Temulawak (Curcuma zanthorrhiza)

Temulawak or Java ginger or Javanese ginger or Javanese turmeric or Curcuma xanthorrhiza (Curcuma zanthorrhiza) is a plant species in Zingiberaceae, grows well in loose soil in tropical forests in the lowlands to an altitude of 1500 meters above sea level and tubers are used for medicinal herbs and drinks.

C. zanthorrhiza has pseudo stems up to 2 m tall. The stem is a midrib of upright, overlapping leaves, green or dark brown in color. Rhizomes are perfectly formed, large, branched and reddish brown, dark yellow or dark green.

Each bud forms 2-9 leaves with a circular shape extending to lancet, green or light purple to dark brown, leaves 31-84 cm long and 10-18 cm wide, stems 43-80 cm long and each strand is connected with a midrib.

Flowers are dark yellow, uniquely shaped and clustered with lateral inflorescences. The stems and scales are in the form of lines, 9-23cm long and 4-6cm wide, having protectors with comparable crowns. Petals are white, hairy and 8-13mm long.

The crown is tubular, 4-5cm long, long, round white flower strands with a red tip, 1-2cm long and 1cm wide, while the rhizome is dark orange or brown, with a pungent aroma and bitter taste.

TAXON

Kingdom: Plantae
Phylum: Tracheophyta
Subphylum: Angiospermae
Class: Liliopsida
Order: Zingiberales
Family: Zingiberaceae
Subfamily: Zingiberoideae
Tribe: Zingibereae
Genus: Curcuma L. in Sp. Pl.: 2 (1753)
Subgenus: Curcuma
Species: Curcuma zanthorrhiza Roxb. in Fl. Ind. 1: 25 (1820)

PUBLICATIONS

Acevedo-Rodríguez, P. & Strong, M.T. (2012). Catalogue of seed plants of the West Indies. Smithsonian Contributions to Botany 98: 1-1192.

Larsen, K. (1996). A prelimanary checklist of the Zingiberaceae of Thailand. Thai Forest Bulletin (Botany) 24: 35-49.

Newman, M. & Sangvirotjanapat, S. (2023). Flora of Thailand 16(2): 333-747. The Forest Herbarium, Royal Forest Department.

Nguyen, Q.B. (2017). Thực Vật Chí Việt Nam. Flora of Vietnam 21: 1-489. Nhà xuất bản khoa học và kỹ thuật, Hà Nội.

Sirirugsa, P., Larsen, K. & Maknoi, C. (2007). The genus Curcuma L. (Zingiberaceae): distribution and classification with reference to species diversity in Thailand. Gardens' Bulletin Singapore 59: 203-220.

Škornicková, J. & Sabu, M. (2005). The identity and distribution of Curcuma zanthorrhiza Roxb. (Zingiberaceae). Gardens' Bulletin Singapore 57: 199-210.

Škornicková, J.L., Sída, O. & Marhold, K. (2010). Back to types! Towards stability of names in Indian Curcuma L. (Zingiberaceae). Taxon 59: 269-282.

VERNACULAR NAME

Chinese (simplified): 爪哇姜黄 - 黄红姜黄
Chinese (traditional): 爪哇薑黃
Estonian: Tärklise-kollajuur
English: Temulawak, Temu lawak, Java ginger, Javanese ginger, Javanese turmeric
Indonesian: Temu lawak, Temulawak
Java: Temu lawak
Slovak: Kurkuma žltokoreňová
Thai: ว่านชักมดลูก
Sunda: Koneng gede
Madura: Temu labak

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