Etlingera elatior

Etlingera elatior

The torch ginger or philippine waxflower, indonesian tall ginger (Etlingera elatior (Jack) R.M.Sm. 1986) is a herbaceous species belonging to the Zingiberaceae family.

Systematic –
From a systematic point of view it belongs to:
Eukaryota domain,
Kingdom Plantae,
Division Magnoliophyta,
Class Liliopsida,
Subclass Zingiberidae,
Zingiberales Order,
Family Zingiberaceae,
Genus Etlingera,
Species E. elatior.
The term is basionym:
– Alpinia elatior Jack.
The terms are synonymous:
– Alpinia acrostachya Steud.;
– Alpinia diracodes Loes.;
– Alpinia javanica (Blume) D.Dietr.;
– Alpinia magnifica Roscoe;
– Alpinia speciosa (Blume) D.Dietr.;
– Amomum magnificum (Rosc.) Benth. & Hook.f., 1883;
– Amomum magnificum (Roscoe) Benth. & Hook.f. ex B.D.Jacks.;
– Amomum magnificum (Roscoe) Trimen;
– Amomum tridentatum (Kuntze) K.Schum.;
– Bojeria magnifica (Roscoe) Raf.;
– Cardamomum magnificum (Roscoe) Kuntze;
– Cardamomum speciosum (Blume) Kuntze;
– Cardamomum tridentatum Kuntze;
– Diracodes javanica Blume;
– Diracoides javanica Blume;
– Elettaria speciosa Blume;
– Etlingera elatior var. alba Todam & C.K.Lim;
– Etlingera elatior var. pileng Ongsakul & C.K.Lim;
– Geanthus speciosus Reinw. ex Blume;
– Hornstedtia imperialis (Lindl.) Ridl.;
– Nicolaia elatior (Jack) Horan.;
– Nicolaia imperialis Horan.;
– Nicolaia intermedia Valeton;
– Nicolaia magnifica (Roscoe) K.Schum.;
– Nicolaia magnifica (Roscoe) K.Schum. ex Valeton;
– Nicolaia speciosa (Blume) Horan.;
– Phaeomeria imperialis Lindl.;
– Phaeomeria magnifica (Roscoe) K.Schum.;
– Phaeomeria speciosa (Blume) Koord..

Etymology –
The term Etlingera is in honor of the German botanist Andreas Ernst Etlinger (1756-1785), author of the “Commentatio Botanico-Medica de Salvia” (1777).
The specific epithet elatior comes from the Latin “elatus”, even higher than the same species eláta (from the past participle of effero raise: high, elevated).

Geographic Distribution and Habitat –
Etlingera elatior is a plant native to the rainforests of Borneo, Java, Sulawesi (Celebes), Sumatra, Thailand and the Philippines (where it was probably introduced).
Its natural habitat is not known.

Description –
Etlingera elatior is a perennial, rhizomatous herbaceous plant; it takes about 18-22 days for the first leaf to grow from the rhizome. The leaf bud lasts about 70 days and can reach a height of 3–5 meters and the stems have a diameter of up to 4 cm.
Its leaves are leathery and grow about 0.91 m long with a central groove.
The leaves are lanceolate, up to 80 cm long and 18-20 cm wide and have an intense green colour. The inflorescences are found on a peduncle about 1 m high which arises directly from the rhizomes, they are formed by a series of bright red leathery bracts (there are pink and white varieties) with a waxy appearance, the outermost ones up to about 10 cm long , which open and flex backwards in succession, revealing a compact spike made up of smaller, pinkish bracts, inside which the short-lived flowers open, with pink to red petals and a dark red labellum with a yellow margin.
The fruits are indehiscent globose capsules (that is, they do not open when ripe), about 25 mm in diameter.
Inside they contain many black seeds.

Cultivation –
Etlingera elatior is a large evergreen, perennial herbaceous plant that is used locally as food and medicine. It is widely cultivated as an ornamental plant in the tropics and in greenhouses in the temperate zone, being appreciated above all for its spectacular flowering.
A species of considerable ornamental value, it is widely cultivated in all tropical countries and, in its places of origin, also has food and traditional medicine uses, although to a lesser extent than ginger (Zingiber officinale).
For outdoor cultivation it requires a constant warm humid climate throughout the year, preferably in a partially shaded position, and rich rather acidic or neutral soils; elsewhere it must be grown in a warm greenhouse.
The plants can flower all year round.
Reproduction occurs both by seed and by division of the rhizomes.

