zinglberaceyE. 263 



Thorp are also other plants whose roots yield starches, among which the most 

 prominent are: several cannas, as C echinus, C. glauca, Kosc, C. edulis, and 

 C. flaccida, Hose. These cannas are now under cultivation in Australia. The 

 C. glauca and C. coccinia yield the starch known in commerce as tons les mois. 

 The Englisii have also introduced the cultivation of arrow-root-yielding plants 

 into India, New South Wales, and Queensland. But no plant yields so much 

 and of so good quality as the maranta arundinacea. 



ELETTARIA, Maton. Calyx menibranous, tubular, short, and 3-lobed. 

 Corolla cylindrical, as long as the calyx ; anterior lobe oblong, erect, 

 and concave ; side lobes narrower, curved backwards, slightly ^-lobed 

 or toothed ; lip obovoid ; anthers inserted on the corolla, sessile and 

 linear. Ovary 8-celled, containing many ovules. Style thread-like ; 

 stigma rising a little above the anthers. Fruit globular or ovoid; 

 seed-vessel tough, and not opening when ripe ; seed obovoid and 

 rugose. Rootstock thick, growing just under the surface of the 

 ground. Perennial. 



E. cardamomum, Maton. Stems numerous, smooth, 6 to 12 feet high. 

 Le.aves sheathing, alternate, 9 to 12 inches long, and 1 to 5 inches wide, 

 elliptical-lanceolate pointed, entire, smooth, and dark-green above, pale be- 

 neath, with .strong midribs ; foot-stalks short ; flower-stalls starts from the 

 base of the stem, prostrate. Flowers in a panicle ; calyx tubular, toothed at 

 the margin ; corolla funnel-shaped, border lipped, 3-lobed, and spurred at the 

 base. Fruit a 3-celled capsule, many-seeded. 



There are five species of this genus, all natives of the tropical regions of 

 Asia; but the cardamoms of commerce are from this species. 



Geography. — The plant grows and fruits well at an elevation of 3,000 to 

 5,000 feet along the .southern coast of India ; but the seeds of commerce are 

 shipped from Madras, Allepy, and Ceylon. 



The plant yields fruit both in a wild state and under cultivation. It requires 

 a temperature that does not fall below 70° Fahrenheit. It flourishes best in 

 the mountains of Malabar, at an elevation of about 4,000 feet, under an annual 

 rainfall of ten feet. 



Etymology. — Elettaria is the name of t\\e cardamom plant in the Malabar 

 tongtie; its meaning is not known. Cardamom is from the Greek KapSd/xccuov, 

 a spice, believed to have been applied first to the elettaria by Pliny, on account 

 of the pungent spice of its seeds. The cardamoms of commerce are known 

 under names derived from the places where they are grown : the Malabar, 

 Madras, Allepy, and Ceylon. 



Cultivation. — The cultivation consists in clearing the forest in spots where 

 specimens of the plant are found growing spontaneously, and then keeping 

 the ground free from weeds and underlirush. The rhizome or underground 

 stem throws up from fifteen to twenty leafy stems or branches. The stems 

 each throw off four flowering stalks near the ground, upon which the fruit 

 finally appears. The plant fruits when four years old. An acre yields about 

 twenty -eight pounds. 



Use. — Tho medicinal ])roperties of thcsccMls as well as tlioir aromatic char- 

 acter are due to the presence of an essential oil, of whicli they yield three to five 

 per cent. Their effect upon the human systom is stiinulant, carminative, and 



