Mixing
Cymbopogon
| Lemongrass | |
|---|---|
 | |
Cymbopogon citratus | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: |
Angiosperms |
Clade: |
Monocots |
Clade: |
Commelinids |
| Order: | Poales |
| Family: | Poaceae |
| Subfamily: | Panicoideae |
| Supertribe: | Andropogonodae |
| Tribe: | Andropogoneae |
| Subtribe: | Anthristiriinae |
| Genus: | Cymbopogon Spreng.[1] |
Type species | |
Cymbopogon schoenanthus (L.) Spreng.[2] | |
Synonyms[3][4] | |
| |
Cymbopogon, better known as lemongrass, is a genus of Asian, African, Australian, and tropical island plants in the grass family.[5][6][7][8]
Some species (particularly Cymbopogon citratus) are commonly cultivated as culinary and medicinal herbs because of their scent, resembling that of lemons (Citrus limon). Common names include lemon grass, barbed wire grass, silky heads, citronella grass, cha de Dartigalongue, fever grass, tanglad, hierba Luisa, or gavati chahapati, amongst many others.
Contents
1 Uses
2 Species
3 Images
4 References
Uses
Lemongrass is widely used as a culinary herb in Asian cuisines and also as a medicinal herb in India. It has a subtle citrus flavor and can be dried and powdered, or used fresh. It is commonly used in teas, soups, and curries. It is also suitable for use with poultry, fish, beef, and seafood. It is often used as a tea in African countries such as Togo, south eastern Ghana Volta Region and the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Latin American countries such as Mexico.
Lemongrass oil is used as a pesticide and a preservative. Research shows that lemongrass oil has antifungal properties.[9]
Despite its ability to repel some insects, such as mosquitoes, its oil is commonly used as a "lure" to attract honey bees. "Lemongrass works conveniently as well as the pheromone created by the honeybee's Nasonov gland, also known as attractant pheromones. Because of this, lemongrass oil can be used as a lure when trapping swarms or attempting to draw the attention of hived bees."[10]
C. citratus from the Philippines, where it is locally known as tanglad
Citronella grass (Cymbopogon nardus and Cymbopogon winterianus) grow to about 2 m (6.6 ft) and have magenta-colored base stems. These species are used for the production of citronella oil, which is used in soaps, as an insect repellent (especially mosquitoes) in insect sprays and candles, and in aromatherapy. The principal chemical constituents of citronella, geraniol and citronellol, are antiseptics, hence their use in household disinfectants and soaps. Besides oil production, citronella grass is also used for culinary purposes, as a flavoring.
Citronella is usually planted in home gardens to ward off insects such as whitefly adults. Its cultivation enables growing some vegetables (e.g. tomatoes and broccoli) without applying pesticides. Intercropping should include physical barriers, for citronella roots can take over the field.[11]
Lemongrass oil, used as a pesticide and preservative, is put on the ancient palm-leaf manuscripts found in India as a preservative. It is used at the Oriental Research Institute Mysore, the French Institute of Pondicherry, the Association for the Preservation of the Saint Thomas Christian Heritage in Kerala, and many other manuscript collections in India. The oil also injects natural fluidity into the brittle palm leaves, and the hydrophobic nature of the oil keeps the manuscripts dry so the text is not lost to decay due to humidity.[citation needed]
East Indian lemon grass (Cymbopogon flexuosus), also called Cochin grass or Malabar grass, is native to Cambodia, Vietnam, Laos, India, Sri Lanka, Burma, and Thailand, while West Indian lemon grass (Cymbopogon citratus) is native to South Asia and maritime Southeast Asia. While both can be used interchangeably, C. citratus is more suitable for cooking. In India, C. citratus is used both as a medical herb and in perfumes. C. citratus is consumed as a tea for anxiety in Brazilian folk medicine,[12] but a study in humans found no effect.[13] The tea caused a recurrence of contact dermatitis in one case.[14]
