Difference between revisions of "Alpinia galanga (PROSEA)"

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Plant Resources of South-East Asia Introduction

List of species

1, rhizome; 2, shoot with inflorescence

Alpinia galanga (L.) Willd.

Protologue: Sp. pl. (ed. 4): 12 (1797).

Family: Zingiberaceae

Chromosome number: 2n = 48

Synonyms

• Maranta galanga L. (1762),
• Languas vulgare Koenig (1783),
• Amomum galanga (L.) Lour. (1790),
• Languas galanga (L.) Stuntz (1912).

Vernacular names

• Galanga, greater galangal (En).
• Galanga (Fr)
• Indonesia: langkuas (general), laos (Javanese), laja (Sundanese)
• Malaysia: lengkuas, puar
• Philippines: langkawas, palla, langkuas (Bicol)
• Burma (Myanmar): padagoji
• Cambodia: rumdéng, pras
• Laos: kha:x ta: dè:ng
• Thailand: kha, kha yuak (northern), katuk karohinee (central)
• Vietnam: riềng nếp, sơn nại, hồng dậu khấu

Origin and geographic distribution

The exact origin of galanga is unknown; the oldest reports about its use and existence come from southern China and Java. At present it is cultivated and semi-wild near villages in all South East Asian countries and in India, Bangladesh, China and Surinam.

Uses

Galanga is principally used as a spice. It has a strong pungent taste like a mixture of pepper (Piper nigrum L.) and ginger (Zingiber officinale Roscoe). Its rhizomes are very commonly used and said to be indispensable in everyday cooking throughout South Asia and South-East Asia. The flowers and young shoots are used as a vegetable or as a spice.

The rhizomes, the rhizome oleoresin ("root extract"), and the essential oil isolated from the rhizomes ("root oil") are used to flavour liqueurs, ice-cream, pastry, etc. An essential oil can also be isolated from the leaves, but it is not used. In the United States the regulatory status "generally recognized as safe" has been accorded to galanga root (GRAS 2498), galanga root oleoresin (GRAS 2499) and galanga root oil (GRAS 2500). The fruits of galanga are used locally as a substitute for true cardamom (Elettaria cardamomum (L.) Maton).

The rhizomes are widely used in traditional medicine, in skin diseases, respiratory diseases, as a stomachic after childbirth, for intestinal problems, cancers of mouth and stomach, and as an expectorant. In Java the grated rhizome with a little salt is given on an empty stomach for an enlarged spleen. In the Philippines the rhizomes are considered carminative and stimulant, and a decoction of the leaves is used as an antirheumatic and for stimulant baths. The rhizomes have also been used as an aphrodisiac by the Arabs, for other stimulating properties and as a veterinary medicine. The seeds have the same taste and odour as the rhizome and are prescribed in Peninsular Malaysia in colic, diarrhoea, vomiting and herpes. An infusion of the leaves is taken as a post-partum medicine.

The compound galangin dyes wool yellow and yellowish-green with appropriate mordants.

Production and international trade

Data on the production, consumption and trade of galanga are scarce and unreliable because often no distinction is made between A. galanga and A. officinarum Hance. Production in South East Asia must be considerable as it is a common spice used daily by millions of people. It is mostly cultivated in home gardens. The Netherlands imports yearly at least 100 t fresh rhizomes and 25-30 t dried rhizomes. The main suppliers are Thailand, Indonesia and India. Prices fluctuate from 1-2.5 US$/kg dry weight.

Properties

The composition of galanga rhizomes per 100 g air-dry matter is: moisture 14 g, total ash 9 g, matter soluble in 80% ethanol 49 g, matter soluble in water 19 g, total sugar 9 g, total nitrogen 3 g, total protein 16 g. Essential-oil content ranges from 0.2-1.5% (of dry weight); fresh rhizomes yield about 0.1% of oil. Camphor, cineole (20-30%) and methyl cinnamate (48%) have been described as oil components in older literature. Studies performed in the 1980s confirmed the presence of 1,8 cineole as main component, but the other two compounds were not detected. Studies, mostly in vitro, of the biological activities of the rhizomes revealed antibacterial, antifungal, antiprotozoal, and expectorant activities. 1'-acetoxychavicol acetate, a component of fresh and newly dried rhizomes, has been proved to be active against dermatophytes. The same compound and another constituent of the rhizomes, 1'-acetoxyeugenol acetate, were found to have anti-tumour activity in mice (against Sarcoma 180 ascites). The same compounds, isolated from galanga fruits, showed anti ulcer activity in Shay rats, while the chavicol derivative depressed the gastric secretion of these rats. The oil has also shown interesting potential as an insecticide against house-flies.

