|
Colóquios Dos Simples E Drogas Da India
''Colóquios dos simples e drogas he cousas medicinais da Índia e assi dalgũas frutas achadas nella onde se tratam algũas cousas tocantes a medicina, pratica, e outras cousas boas pera saber'' ("Conversations on the simples, drugs and materia medica of India and also on some fruits found there, in which some matters relevant to medicine, practice, and other matters good to know are discussed") is a work of great originality published in Goa on 10 April 1563 by Garcia de Orta, a Portuguese Jewish physician and naturalist, a pioneer of tropical medicine. Outline of the ''Colóquios'' Garcia de Orta's work is in dialogue format. It consists of a series of 57 conversations between Garcia de Orta and an imaginary colleague, Ruano, who is visiting India and wishes to know more about its drugs, spices and other natural products. Occasional participants in the dialogue are apparently real people: * Antonia, a slave, Garcia de Orta's research assistant * Several unnamed slaves * D. Je ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Night Jasmine
''Nyctanthes arbor-tristis'', also known as the Night-flowering jasmine or Parijat (Parvati chi phula), is a species of ''Nyctanthes'' native to South Asia and Southeast Asia.Flora of Pakistan''Nyctanthes arbor-tristis''/ref>AgroForestry Tree Database''Nyctanthes arbor-tristis'' ''Nyctanthes arbor-tristis'' is a shrub or a small tree growing to tall, with flaky grey bark. The leaves are opposite, simple, long and broad, with an entire margin. The flowers are fragrant, with a five- to eight-lobed white corolla with an orange-red centre; they are produced in clusters of two to seven together, with individual flowers opening at dusk and finishing at dawn. The fruit is a bilobed, flat brown heart-shaped to round capsule diameter, each lobe containing a single seed. Despite its common name, the species is not a "true jasmine" and not of the genus Jasminum. Names and symbolism The tree is sometimes called the "tree of sorrow", because the flowers lose their brightness du ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Karanda (shrub)
''Carissa carandas'' is a species of flowering shrub in the family Apocynaceae. It produces berry-sized fruits that are commonly used as a condiment in Indian pickles and spices. It is a hardy, drought-tolerant plant that thrives well in a wide range of soils. Common names in English include Bengal currant, Christ's thorn, Distribution [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Melegueta Pepper
''Aframomum melegueta'' is a species in the ginger family, Zingiberaceae, and closely related to cardamom. Its seeds are used as a spice (ground or whole); it imparts a pungent, black-pepper-like flavor with hints of citrus. It is commonly known as grains of paradise, melegueta pepper, Guinea grains, ''ossame'', or ''fom wisa'', and is confused with alligator pepper. The term Guinea pepper has also been used, but is most often applied to ''Xylopia aethiopica'' (grains of Selim). It is native to West Africa, which is sometimes named the Pepper Coast (or Grain Coast) because of this commodity. It is also an important cash crop in the Basketo district of southern Ethiopia. Characteristics ''Aframomum melegueta'' is an herbaceous perennial plant native to swampy habitats along the West African coast. Its trumpet-shaped, purple flowers develop into pods long, containing numerous small, reddish-brown seeds. The pungent, peppery taste of the seeds is caused by aromatic keton ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cardamom
Cardamom (), sometimes cardamon or cardamum, is a spice made from the seeds of several plants in the genera ''Elettaria'' and ''Amomum'' in the family Zingiberaceae. Both genera are native to the Indian subcontinent and Indonesia. They are recognized by their small seed pods: triangular in cross-section and spindle-shaped, with a thin, papery outer shell and small, black seeds; ''Elettaria'' pods are light green and smaller, while ''Amomum'' pods are larger and dark brown. Species used for cardamom are native throughout tropical and subtropical Asia. The first references to cardamom are found in Sumer, and in the Ayurvedic literatures of India. Nowadays it is also cultivated in Guatemala, Malaysia, and Tanzania. The German coffee planter Oscar Majus Klöffer introduced Indian cardamom to cultivation in Guatemala before World War I; by 2000, that country had become the biggest producer and exporter of cardamom in the world, followed by India. [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Carambola
Carambola, also known as star fruit, is the fruit of ''Averrhoa carambola'', a species of tree native to tropical Southeast Asia. The mildly poisonous fruit is commonly consumed in parts of Brazil, Southeast Asia, South Asia, the South Pacific, Micronesia, parts of East Asia, the United States, and the Caribbean and contains the neurotoxin caramboxin. The tree is cultivated throughout tropical areas of the world. The fruit has distinctive ridges running down its sides (usually 5–6). When cut in cross-section, it resembles a star, giving it the name of ''star fruit''. The entire fruit is edible, usually raw, and may be cooked or made into relishes, preserves, garnish, and juices. Origins and distribution The center of diversity and the original range of ''Averrhoa carambola'' is tropical Southeast Asia, where it has been cultivated over centuries. It was introduced to the Indian Subcontinent and Sri Lanka by Austronesian traders, along with ancient Austronesian cultig ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Camphor
