Cinnamomum tamala

Cinnamomum tamala, Indian bay leaf, also known as tejpat, tejapatta, Malabar leaf, Indian bark, Indian cassia, or malabathrum, is a tree in the family Lauraceae that is native to northern India (Assam and the Western Himalayas), Bangladesh, Nepal, Myanmar, Laos, Vietnam, and southwestern China. It can grow up to 20 m (66 ft) tall. Its leaves have a clove-like aroma with a hint of peppery taste; they are used for culinary and medicinal purposes. It is thought to have been one of the major sources of the medicinal plant leaves known in classic and medieval times as malabathrum (or malobathrum).

Description

A tree. It grows to 15 m high. The bark is dark brown and wrinkled. The leaves are rounded at the base and taper to a tip. Leaves are 7.5-20 cm long by 3.5-6.5 cm wide. They are oval and long pointed. They are shiny above and pink when young. The flowers are yellow and hairy. The fruit are 1 cm long. They are fleshy with a stone inside. They are black when ripe.

Edible Uses

The dried bark and leaves are used as spices in curries and added to tea for flavour. The leaves serve as a substitute for betel leaf and bay leaf, and young leaves are sold in markets.

Traditional Uses

The bark and leaves are dried and used as spices in curries. They are also added to tea for flavour. The leaves are used as a substitute for Betel leaf and bay leaf.

Medicinal Uses

The dried bark is used in medicine.

Distribution

A tropical and subtropical plant. It grows in Nepal between 500-2000 m altitude. It grows on moist slopes of forested land. In India it grows between 800-1,600 m altitude usually in deep valleys. In Yunnan.

Where It Grows

Asia, Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, Himalayas, India, Indochina, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Northeastern India, NW India, Pakistan, SE Asia, Sikkim, Thailand, Vietnam,

Cultivation

Plants are grown by seed or shoot cuttings. Fresh seed are soaked in water overnight before sowing. Shoot cuttings 15-20 cm long can be used. Using rooting hormone helps. Seedlings can be transplanted after 1 year. Trees last 70-80 years. Leaves can be collected after 5-10 years.

Propagation

Seed - the seed of species in this genus generally has a short viability and is best sown as soon in containers as it is ripe. Remove the fruit pulp since this can inhibit germination. Soaking the seeds for 24 hours in lukewarm water hastens germination, which can take 1 - 6 months at 20°c. The germination rate of fresh seed is about 50%, falling to 25% for seed 6 months old, and zero for those 1 year old. Stored seed should be sown as soon as possible in containers. When they are large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and plant them out into their permanent positions when 10cm or more tall. Cuttings of semi-ripe side shoots, 7cm with a heel, in a frame with bottom heat.

Other Uses

The leaves yield around 2% essential oil with a specific gravity of 1.025. It is soluble in 1.2 volume of 70% alcohol. The oil resembles cinnamon leaf oil and contains phellandrene and 78% eugenol. The essential oil from the bark, known as 'cassia oil', is pale yellow, and contains 70 - 85% cinnamic aldehyde. The oil is used in perfuming soap and in medicine. However, trade in cassia oil has declined appreciably with the advent of synthetic cinnamic aldehyde. An extract from the leaves is an ingredient of commercial cosmetic preparations, where it is used as a skin conditioner. The essential oil obtained from the leaves has been shown to be an effective fungicide in treating pathogenic fungi on the cultivated plant Jatropha curcas. The leaf extracts are used as clarifiers in dyeing procedures with myrobalans or kamala.

Other Information

The young leaves are sold in markets. They are important in Bangladesh. It is cultivated.

Notes

There are about 250 Cinnamomum species. The dried bark is used in medicine.

Synonyms

Also Known As

Dalchini, Dieng-la-tyrpad, Dong-sumsor, Faresom, Kinken esing, Kokheisii, Lepu, Maza, Pinge, Rapi esing, Shing-nam, Shing-tsa, Siisitou, Sinkauli, Sinkoli, Taj, Talishappattiri, Talispatri, Tamalaka, Tamalapatra, Tegrapatra, Tejpaat, Tejpat, Tejpata, Tejpatra, Tejput, Tesh patta, Texpat, Thikya-bo, Thingthal, Thitchabo, Thit-kya-poe

References (65)

• Agarwal, R. & Chandra, V., 2019, Diversity of wild edible plants in the Mandal-Chopta forest, Uttarakhand. Journal of Medicinal Plants Studies 2019; 7(1): 89-92
• Ambasta, S.P. (Ed.), 2000, The Useful Plants of India. CSIR India. p 126
• Aryal, K. P., et al, 2018, Diversity and use of wild and non-cultivated edible plants in the Western Himalaya. Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine (2018) 14:10
• Bahuguna, A. et al, 2010, Floristic Diversity and Indigenous uses of Forest Vegetation of Dabka Watershed in Indian Central Himalayas. Ethnobotanical Leaflets 14:491-510
• Balkrishna, A., et al, 2022, Indigenous Uses of Plants among Forest-dependent Communities of Seijosa, Arunachal Pradesh. International Journal of Economic Plants 2022, 9(1):064-080

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