Ocimum tenuiflorum (PROSEA)
Introduction |
- Family: Labiatae
Synonyms
- Ocimum brachiatum Hassk.,
- O. flexuosum Blanco,
- O. sanctum L.
Vernacular names
- Holy basil, sacred basil (En)
- Basilic sacré, basilic des moines (Fr)
- Indonesia: ruku-ruku (Sumatra), kemangi utan (Moluccas), lampes (Javanese, Sundanese)
- Malaysia: oku, ruku ruku, sulasi
- Philippines: loko-loko (Tagalog), kamangi (Bicol), bidai (Ilocano)
- Cambodia: mrèah prëu
- Laos: saph'au
- Thailand: kaphrao (central), kom ko dong, im-khim-lam (northern)
- Vietnam: hương nhu tía, é tía, é dỏ
Distribution
Native to tropical Asia, but occurring pantropically cultivated and sometimes also naturalized.
Uses
In Hinduism holy basil is the most sacred plant and has been cultivated for over 3000 years in courtyards and temple gardens. It is a symbol of fidelity and of pure devine love. In South-East Asia holy basil is occasionally used as a condiment in salads, fruit dishes and meat, fish and chicken but more often as a medicine because all aboveground parts are said to possess antibacterial, antifebrile and demulcent properties. In Indonesia a decoction of the leaves is used to treat colds in children, to heal wounds and to promote lactation in women. In the Philippines it is used against gonorrhoea and in Malaysia against rheumatism.
Observations
- An aromatic, erect, much branched herb, 30-60(-100) cm tall with stem woody at base and an indumentum of patent hairs.
- Leaves decussately opposite; petiole 0.5-2.5 cm long; blade broadly elliptical, 1.5-6 cm × 1-2.5 cm, margin remotely serrate, pubescent.
- Inflorescence racemose, 8-10 cm long, consisting of opposite 3-flowered cymes appearing as verticils, lax; flowers 3 mm long, pink or white.
- Fruit consisting of 4 nutlets, surrounded by the persistent calyx on a spreading pedicel 3-4 mm long.
The essential-oil composition (up to 0.8% fresh-weight basis) varies strongly between populations but usually contains eugenol (40-70%, mainly as methyleugenol), caryophyllene (27%) and methylchavicol (10%). In South-East Asia O. tenuiflorum is a common weed of waste places in settled areas, often in great quantities, but also planted in kitchen gardens and on cemetries, in sunny dry locations, up to 600 m altitude, flowering year-round. Many forms have been described and cultivation is similar to sweet basil.
Selected sources
- Flora Malesiana (various editors), 1950- . Series 1. Vol. 1, 4- . Kluwer Academic Publishers, Dordrecht, the Netherlands.
- Nguyen Van Dan & Doan Thi Nhu (Editors), 1990. Medicinal plants in Vietnam. World Health Organization (WHO), Regional Publications, Western Pacific Series No 3. WHO, Regional Office for the Western Pacific, Manila, the Philippines and Institute of Materia Medica, Hanoi, Vietnam.
- Paton, A., 1992. A synopsis of Ocimum L. (Labiatae) in Africa. Kew Bulletin 47: 403-435.
- Small, E., 1997. Culinary herbs. National Research Council of Canada. NRC Research Press, Ottawa, Canada. 710 pp.
Authors
P.C.M. Jansen