Camphor () is a waxy, colorless solid with a strong aroma. It is classified as a terpenoid and a cyclic ketone. It is found in the wood of the camphor laurel ('' Cinnamomum camphora''), a large evergreen tree found in East Asia; and in the kapur tree ( ''Dryobalanops'' sp.), a tall timber tree from South East Asia. It also occurs in some other related trees in the laurel family, notably '' Ocotea usambarensis''. Rosemary leaves (''Rosmarinus officinalis'') contain 0.05 to 0.5% camphor, while camphorweed (''Heterotheca'') contains some 5%. A major source of camphor in Asia is camphor basil (the parent of African blue basil). Camphor can also be synthetically produced from oil of turpentine. The compound is chiral, existing in two possible enantiomers as shown in the structural diagrams. The structure on the left is the naturally occurring (+)-camphor ((1''R'',4''R'')-bornan-2-one), while its mirror image shown on the right is the (−)-camphor ((1''S'',4''S'')-bornan-2-one). ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sweet Flag
''Acorus calamus'' (also called sweet flag, sway or muskrat root, among many common names) is a species of flowering plant with psychoactive chemicals. It is a tall wetland monocot of the family Acoraceae, in the genus ''Acorus.'' Although used in traditional medicine over centuries to treat digestive disorders and pain, there is no clinical evidence for its safety or efficacy – and ingested calamus may be toxic – leading to its commercial ban in the United States. Description Sweet flag is a herbaceous perennial, tall. Its leaves resembles those of the iris family. Sweet flag consists of tufts of basal leaves that rise from a spreading rhizome. The leaves are erect yellowish-brown, radical, with pink sheathing at their bases, sword-shaped, flat and narrow, tapering into a long, acute point, and have parallel veins. The leaves have smooth edges, which can be wavy or crimped. The sweet flag can be distinguished from iris and other similar plants by the crimpe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Aegle Marmelos
''Aegle marmelos'', commonly known as bael (or ''bili'' or ''bhel''), also Bengal quince, golden apple, Japanese bitter orange, stone apple or wood apple, is a rare species of tree native to the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia. It is present in India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and Nepal as a naturalized species. The tree is considered to be sacred by Hindus. Description ''Aegle marmelos'' is a deciduous shrub or small to medium-sized tree, up to tall with slender drooping branches and rather open, irregular crown. The bark is pale brown or grayish, smooth or finely fissured and flaking, armed with long straight spines, singly or in pairs, often with slimy sap oozing out from cut parts. The gum is also described as a clear, gummy sap, resembling gum arabic, which exudes from wounded branches and hangs down in long strands, becoming gradually solid. It is sweet at first taste and then irritating to the throat. The leaf is trifoliate, alternate, each leaflet x , ovate ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gum Benzoin
Benzoin or benjamin (corrupted pronunciation) is a balsamic resin obtained from the bark of several species of trees in the genus ''Styrax''. It is used in perfumes and some kinds of incense and as a flavoring and medicine (see tincture of benzoin). It is distinct from the chemical compound Benzoin (organic compound), benzoin, which is ultimately derived chemically from benzoin resin; the resin, however, does not contain this compound. Benzoin is sometimes called gum benzoin or gum benjamin, and in India ''Sambrani or'' loban, though loban is, via Arabic language, Arabic ''lubān'', a generic term for frankincense-type incense, e.g., fragrant tree resin. Benzoin is also called storax, not to be confused with the storax balsam, balsam of the same name obtained from the Hamamelidaceae family. Benzoin is a common ingredient in incense-making and perfumery because of its sweet vanilla-like aroma and fixative (perfumery), fixative properties. Gum benzoin is a major component of the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cannabis
''Cannabis'' () is a genus of flowering plants in the family Cannabaceae. The number of species within the genus is disputed. Three species may be recognized: ''Cannabis sativa'', '' C. indica'', and '' C. ruderalis''. Alternatively, ''C. ruderalis'' may be included within ''C. sativa'', all three may be treated as subspecies of ''C. sativa'', or ''C. sativa'' may be accepted as a single undivided species. The genus is widely accepted as being indigenous to and originating from Asia. The plant is also known as hemp, although this term is often used to refer only to varieties of ''Cannabis'' cultivated for non-drug use. Cannabis has long been used for hemp fibre, hemp seeds and their oils, hemp leaves for use as vegetables and as juice, medicinal purposes, and as a recreational drug. Industrial hemp products are made from cannabis plants selected to produce an abundance of fibre. Various cannabis strains have been bred, often selectively to pro ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Indigo Plant
''Indigofera'' is a large genus of over 750 species of flowering plants belonging to the pea family Fabaceae. They are widely distributed throughout the tropical and subtropical regions of the world. Description Species of ''Indigofera'' are mostly shrubs, though some are small trees or herbaceous perennials or annuals. Most have pinnate leaves. Racemes of flowers grow in the leaf axils, in hues of red, but there are a few white- and yellow-flowered species. The fruit is a legume pod of varying size and shape. ''Indigofera'' is a varied genus that has shown unique characteristics making it an interesting candidate as a potential perennial crop. Specifically, there is diverse variation among species with a number of unique characteristics. Some examples of this diversity include differences in pericarp thickness, fruit type, and flowering morphology. The unique characteristics it has displayed include potential for mixed smallholder systems with at least one other species and a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
_fruits.jpg "Click for more on -> Karanda (shrub)")
.jpg "Click for more on -> Aegle Marmelos")
