Elaichi / Cardamom
Elettaria cardamomum
- Habit
- Herb
- Found in India
- Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Kerala & more
- Flowering
- Throughout the year
How to identify Elaichi
Identify Elaichi by combining habit, leaf characters, flower or fruit details, location, and its family pattern. Do not rely on one feature alone.
- Look for a herb habit.
- Confirm leaf arrangement: Alternate.
- Confirm leaf shape: Lanceolate.
- Confirm flower colour: White.
- Confirm flower arrangement: Spike.
- In season, compare flowering and fruiting time: Throughout the year.
- In India, compare location records such as Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Kerala, Sikkim and nearby regions.
Plant Details
- Scientific name
- Elettaria cardamomum
- Genus
- Elettaria
- Family
- Zingiberaceae
- Habit
- Herb
- Habitat
- Cultivated
- Habitat type
- Cultivated
- Distribution
- Cultivated in most parts of the world
- Found in India
- Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Kerala, Sikkim, Uttarakhand, Gujarat
- Flowering & fruiting
- Throughout the year
- Conservation status
- Not Evaluated (NE)
Leaf characters
- Leaf arrangement
- AlternaterecordedOne leaf per node, arranged in a spiral or zigzag up the stem.“The leaves are alternate in two ranks, linear-lanceolate, 40–60 cm (16–24 in) long, with a long pointed tip.” — Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Leaf shape
- LanceolaterecordedLong and narrow, tapering to a point, like a lance head.“The leaves are alternate in two ranks, linear-lanceolate, 40–60 cm (16–24 in) long, with a long pointed tip.” — Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0
Typical of the family
Characters marked “recorded” are for Elaichi itself; the rest are typical of the Zingiberaceae family.
Flower & fruit characters
- Flower colour
- Whiterecorded
- Flower arrangement
- SpikerecordedFlowers arranged directly on a central stem without individual stalks.“The flowers are white to lilac or pale violet, produced in a loose spike 30–60 cm (12–24 in) long.” — Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Fruit type
- LegumerecordedA dry pod that splits open along two seams (typical of the pea/bean family).“The fruit is a three-sided yellow-green pod 1–2 cm (0.39–0.79 in) long, containing several (15-20) black and brown seeds.” — Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0
Typical of the family
- Flower symmetry
- Zygomorphic (bilaterally symmetrical)
- Inflorescence
- Spike
- Fruit
- Capsule
Characters marked “recorded” are for Elaichi itself; the rest are typical of the Zingiberaceae family — flowering plants only.
Local Names
- Hindi
- इलाएची Elaichi,इलायची ilayachi,छोटी इलायची chhoti ilayachi
- Nepali
- सुकुमेल
- Bengali
- ছোট এলাচ, এলাচি
- Tamil
- Elam Ancha, ஏலம், ஏலக்காய்
- Telugu
- Elaki, ఏలకులు, యాలక
- Kannada
- Elakki, ಏಲಕ್ಕಿ, ಎಲಕ್ಕಿ
- Malayalam
- Elatarri, ഏലം, Cardamom
- Marathi
- वेलदोडा Veldoda, वेलची Velachi, वेलदोडे
- Sinhala
- එනසාල්, කරඳමුංගු
About Elaichi
Cardamom (Elettaria cardamomum) is a herb in the Zingiberaceae family. In India it has been recorded in Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Kerala and 3 other states. It is cultivated. It flowers and fruits through much of the year.
Uses
In practice it is grown for parts that are eaten, long used in traditional medicine and tapped for gum or resin. Those medicinal uses are traditional attributions, not medical advice.
Zingiberaceae
Ginger family
Elaichi belongs to the Zingiberaceae family.
The illustration represents the family — not necessarily this exact species.
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Common plant problems
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