Composition

Galanga root oil (from Indonesia)

Galanga root oil (from Malaysia)

Galanga leaf oil (from United States)

Adulterations and substitutes

Dried powdered galanga rhizome is sometimes adulterated with rhizome powder of lesser galangal (A. officinarum).

Description

• A robust, tillering, perennial herb, up to 3.5 m tall, with subterranean, creeping, copiously branched, rhizome. Rhizome subterete, 2-4 cm in diameter, hard, fibrous, shiny, light red or pale yellow, fragrant. Pseudostem erect, formed by the rolled leaf sheaths.
• Leaves alternate, distichous, lowest and uppermost ones smallest; sheath densely pubescent at apex; ligule truncate, 1 cm long, densely pubescent; petiole 1-1.5 cm long, hairy; blade oblong lanceolate, (20-)50(-60) cm × (4-)9(-15) cm, base cuneate, apex with short point, subglabrous, glossy green, densely white-dotted.
• Inflorescence terminal, erect, many flowered, racemose, 10-30 cm × 5-7 cm, pubescent; bracts ovate, up to 2 cm long, each subtending a cincinnus of 2-6 flowers; bracteoles similar to the bracts but smaller; flowers fragrant, 3-4 cm long, yellow-white; calyx tubular, about 1 cm long, white; corolla tube terete, about 1 cm long, lobes 3, recurved, oblong lanceolate, 1.5 cm × 0.6 cm, margins ciliate, greenish-white; labellum (central staminode) petaloid, spatulate, 1.5-2.5 cm × 0.5-0.75 cm, white veined with lilac, undulate crenate with a stalk like base and a recurved apex; lateral staminodes represented by 2 subulate lobes at the base of the labellum, 7-8 mm long, reddish; stamen 1, erect with incurved anther, 2-2.5 cm long; style slightly longer than stamen, stigma obtriangular.
• Fruit a globose to ellipsoidal capsule, 1-1.5 cm in diameter, orange-red to wine red.

Growth and development

Shoots from pieces of galanga rhizome emerge about 1 week after planting. About 4 weeks after planting 2-3 leaves have developed. Rhizomes develop quickly and reach their best harvest quality about 3 months after planting. If left longer in the field, they become too fibrous and the large clumps of plants that are formed hamper harvesting. Flowering occurs after exceptionally dry weather. In India, plants start flowering in the latter half of the hot season (April-May) and seeds ripen in November. However, seeds rarely reach maturity.

Other botanical information

The name A. galanga (L.) Swartz is common in the literature. In 1791, however, Swartz published on this species, using the name Maranta galanga L., and he did not transfer the genus name to Alpinia. Several cultivars probably exist, but no clear descriptions are available. Cultivars with yellow-white rhizomes and with pink to red rhizomes are known. The pseudostems of white cultivars reach about 3 m in height, with stems 2.5 cm and rhizomes 3-4 cm in diameter; by comparison, red cultivars reach about 1-1.5 m in height with stems up to 1 cm and rhizomes up to 2 cm in diameter, but white-rhizomed cultivars with such characteristics are also reported.

Plants with broad leaves, tomentose beneath, are sometimes distinguished as var. pyramidata (Blume) K. Schumann, occurring both wild and cultivated in Java, Borneo and the Philippines.

A. officinarum (lesser galangal) can be distinguished from A. galanga as follows: its rhizomes are smaller and dark brown to black, 8-12 mm in diameter with 4-6 mm long, finely ridged internodes; the plant is also smaller, about 1-1.5 m tall.