Lemon grass is also used as an addition to tea, and in preparations such as kadha, which is a traditional herbal brew used in Ayurvedic medicine.[citation needed]
Species
Species included in the genus include:[3]
Cymbopogon ambiguus Australian lemon-scented grass - Australia, Timor
Cymbopogon annamensis - Yunnan, Laos, Vietnam, Thailand
Cymbopogon bhutanicus - Bhutan
Cymbopogon bombycinus silky oilgrass - Australia
Cymbopogon caesius - Sub-Saharan Africa, Indian Subcontinent, Yemen, Afghanistan, Madagascar, Comoros, Réunion
Cymbopogon calcicola - Thailand, Kedah
Cymbopogon calciphilus - Thailand
Cymbopogon cambogiensis - Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam
Cymbopogon citratus lemon grass (Chinese: 香茅草; pinyin: xiāng máo căo) - Sri Lanka, northeast and southern India, Southeast Asia
Cymbopogon clandestinus - Thailand, Myanmar, Andaman Islands
Cymbopogon coloratus - Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Myanmar, Vietnam
Cymbopogon commutatus - Sahel, East Africa, Arabian Peninsula, Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, India, Pakistan
Cymbopogon densiflorus - central + south-central Africa
Cymbopogon dependens - Australia
Cymbopogon dieterlenii - Lesotho, Namibia, South Africa
Cymbopogon distans - Gansu, Guizhou, Shaanxi, Sichuan, Tibet, Yunnan, Nepal, northern Pakistan, Jammu & Kashmir
Cymbopogon exsertus - Nepal, Assam
Cymbopogon flexuosus East Indian lemon grass - Indian Subcontinent, Indochina
Cymbopogon gidarba - Indian Subcontinent, Myanmar, Yunnan
Cymbopogon giganteus - Africa, Madagascar
Cymbopogon globosus - Maluku, New Guinea, Queensland
Cymbopogon goeringii - China incl Taiwan, Korea, Japan incl Ryukyu Islands, Vietnam
Cymbopogon gratus - Queensland
Cymbopogon jwarancusa - Socotra, Turkey, Middle East, Arabian Peninsula, Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, Indian Subcontinent, Tibet, Sichuan, Yunnan, Vietnam
Cymbopogon khasianus - Yunnan, Guangxi, Assam, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Thailand
Cymbopogon liangshanensis - Sichuan
Cymbopogon mandalaiaensis - Myanmar
Cymbopogon marginatus - Cape Province of South Africa
Cymbopogon martini palmarosa - Indian Subcontinent, Myanmar, Vietnam
Cymbopogon mekongensis - China, Indochina
Cymbopogon microstachys Indian Subcontinent, Myanmar, Thailand, Yunnan
Cymbopogon microthecus - Nepal, Bhutan, Assam, West Bengal, Bangladesh
Cymbopogon minor - Yunnan
Cymbopogon minutiflorus - Sulawesi
Cymbopogon nardus citronella grass (In Thai language ตะไคร้หอม (ta-khrai hom) - Indian Subcontinent, Indochina, central + southern Africa, Madagascar, Seychelles
Cymbopogon nervatus - Myanmar, Thailand, central Africa
Cymbopogon obtectus Silky-heads - Australia
Cymbopogon osmastonii - India, Bangladesh
Cymbopogon pendulus - Yunnan, eastern Himalayas, Myanmar, Vietnam
Cymbopogon polyneuros - Tamil Nadu, Sri Lanka, Myanmar
Cymbopogon pospischilii - eastern + southern Africa, Oman, Yemen, Himalayas, Tibet, Yunnan
Cymbopogon procerus - Australia, New Guinea, Maluku, Lesser Sunda Islands, Sulawesi
Cymbopogon pruinosus - islands of Indian Ocean
Cymbopogon queenslandicus - Queensland
Cymbopogon quinhonensis - Vietnam
Cymbopogon rectus - Lesser Sunda Islands, Java
Cymbopogon refractus barbed wire grass - Australia incl Norfolk Island
Cymbopogon schoenanthus camel hay or camel grass - Sahara, Sahel, eastern Africa, Arabian Peninsular, Iran
Cymbopogon tortilis - China incl Taiwan, Ryukyu + Bonin Is, Philippines, Vietnam, Maluku
Cymbopogon tungmaiensis - Sichuan, Tibet, Yunnan
Cymbopogon winterianus citronella grass - Borneo, Java, Sumatra
Cymbopogon xichangensis - Sichuan
- Formerly included[3]
Numerous species now regarded as better suited to other genera including Andropogon, Exotheca, Hyparrhenia, Iseilema, Schizachyrium, and Themeda.
