Family : Zingiberaceae

English : Greater cardamom

Hindi : Badi ilayachi

Gujarati : Elcho

Sanskrit : Sthulaila, Bhadraila

Part used : Seed

Botanical Description: A herb with leafy stem upto 90-100cm in height, leaves simple, oblong lanceolate, bright green, glabrouson both surfaces, flowers white in globose shortly peduncled spikes, bratcs reddish brown lip, ovate-cuneate, emarginate, ytellowish white, filaments very short, anther crest small, truncate, entire, fruits reddish brown, densely echinate globose capsules; seeds many, held together by a viscid sugary pulp. Flowering and fruiting from Febuary to June.

It is found in the eastern Himalayas and Malabar Forests

Modern Pharmacological Action: They are prescribed for treatment of indigestion, vomiting, biliousness, abdominal pain and rectal diseases. A decoction of the seed is used as a gargle in affections of the teeth and gums. The seeds are also used as antidote to snake bite and scorpion sting. The pericarp is used in headache and heals stomatitis. Large cardamom are used as preventive as well as a curative for throat trouble, congestion of lungs, inflammation of eyelids, digestive disorders and in the treatment of pulmonary tuberculosis. The seeds contain mainly essential oil, flavonoids, carbohydrates and fats