BEEHIVE GINGER (Zingiber spectabile)
The Beehive Ginger is also known in Malaysia & Singapore as Tepus Tanah, Tepus Tunduk, Tepai or Tepus Halia. The Malaysian Temuan orang asli call it Lingkanang or Cadak. The Thais call it as 'changoe' and it is sometimes known as 'dakngoe' among the people from Pattani. It can be found growing under the shade in evergreen forests, along trails, roadsides, streams and edges of the forest up to 1000m altitudes. Under optimal conditions, this ginger plant can grow up to 4.5m tall.
The lanceolate leaves have a size of 30-5Ocm x 6-lOcm, glabrous or slightly hairy at the base below. The inflorescence is a cylindrical spike, large 'bee hive-like' shape. This species gained its fame in the horticulture industry due to its ability to last long and its ability in 'transforming' color on the inflorescence bracts. The color changes from yellow / green to red through to orange. These color changes are believed to be triggered by the maturity stages of the inflorescence over a 40-55 day period. Often, one might mistakenly think the part where the color changes takes place is the flower, when the true flowers are actually the small papery element protruding from the pouches. The flowers of the beehive ginger are dark purple with yellow spots. In Malaysia & Singapore, this ginger flowers between July to September and fruits in November. A single inflorescence may contain 95-1 75 flowers, but it seldom flowers simultaneously. Only a few flowers are produced once in an acropetal sequence, meaning the flowers mature from the bottom toward the top. The flowers usually will not last long, less than 24 hours and they open between 1O am - 2pm.
The young and tender shoots are always consumed as "ulam" or eaten fresh as salad. It is sometimes used as extra flavoring in cooking. ln traditional Malay medicine, the leaves of this ginger is pounded into a thick paste and applied to injured parts of the body; it is used to reduce inflammation and to treat backaches and headaches. In the treatment of burn wounds, fresh leaves are crushed into paste form and patched onto open wounds to heal them. It is also known to preserve food by inhibiting the growth of harmful bacteria. It is said to be effective against sinus ailments. The leaves are boiled with water, and the water then is used as a facial and nasal wash. Furthermore, the plant is also commonly used by mothers after child birth and during the maternity period. It is useful as an ingredient for women after childbirth especially for post-natal bath by boiling the whole ginger plant. Malaysian local indigenous people from the Temuan tribe at Ayer Hitam Forest, used the juice from leaves of the ginger to treat eye infections and to soothe swollen eyes. It is also commonly used in recipes for medicinal baths. In Thailand, the fresh pounded leaves are made in poultices and the infusion is used to wash infection on eyelids. The treatment is similar to the ones used in Malaysia. This ginger is also rich in essential oils too. The essential oils are widely used in making condiments, perfumes, flavorings, aromatherapy and medicines. Some of the essential oils may be aromatic which is why some honey-hunters or honey seekers normally crush and pound the bulbous roots into a paste and smear their hands or exposed skin areas as a precaution to ward off bee stings during honey collection.
The lanceolate leaves have a size of 30-5Ocm x 6-lOcm, glabrous or slightly hairy at the base below. The inflorescence is a cylindrical spike, large 'bee hive-like' shape. This species gained its fame in the horticulture industry due to its ability to last long and its ability in 'transforming' color on the inflorescence bracts. The color changes from yellow / green to red through to orange. These color changes are believed to be triggered by the maturity stages of the inflorescence over a 40-55 day period. Often, one might mistakenly think the part where the color changes takes place is the flower, when the true flowers are actually the small papery element protruding from the pouches. The flowers of the beehive ginger are dark purple with yellow spots. In Malaysia & Singapore, this ginger flowers between July to September and fruits in November. A single inflorescence may contain 95-1 75 flowers, but it seldom flowers simultaneously. Only a few flowers are produced once in an acropetal sequence, meaning the flowers mature from the bottom toward the top. The flowers usually will not last long, less than 24 hours and they open between 1O am - 2pm.
The young and tender shoots are always consumed as "ulam" or eaten fresh as salad. It is sometimes used as extra flavoring in cooking. ln traditional Malay medicine, the leaves of this ginger is pounded into a thick paste and applied to injured parts of the body; it is used to reduce inflammation and to treat backaches and headaches. In the treatment of burn wounds, fresh leaves are crushed into paste form and patched onto open wounds to heal them. It is also known to preserve food by inhibiting the growth of harmful bacteria. It is said to be effective against sinus ailments. The leaves are boiled with water, and the water then is used as a facial and nasal wash. Furthermore, the plant is also commonly used by mothers after child birth and during the maternity period. It is useful as an ingredient for women after childbirth especially for post-natal bath by boiling the whole ginger plant. Malaysian local indigenous people from the Temuan tribe at Ayer Hitam Forest, used the juice from leaves of the ginger to treat eye infections and to soothe swollen eyes. It is also commonly used in recipes for medicinal baths. In Thailand, the fresh pounded leaves are made in poultices and the infusion is used to wash infection on eyelids. The treatment is similar to the ones used in Malaysia. This ginger is also rich in essential oils too. The essential oils are widely used in making condiments, perfumes, flavorings, aromatherapy and medicines. Some of the essential oils may be aromatic which is why some honey-hunters or honey seekers normally crush and pound the bulbous roots into a paste and smear their hands or exposed skin areas as a precaution to ward off bee stings during honey collection.