Images
Lemon grass at a market
Prepared lemon grass
Lemongrass (Cymbopogon flexuosus) essential oil in clear glass vial
Thai yam takhrai kung sot (ยำตะไคร้กุ้งสด), a salad (yam) made with prawns and finely sliced fresh lemongrass
A knot of lemongrass used to impart fragrance in dinuguan (Filipino pork blood stew)
References
^ Sprengel, Curt (Kurt, Curtius) Polycarp Joachim 1815. Plantarum Minus Cognitarum Pugillus 2: 14
^ lectotype designated by N.L. Britton & P. Wilson, Bot. Porto Rico 1: 27 (1923)
^ abc Kew World Checklist of Selected Plant Families
^ Tropicos, Cymbopogon Spreng.
^ Soenarko, S. 1977. The genus Cymbopogon Sprengel (Gramineae). Reinwardtia 9(3): 225–375
^ Flora of China Vol. 22 Page 624 香茅属 xiang mao shu Cymbopogon Sprengel, Pl. Min. Cogn. Pug. 2: 14. 1815.
^ Atlas of Living Australia, Cymbopogon Spreng., Lemon Grass
^ Bor, N. L. 1960. Grass. Burma, Ceylon, India & Pakistan i–767. Pergamon Press, Oxford
^ Shadab, Q., Hanif, M. & Chaudhary, F.M. (1992) Antifungal activity by lemongrass essential oils. Pak. J. Sci. Ind. Res. 35, 246-249.
^ Wikibooks:Beekeeping/Guide to Essential Oils
^ Takeguma, Massahiro. "Gowing Citronella". Retrieved 12 June 2013..mw-parser-output cite.citation{font-style:inherit}.mw-parser-output q{quotes:"""""""'""'"}.mw-parser-output code.cs1-code{color:inherit;background:inherit;border:inherit;padding:inherit}.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-free a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/65/Lock-green.svg/9px-Lock-green.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-limited a,.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-registration a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d6/Lock-gray-alt-2.svg/9px-Lock-gray-alt-2.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-subscription a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/aa/Lock-red-alt-2.svg/9px-Lock-red-alt-2.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration{color:#555}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription span,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration span{border-bottom:1px dotted;cursor:help}.mw-parser-output .cs1-hidden-error{display:none;font-size:100%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-visible-error{font-size:100%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration,.mw-parser-output .cs1-format{font-size:95%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-left,.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-wl-left{padding-left:0.2em}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-right,.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-wl-right{padding-right:0.2em}
^ Blanco MM, Costa CA, Freire AO, Santos JG, Costa M (March 2009). "Neurobehavioral effect of essential oil of Cymbopogon citratus in mice". Phytomedicine. 16 (2–3): 265–70. doi:10.1016/j.phymed.2007.04.007. PMID 17561386.
^ Leite JR, Seabra Mde L, Maluf E, et al. (July 1986). "Pharmacology of lemongrass (Cymbopogon citratus Stapf). III. Assessment of eventual toxic, hypnotic and anxiolytic effects on humans". J Ethnopharmacol. 17 (1): 75–83. doi:10.1016/0378-8741(86)90074-7. PMID 2429120.
^ Bleasel N, Tate B, Rademaker M (August 2002). "Allergic contact dermatitis following exposure to essential oils". Australas. J. Dermatol. 43 (3): 211–3. doi:10.1046/j.1440-0960.2002.00598.x. PMID 12121401.
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