Amomum villosum

English names:

Malabar cardamom, Tavoy cardamom.

Description:

Perennial herb, 0.5-1.5m. high. Root-stock horizontal, slender. Leaves alternate, linear, amplexicaul, acute-attenuate at the apex. Inflorescence in radical raceme; flowers white, lip yellow, spotted with purple. Capsule 3-valved, with soft spines, brown red when ripe.

Flowering period:
May - June.

Distribution:

Grows wild in shady places in the mountains.

Parts used:
The fruit is collected in summer and autumn and dried before the seeds are removed for use.

Chemical composition:

The essential oil from the seeds consists of D-camphor, D-borneol, D-bornyl acetate, D-limonene, a-pinene, phellandrene, paramethoxyethyl cinnamate, nerolidol and linalol. The seeds also contain liquiritin and glucovanillic acid.

Therapeutic uses:
The seeds possess antibacterial and stomachic properties. They are utilized in dyspepsia, colic, flatulence, diarrhoea, vomiting and oedema. The usual daily dose is 2 to 6g in the form of a decoction, powder or pills. They are a constituent of composite recipes against threatened abortion. They are also active against toothache if the maceration or the powder are applied to carious patches on the teeth.

Source: Medicinal plants in Viet Nam (Institute of Materia Medica - HANOI - WHO/WPRO, 1990, 444 p.)