Customs and Traditions –
Etlingera elatior is known by various common names; among these are: “kantan”, “bunga kantan”, “bunga siantan” (Malay); “kaa laa” (Thai); “torch ginger,” “Philippine waxflower,” “Indonesian tall ginger” (English); “rose de porcelaine”, “gingembre tropical” (French); “boca de dragon”, “bastón del emperador”, “flor de cera” (Spanish); “Fackelingwer” (German); “bastão do imperador”, “rosa de porcelana” (Portuguese).
In North Sumatra (especially among the Karo people), the flower buds are used for a stewed fish dish called Arsik ikan mas (Andaliman/Sichuan pepper-spiced carp). In Bali, people use the white part of the bottom of the trunk to cook chili sauce called “Sambal Bongkot”, and use the flower buds to make chili sauce called “Sambal Kecicang”.
In Thailand it is eaten in a kind of Thai salad preparation. In Malaysia, the flower is an essential ingredient in cooking fish broth for a kind of sour and spicy noodle soup called “asam laksa” (also known as “Penang laksa”), in preparing a type of salad called kerabu, and many other Malaysian dishes.
The fruit is also used in Indonesian cuisine.
In Karo, it is known as asam cekala (asam meaning “sour”), and the flower buds, but especially the ripe pods, which are filled with small black seeds, are an essential ingredient of the Karo version of sayur asam, and are particularly suitable for cooking fresh fish.
Three caffeoylquinic acids, including chlorogenic acid (CGA), as well as three flavonoids quercitrin, isoquercitrin, and catechin, were isolated from the leaves of E. elatior. The CGA content was significantly higher than in Lonicera japonica (Japanese honeysuckle) flowers, the commercial source.
A protocol was developed for the production of a standardized plant extract of CGA from E. elatior leaves (40%), compared to commercial extracts of CGA from honeysuckle flowers (25%).
E. elatior leaves have the highest antioxidant, antibacterial, and tyrosinase inhibitory activity among the five Etlingera species studied. The antioxidant properties (AOP) of the leaves were significantly stronger than those of the flowers and rhizomes. Leaves from highland populations had higher AOP values than their lowland counterparts. Thermal drying of leaves causes drastic decreases in AOP, while freeze-dried leaves showed significantly higher AOP values. The ethanolic extracts of the inflorescences have antimicrobial activity and are cytotoxic for HeLa cells. The antioxidant activity of diarylheptanoids isolated from rhizomes is greater than α-tocopherol. E. elatior has an antioxidant effect against lead-induced hepatotoxicity in rats.
Among other uses, it is reported that mats are made from the shoots while a very fine fiber is obtained from the leaves.

Preparation Method –
Etlingera elatior is a plant used for both edible and medicinal purposes.
The leaves are eaten cooked with rice.
The young flower shoots and semi-ripe fruiting shoots are used locally as tamarind substitutes.
It is used as a condiment in curries.
The inflorescence stems are chopped and added to laksa pots (various curries or soups made from rice noodles).
The fruits are candied and the semi-ripe ones are eaten in soups and stews.
Ripe seeds are eaten raw.
The fruits and leaves are used medicinally.

Guido Bissanti

Sources
– Acta Plantarum – Flora of the Italian Regions.
– Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
– GBIF, the Global Biodiversity Information Facility.
– Useful Tropical Plants Database.
– Conti F., Abbate G., Alessandrini A., Blasi C. (ed.), 2005. An annotated checklist of the Italian vascular flora, Palombi Editore.
– Pignatti S., 1982. Flora d’Italia, Edagricole, Bologna.
– Treben M., 2000. Health from the Lord’s Pharmacy, Advice and experiences with medicinal herbs, Ennsthaler Editore.

Photo source:
– https://inaturalist-open-data.s3.amazonaws.com/photos/258464911/original.jpeg

Attention: Pharmaceutical applications and food uses are indicated for informational purposes only, they do not represent in any way a medical prescription; we therefore decline any responsibility for their use for healing, aesthetic or food purposes.