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bioweb.sungrant.org » Technical » Biomass Resources » Agricultural Resources » New Crops » Oilseeds » Jojoba

Jojoba	Printer Friendly

Jojoba (Simmondsia chinensis Link) is a perennial wood shrub native to the Sonoran desert regions of Arizona, California, and Mexico. Jojoba is an oilseed, but unlike most oil seeds that produce oils composed of branched triglycerides, the “oil” of jojoba is composed of long-chain fatty acids (average length of 42 carbons) and fatty alcohols with no side branching (i.e., a liquid wax) that resembles sperm whale oil. The seeds contain 45 to 65% “oil” by dry weight. Jojoba oil is currently used in the cosmetics industry, but other potential industrial uses include high-temperature, high-pressure lubricants, and as an anti-foaming agent. Jojoba meal is about 30% protein, and contains simmondsin, a compound that regulates food intake in animals. This generally limits the use of the meal as a livestock feed, but possibly presents other opportunities for its use.   In natural jojoba stands, seed production ranges from a few seeds to 30 lbs of clean, dry seed per plant. Yields vary substantially from stand to stand and for the same plant from year to year. Under commercial production conditions, seed yields are about 300 lbs/acre. New clones appear capable of producing up to 800 lbs/acre. In the United States, current commercial production of jojoba occurs in California and Arizona for use in the cosmetics industry. Recent production data is difficult to find. For 2002, 88,578 lbs of seed was produced in California on 1,607 acres. Arizona production is shown in table 1.               Jojoba grows to a height of 10 to 15 feet and can live for 100 to 200 years. The fruit is a capsule containing up to 3 seeds. Seed production generally does not occur until the 4th or 5th year. Jojoba is tolerant of high temperatures, but sensitive to cold and best suited for production in areas that are frost free. Jojoba is native to arid areas and drought tolerant, but some irrigation may be needed to obtain higher yields and/or improve stand establishment. It is best suited for production in sandy soils, grows slowly in heavy clay soils, and is tolerant of saline conditions. Jojoba is susceptible to fungal wilts on poorly drained soils.   Jojoba is a dioecious (having separate male and female plants), wind pollinated species. The recommended female to male plant ratio is 6 to 1. Yield trials have not been responsive to nitrogen and phosphorus and application of these nutrients is generally not recommended. In areas where soil tests indicate potassium levels of less than 100 parts per million, addition of 10 to 15 lbs/acre of K2O is recommended.   Jojoba can be planted either by direct seeding or by transplanting seedlings. In the southwestern U.S, direct seeding is generally used as it is less expensive, faster, and requires less hand labor. Jojoba is planted 12 to 18 inches apart within rows. Spacing between rows depends on whether harvesting is mechanical or by hand. If by hand, rows can be as close as 10 feet apart. For mechanical harvesting, a plant density of about 1,110 plants/hectare (450 plants/ac) is needed. Harvest is usually by hand although over-the-row fruit and berry pickers may be used. Jojoba flowers in winter and is harvested in July.   The seeds on a jojoba plant do not all mature at the same time and multiple harvests may be required. Jojoba oil that has been dried to 10 percent moisture and protected from pests can be stored for several years.

References
Gary Tremper, 1996, The history and promise of Jojoba, Armchair World, www.armchair.com D.J. Undersander, E.A. Oelke, A.R. Kaminski, J.D. Doll, D.H. Putnam, S.M. Combs, and C.V. Hanson, October 1990, Jojoba, Alternative Field Crops Manual, University of Wisconsin. Naqvi, H.H and I.P. Ting, 1990, Jojoba: A unique liquid wax producer from the American Desert, In J. Janick and J.E. Simon (eds), Advances in New Crops, Timber Press, Portland, OR, pp. 247-251. Ricardo Ayerza, 1998, Oil and simmondsin yield variability and selection criterion of Jojoba clones, 1998 Association for the Advancement of Industrial Crops Annual Conference on New Crops and New Uses: Biodiversity and Sustainability, Phoenix, AZ, November 8-11, 1998. Aliza Benzioni, 1997, Jojoba, New Crop FactSHEET, Purdue University Center for New Crops and Plant Products, http://newcrop.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/ cropfactsheets/jojoba.html