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Kunci pepet (Kaempferia rotunda)

Dlium Kunci pepet (Kaempferia rotunda)

Kunci pepet or temu rapet or peacock ginger (Kaempferia rotunda) is a plant species in Zingiberaceae, a shrub that grows upright, the vegetative phase is leaf growth and the generative phase is flower growth, the leaves have symmetrical patterns, are often planted for beautiful leaves and traditional medicinal materials.

K. rotunda has 2-5 leaves, oblong lanceolate shape, 7-36 cm long and 4-11 cm wide. Top surface bare, green and whitish in symmetrical patterns. The lower surface is hairy and purplish in color. Frond length is 7-24 cm.





Inflorescences emerge from another bud on the rhizome with 4-6 buds. The petals are white or greenish and 3-7 cm long. The crown is tubular at the base with a line, white, curved outward and 5 cm wide. Labellum inverted heart-shaped, 4-7 cm long, 2-4 cm wide, purple-lilac with yellowish.

The rhizome is short, branched, smells good and has a bitter taste. The roots are fragrant and egg-shaped. The rhizome produces coarse, watery roots that appear to grow in clusters. The flower grows indicating that the rhizome is ready to be harvested.

This species grows wild in wet and dry forests, teak forests, bamboo forests and meadows and elevations up to 1300 m. Young tubers can be eaten as a salad, powder and appetite enhancer. Rhizome is used as a medicine for stomach pain and dysentery.

TAXON

Kingdom: Plantae
Phylum: Tracheophyta
Subphylum: Angiospermae
Class: Liliopsida
Order: Zingiberales
Family: Zingiberaceae
Subfamily: Zingiberoideae
Tribe: Zingibereae
Genus: Kaempferia L. in Sp. Pl.: 2 (1753)
Subgenus: Protanthium
Species: Kaempferia rotunda L. in Sp. Pl.: 3 (1753)

HOMOTYPIC SYNONYMS

Kaempferia bhucampac Jones in Asiat. Res. 4: 245, 295 (1795)

HETEROTYPIC SYNONYMS

Kaempferia longa Jacq. in Pl. Hort. Schoenbr. 3: 37 (1798)
Kaempferia versicolor Salisb. in Trans. Hort. Soc. London 1: 286 (1812)
Zerumbet zeylanica Garsault in Fig. Pl. Méd.: t. 33a (1764)

PUBLICATIONS

Ahmed, Z.U. (ed.) (2008). Encyclopedia of Flora and Fauna of Bangladesh 12: 1-505. Asiatic Society of Bangladesh.

Dalimartha, S. (2003). Atlas Tumbuhan Obat Indonesia, 3, hal. 58-61. Jakarta: Puspa Swara. ISBN 979-3235-73-X.

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.

VERNACULAR NAME

Bengali: ভূমি চম্পা Bhūmi campā
Betawi: Temu putri, Temu lilin
Burmese: ကွန်စီ ပီပက်
English: Kunci pepet, Peacock ginger, Round-rooted galangal
Filipino: Gisol na bilog
Hindi: भूमि चम्पा - भुईचम्पा Bhoomi champa, Bhueechampa
Indonesian: Temu rapet, Kunci Pepet, Kunyit Putih
Java: Temu rapet, Kunyit Putih, Ardong, Kunir Putih, Kunci Pĕpĕt
Kannada: Nela sampage, Nela sampige, Neela suruli, Kallukoove, Kusunde
Khmer: គុនស៊ី ប៉េប៉េត
Konkani: Bhumy champo
Lao: ກຸນຊີ ເປເປັດ
Madura: Koncè pet
Malayalam: Chennalinirkuva, Chengazhineerkizhangu, Chengazhi, Malan-kua
Manipuri: Leibak lei, Yai-thamna-manbi
Marathi: Bhui-champa
Melayu: Kunyit putih, Temu putih
Minang: Temu rapet
Mizo: Tuktin Par
Nepali: भुइन चम्पा Bhuin champa
Sanskrit: Bhuchampaka, Bhumicampaka, Bhoomichampaka, Hallakah, Hallaka, Utpala
Sinhala: කොන්ඩ-කලාව Konḍa-kalāva
Tamil: கொண்ட-கலவ - நேர்பிச்சான் - கருங்குவளை Konda-kalava, Nerpichan, Karunkuvalai
Telugu: Kondakaluva, Bhuchampakamu
Thai: กุนจิ เปเป็ต
Vietnam: Gừng công

Aryo Bandoro
Dlium TheDlium
Web: https://www.dlium.com
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@Dlium
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