Common Name: Culantro

General Information

Culentro is an erect, perennial plant growing from 20 - 80cm tall from a taproot.
The plant is harvested from the wild for local use as a food and medicine, It is sometimes cultivated as a coriander-like flavouring in the tropics[].

Known Hazards

None known

Botanical References

Range

Central America - Mexico.

Habitat

Open rocky places at elevations of 700 - 1,200 metres where it is naturalised in Nepal[]. Meadows, plantations, waste places, along roadsides and forest edges, from lowland areas up to 1,700 metres[].

Properties

Edibility Rating
Medicinal Rating
Other Uses Rating
Habit	Perennial
Height	0.20 m
Pollinators	Insects
Cultivation Status	Cultivated, Wild

Cultivation Details

Prefers a well-drained soil in a very sunny position[]. Prefers a partly shaded site and a fertile, not too dry soil[].
Plants do not usually grow close together but appear as individual weeds[].
Plants can flower and produce seed all year round[].
Individual tender leaves are harvested, leaving the topmost 3 leaves intact. On average, 10 - 15 leaves can be harvested per plant in 5 - 10 harvests at intervals of 1 - 2 weeks before flowering intervenes[].
Leaves wilt easily and so are best harvested just before use[].

Edible Uses

Leaves - raw or cooked[]. They can be steamed and served with rice[]. They are more commonly used as a flavouring in foods such as soups, curries, stews and rice dishes[]. The leaves have a flavour somewhat like a strong coriander, but with a much tougher texture and need to be cut finely and preferably cooked for at least a few minutes[].

The root is used as a flavouring in soups[].Although the raw root has an offensive odour[], it imparts a very agreeable flavour to the food[, ].

Seed - used as a flavouring[].

Medicinal

A decoction of the whole plant is used as an anti-malarial and for the treatment of haemorrhages[].
The plant is boiled and the water used for a herbal bath or as a medication for chicken pox and measles[].

The leaves are febrifuge, laxative[]. An infusion is used to treat chills, grippe, fevers, head colds, as a children's purgative[]. A decoction of the crushed leaves is used as a treatment for children's leprosy and children's convulsions[].

The root is abortifacient, febrifuge, stomachic, sudorific[, ]. An infusion is used to treat hydropsy and stomach pains[].

Leaf shows antimicrobial activity[].

Other Uses

An essential oil can be distilled from the seed; its major constituents are carotol (19%), (E)-'BETA'-farnesene (10%), (E)-anethole (7%) and 'ALFA'-pinene (8%)[].

Propagation

Seed - best sown as soon as it is ripe, either in situ or in a nursery seedbed.
Stem cuttings.

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