Vetiveria zizanioides - (L.)Nash.
(L.)Nash.
Vetiveria, Vetivergrass
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HERBÁRIO MANUEL DE ARRUDA CÂMARA (HACAM)
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Delaware State University, Claude E. Phillips Herbarium (DOV-)
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Baylor University Herbarium (BAYLU-BAYLU)
Description
Vetiveria zizanioides is an evergreen Perennial growing to 1.6 m (5ft) by 1.6 m (5ft). See above for USDA hardiness. It is hardy to UK zone 8 and is frost tender. The species is hermaphrodite (has both male and female organs). Suitable for: light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils. Suitable pH: mildly acid, neutral and basic (mildly alkaline) soils. It can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade. It prefers moist soil.
Edible Uses
Condiment. The roots are aromatic and are used as a food flavouring. An essential oil obtained from the roots is used as a flavouring in sherbets, syrup sweets, fruit drinks and canned asparagus. It is used in certain canned foods, such as asparagus and peas, to reinforce the natural odour and taste.
Medicinal Uses
The essential oil obtained from the roots is used medicinally as a carminative, diaphoretic, diuretic, emmenagogue, refrigerant, stomachic, tonic, antispasmodic and sudorific. A stimulant drink is made from fresh rhizomes. The plants are used as an anthelmintic.
Distribution
Tropics.
Where It Grows
TROPICAL ASIA: India (Assam, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Meghalaya, Odisha, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal), Sri Lanka, Pakistan (Punjab), Indochina, Myanmar, Thailand
Cultivation
This species cannot tolerate hard frosts. In areas that experience much frost, it is better to divide up the plant in the autumn, potting up the divisions and over-wintering them in a greenhouse before planting them back outdoors in late spring. Vetiveria grass is a fast-growing grass that is non-invasive, very deep rooting, insect and vermin proof. It is drought-resistant, and also withstands inundation. It is much planted in the tropics and sub-tropics where its extensive root system makes it valuable for erosion control. Vetiveria zizanioides (syn Chrysopogon zizanioides) is a plant of the tropics, where it is found at elevations up to 2,500 metres. It grows best in areas where annual daytime temperatures are within the range 22 - 35°c, but can tolerate 12 - 45°c. When dormant, the plant can survive temperatures down to about -15°c, but young growth can be severely damaged at 0°c. It prefers a mean annual rainfall in the range 500 - 2,500mm, but tolerates 200 - 5,000mm. Prefers a moisture-retentive soil in full sun. Succeeds in a very wide range of soils, tolerating occasional waterlogging once established. Plants are very tolerant of saline soils. Prefers a Ph in the range 4.5 - 8, tolerating 3 - 9.9. A yield of 1 - 5 tonnes of dried roots per hectare can be harvested annually, at an oil content of 0.7 - 2.5%, this produces 40 - 100 kilos of essential oil.
Propagation
Seed -
Other Uses
Essential Pot-pourri Soil stabilization. The aromatic roots are used in pot-pourri and perfumes. The essential oil from the roots is used in perfumery. The plant has deep-rooted and far-ranging roots that make it a valuable plant for controlling soil erosion in cultivated fields. It is often planted along the contour lines for this purpose.
