Botanical name : Curcuma zeodoria
Family : Zingiberaceae
Description
Zedoaria is a herbaceous and rhizomatous perennial plant composed of an upright pseudostem, a corm and underground cylindrical branches or rhizomes and fleshy roots.
Some roots develop terminal storage structures (rounded to elongated tuber-like roots called t-roots).
From March to April the axillary buds of the corm and apical buds of the third-order rhizomes emerge above the ground as inflorescences.
This basal flower spike, which grows about 30 cm tall, appears just before the foliage. On the node closest to the flower spike, a vegetative shoot always develops.
No additional floral buds sprout but more vegetative shoots develop. New branches start to develop on corms of recently formed aerial shoots.
By autumn, the above-ground foliage dies back.
From November to December storage roots are formed, having a high (> 70%) carbohydrate content
Ethnomedical uses
Oil of rhizome -Stomachic, emmenagogic, vomiting, menstrual haematometra.
Fresh roots -Treatment of leucorrhoeal discharge
Tuber juice – Treatment of worms in children
Powdered rhizome -Antiallergant
Leaf juice -Treatment of dropsy
Leaf juice -Treatment of leprosy
Leaf paste -As plasters in lymphangitis, furunculosis