Ecology

Galanga requires sunny or moderately shady locations. Soils should be fertile, moist but not swampy. Sandy clayey soils rich in organic matter and with a good drainage are preferred. Wild or semi-wild types occur in old clearings, thickets and forests. In the tropics, galanga occurs up to 1200 m altitude.

Agronomy

Long tips of rhizomes of galanga are used for propagation. The soil should be well tilled before planting. Alternatively holes, 35 cm × 35 cm and 15-20 cm deep, are dug, filled with manure mixed with soil, inorganic fertilizers and lime (for acid soils). One piece of rhizome is planted per hole, and then covered with mulch. Often, trenches are dug to drain the field after rainfall, as rhizomes do not develop under waterlogged conditions. Galanga is usually planted along the borders of gardens, in rows at distances of 0.5-1 m square. Weeding and subsequently earthing up are carried out respectively 1 and 2 months after planting. If produced for the market, rhizomes of galanga are harvested about 3 months after planting. Whole plants are pulled out, the shoots cut off and the rhizomes washed and cleaned. Rhizomes older than 4 months turn woody, fibrous and spongy and lose their value as a spice. For local use plants are left in the field and, as they tiller vigorously, small quantities of good quality rhizome can always be harvested. For the production of essential oil rhizomes are harvested when the plants are more than 7 months old. No reliable data are available on the yield of galanga. The rhizomes are marketed fresh or dried. The dried product is usually ground before use, but ground rhizomes are not traded in bulk, as adulteration can occur, e.g. with A. officinarum.

Genetic resources and breeding

There are no known germplasm collections of galanga, and no galanga breeding programmes.

Prospects

Galanga will remain an important spice for the local market in South-East Asia. Botanical and agronomic research is urgently needed to obtain more information on its requirements, variability and potential. Existing trade proves the interest of international markets in good quality galanga. Further studies on the biological activities of the rhizomes, their usefulness in medicine and their potential as insecticide may give rise to cultivation on a larger scale.

Literature

• Charles, D.J., Singh, N.K. & Simon, J.E., 1992. The essential oil of Alpinia galanga Willd. Journal of Essential Oil Research 4: 81-82.
• Darwis, S.N., Madjo Indo, A.B.D. & Hasiyah, S., 1992. Alpinia galanga. Tumbuhan obat famili Zingiberaceae; Seri Pengembangan [Medicinal plants of the family Zingiberaceae; Development Series] 17: 8-12.
• Heyne, K., 1927. De nuttige planten van Nederlandsch Indië [The useful plants of the Dutch East Indies]. Departement van Landbouw, Nijverheid en Handel in Nederlandsch Indië, Batavia. 2nd edition. pp. 480-481.
• Ochse, J.J. & Bakhuizen van den Brink, R.C., 1980. Vegetables of the Dutch East Indies. 3rd English edition (translation of "Indische groenten”, 1931). Asher & Co., Amsterdam, the Netherlands. pp. 730-732.
• Janssen, A.M. & Scheffer, J.J.C., 1985. Acetoxychavicol acetate, an antifungal component of Alpinia galanga. Planta Medica 51: 507-511.

Other selected sources

51,

• Burkill, I.H., 1966. A dictionary of the economic products of the Malay Peninsula. Revised reprint. 2 volumes. Ministry of Agriculture and Co-operatives, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Vol. 1 (A-H) pp. 1-1240, Vol. 2 (I-Z) pp. 1241-2444.

165, 178,

• Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, 1948-1976. The wealth of India: a dictionary of Indian raw materials & industrial products. 11 volumes. Publications and Information Directorate, New Delhi, India.230, 237, 297, 407, 484, 545, 549, 590, 691, 739, 747, 810, 811, 1096, 1126. medicinals

Sources of illustrations

Westphal, E. & Jansen, P.C.M., 1989. Plant Resources of South-East Asia. A selection. Pudoc, Wageningen, the Netherlands. p. 33.

Authors

• J.J.C. Scheffer & P.C.M. Jansen
• Halijah Ibrahim