Botany
Tree grows to a height of 20 meterw or more. Leaves are dark green, smooth and shiny above, oblong to obovate-oblong, about 20 cm long, 5 to 9 cm wide. The flowers are white to white-yellowish with a pouchlike calyx. Fruit is globular, large, 15 to 25 cm long, covered by a hard shell with stiff, sharp spines. The shell breaks into five parts to which the flesh adherent, with 2 to 4 large seeds in each section covered by the flesh. The flesh is soft and whitish with the consistency of soft cheese. The flesh has a characteristic unpleasant rank and repugnant odor, a quality that bans it from hotel lobbies and rooms. The seeds are eaten, either boilede or roasted.

Distribution
Cultivated for its fruit.

Properties
Fruit is considered tonic, operative, depurative, and vermifuge.
The odor of the flesh believed to be dues to indole compounds which are bacteriostatic.

Parts used and preparation
Fruit. leaves and root.

Nutritional Facts
• Serving size: 1 - cup, chopped or diced (8.6 oz)
• Calories 357
• Total Fat 13.0 g
• Cholesterol 0 mg
• Total Carbs 65.8 g
• Fiber 9.2 g
• Protein 3.6 g
• Calcium 14.6 mg
• Potassium 1059.5 mg
http://www.calorieking.com/foods/calories-in-fruits-fresh-durian-raw-edible-portion_f-Y2lkPTM3MDY4JmJpZD0xJmZpZD02MzI3NCZwYXI9.html

Caution !
As a potassium-rich food it could be a good fruit to supplement potassium needs for patients on diuretic therapy. However, it's potassium content should be of concern in patients with kidney failure or varying degrees of renal impairment or those already taking other forms of potassium supplementaion or potassium-sparing diuretics.

Uses
Folkloric
· Decoction of root and leaves taken for fevers.
· Leaves are used in medicinal baths for jaundice.
· The juice is used in a solution for bathing the head of a patient with fever.
· Fruit walls used externally for skin problems.
· In Malaya, decoction of leaves and roots used as febrifuge.
• Leaf juice applied on head for fever.
• Leaves used in medicinal baths for jaundiced patients.
• Decoction of leaves and fruits used for swelling and skin diseases.
• Flesh used as aphrodisiac.
Others
• Dried rinds burned as fuel and used to smoke fish>
• Ash used to bleach silk.
Studies
• Lipid entrapment property of polysaccharide gel (PG) extracted from fruit-hulls of durian (Durio zibethinus Murr. Cv. Mon-Thong) : Results suggest that PG from fruit-hulls of durian may be a potential dietary fiber/ medicinal supplement for a blood lipid / cholesterol lowering effect.

Availability
Cultivated for its fruit.