Cymbidium aloifolium (PROSEA)

Plant Resources of South-East Asia Introduction

List of species

Cymbidium aloifolium (L.) Sw.

Protologue: Nova Acta Regiae Soc. Sci. Upsal. 6: 73 (1799).

Synonyms

Cymbidium pendulum (Roxb.) Sw. (1799), Cymbidium simulans Rolfe (1917).

Vernacular names

• Thailand: kare karon (Nakhon Ratchasima), kluai haang lai (Chumphon), ueang paakpet (Chiang Mai)
• Vietnam: lan lô hội, doản kiếm.

Distribution

Nepal, India, Sri Lanka, Burma (Myanmar), the Andaman Islands, Indo-China, southern China, Taiwan, Thailand, Peninsular Malaysia, Sumatra, Java, Borneo and the Philippines.

Uses

In Thailand juice expressed from heated leaves is dropped into the ear to treat otitis media. In Vietnam the plant is used to treat colds and irregular menses, and as a tonic, whereas crushed leaves are applied externally to treat arthritis, sores and burns.

Observations

An epiphytic herb; leaves up to 50 cm × 3 cm, with unequally 2-lobed tip; inflorescence pendulous, up to 40 cm long; flowers up to 4.5 cm in diameter, tepals pale greenish to cream with a central purple stripe, lip with all lobes striped purple and midlobe yellow but having white margins. C. aloifolium occurs in mixed forest and teak forest up to 1000 m altitude.

Selected sources

62, 173, 223, 441, 732, 831, 832, 839, 971.

Main genus page

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Authors

Dzuong Duc Huyen