grass with large stubble and broad leaves supports any type of soil , even poor, from acid to basic, in a sheltered area, if possible near a water point, but will also be satisfied with drier land.
She prefers regular watering .
Exposure: sun to partial shade. Possibility of keeping it in a cold greenhouse in winter.
Hardiness : Avoid exposing it to frost.
Flowering - Fruiting: October to May.
 

CULTURE AND MAINTENANCE

Easy cultivation, rapid growth.
Severe pruning in February in the tropics. Uprooting before winter for temperate climates.
The seeds are collected in several times.
Enemies and diseases: None.

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USES
 

MEDICINAL USE

Not yet in the TRAMIL.

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ORNAMENTAL USE

Cultivated for the ornament in hedges in isolated subject or in the slopes.
 

FOOD USE

Cereal plant in Asia, coffee substitute, preparation of fermented drinks, flour, starch, porridges, pastries, bread, soups, beer.
Job's Tears flour does not contain gluten.
Nutritional analyses: Protein 9-23%, Fibers 0.3-8.4%, Lipids 0.5-6.1%
These values are higher than those of rice and wheat, which makes it a cereal of the future.

OTHER USES

Manufacture of teething necklaces, rosaries, bracelets, jewellery, handbags, embroidery and door curtains.
The seeds are naturally pierced.
Its foliage is used as fodder for animals and the stems are braided for making mats and roofs.

ANECDOTES

Botanist Ruth Smith, reports a legend of the Cherokee Indians about the Tears of Job: These tell that when their tribe was exiled from North Carolina to Oklahoma, their tears fell to the ground during this painful and painful journey . Young plants then emerged from the ground where the tears had touched the ground. They grew and produced these blue-grey teardrop sheaths. Today the Cherokee still collect these floral tears to make souvenir necklaces of this forced exile.

Widows of an ethnic group from New Guinea wear more than 20kg of necklaces made from Job's tears. They will remove one necklace per day until the end of the mourning.
 

RECEIPTS

Job's Tears Oatmeal (Slimming recipe)
https://lium.ch/2018/04/27/recette-beaute-gruau-de-larmes-de-job-et-azukis/

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SOURCES

- Discovering the Seeds of the Antilles - Ed. PLB - P116
- Seeds and men - Romain Dufayard - Ed. Blood of the Earth - P156
- The big book of amazing seeds - Nathalie Vidal - Ed. Orphie - P164
- Plants, environments and landscapes of the French West Indies - Claude Sastre and Anne Breuil - Ed.Parthenope collection - P334
- Illustrated flora of the phanerogams of Guadeloupe and Martinique - Jacques Fournet - Ed. CIRAD - Gondwana editions - P1889 T2
- The great Larousse of 15,000 garden plants & flowers - Ed. Larousse - P280

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