Common Name:

General Information

Amomum aculeatum is a large perennial plant producing rather slender, leafy stems up to 4 or even 5 metres tall from a long, stout, underground rhizome[, ].
The plant is sometimes harvested from the wild for local use as a food and a medicine.

Known Hazards

None known

Botanical References

Range

Southeast Asia - Andamans, Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia, New Guinea.

Habitat

Primary forest and teak forest, at elevations up to 800 metres[].

Properties

Edibility Rating
Medicinal Rating
Habit	Perennial
Height	3.00 m
Cultivation Status	Wild

Cultivation Details

Not known

Edible Uses

The sourish and sweet fruits are edible[]. The dark purplish fruit is covered with fleshy greenish spines; it is around 20 - 35mm long and 15 - 20mm wide[].

Medicinal

The leaves are chewed in combination with other plants and traditional salt in order to soothe headaches and backache[]. The young shoots, combined with those of Costus speciosus, are crushed in water and the resulting liquid drunk, whilst the solids are used as a wash on the body in order to treat fevers, including malaria[].
Young shoots are heated on a fire, then squeezed and the juice used as a wash on cuts etc in order to arrest bleeding and prevent infection[].

Drops of juice from the leaf-stalks are applied to the eyes of women after childbirth[]. The sap is drunk to treat fever and influenza[].

Other Uses

None known

Propagation

Seed -

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