How to Grow Amomum tsao-ko for High Yield? Latest Cultivation Techniques and Methods Tutorial
Amomum tsao-ko is a plant in the ginger family (Zingiberaceae), genus Amomum, also known as caoguo seed and caoguo fruit. The stems grow in clumps and can reach 3 m in height. The whole plant has a pungent aroma, and the underground part somewhat resembles ginger. The leaves are long-elliptic or oblong, 40-70 cm long. The spike inflorescence is unbranched, 13-18 cm long, with a red corolla. The capsules are densely clustered, red when ripe, brown after drying, indehiscent, and long-elliptic. The seeds are angular and have a rich fragrance. The flowering period is April to June, and the fruiting period is September to December. It grows in shaded, humid forest areas of the tropics and subtropics; artificial cultivation is mainly concentrated in Yunnan. Its dried fruit is used as a Chinese cooking seasoning and as a Chinese herbal medicine. It is distributed in Yunnan, Guangxi, Guizhou and other places in China. It has a distinctive aroma and a pungent, slightly bitter taste. Amomum tsao-ko is a seasoning spice, and it has a particularly rich, pungent aroma.
Botanical Morphology
The whole plant consists of seven parts: roots, rhizomes, upright stems, leaves, flowers, fruits and seeds.
1. Roots. The root system is divided into supporting roots (actually rhizomes) and nutrient roots. The supporting roots are the thick, jointed, horizontally creeping rhizomes that are swollen like ginger at the lower part of the main stem. The nutrient roots are the thinner pink fibrous roots growing on both sides and at the tips of the supporting roots; they penetrate 10-30 cm into the soil and can grow to 1-2 m long, serving to absorb nutrients and water.
2. Stems. The stems are divided into upright stems and rhizomes. The upright stems emerge from the leaf buds on the horizontally creeping rhizomes and grow in clumps, reaching 2.5-4 m in height; they are dark green with purplish-red at the base, cylindrical and jointed, growing upright or following the slope, and generally have 12-16 leaves. The rhizomes creep and extend underground, also called creeping stems; new creeping stems grow symmetrically from both sides of the swollen base of the upright stem and from the internodes of the rhizome, serving to support and store nutrients. When the rhizome grows to a certain extent, it sends up new shoots, which grow into new plants (upright stems) the following year. The dormant buds within the scales on the rhizome can sprout into flower buds and leaf buds; that is, sprouted flower buds can grow into flower spikes, while sprouted leaf buds grow into upright stems.
3. Leaves. The leaves are arranged in 2 rows, with short petioles or sessile; the leaf blades are long-elliptic or narrowly oblong, about 55 cm long and up to 20 cm wide, gradually pointed at the tip, gradually narrowed at the base, entire-margined, and smooth and hairless on both surfaces; the leaf sheaths are open and clasp the stem.
4. Flowers. Amomum tsao-ko has a spike inflorescence that emerges from the rhizome and is spherical, with 60-120 flowers per spike. The flowers are bisexual and arranged spirally on the rachis of the flower spike. The small flowers are covered layer by layer by purplish-red bracts, so the unopened flower spike appears purplish-red. When opening, the flowers bloom gradually from bottom to top in a clockwise spiral; the first flowers to open also fade first.
5. Fruit. The fruit of Amomum tsao-ko is an indehiscent capsule. The fruit is rich in fiber and hard in texture after drying. The fruit shape is spindle-shaped, ovoid or nearly spherical, and the fruits are densely arranged in a spiral on a rachis. Each spike has 15-60 fruits, and each fruit is 2.5-4 cm long and 1.4-2 cm in diameter, with a short fruit stalk at its base. Young fruits are bright red, turning purplish-red when mature, and brown after roasting; they do not split open, are tough and hard, and have relatively neat straight fiber lines.
6. Seeds. Each fruit of Amomum tsao-ko contains 20-66 seeds. The seeds are angular, about 0.4-0.7 cm long and about 0.3-0.5 cm wide, and each seed grain is wrapped in a layer of white spongy film. The seed kernel is white and has a rich, refreshing, pungent flavor. The average 1000-grain weight is 120-140 g, and each kilogram of fresh seeds contains about 6000-7000 grains.
Uses of Amomum tsao-ko
1. Edible value
Amomum tsao-ko is a seasoning spice and an indispensable necessity in the daily life of people in the vast urban and rural areas of our country. Amomum tsao-ko has a particularly rich, pungent aroma, can remove fishy odors and increase appetite, and is an excellent cooking seasoning; it is praised by people as “one of the five spices” in food seasoning. When stewing beef and mutton, adding a little Amomum tsao-ko makes the dish fragrant and delicious while also driving off the gamy smell; therefore, Amomum tsao-ko has always been a sought-after commodity. It is especially favored in regions that regularly eat beef and mutton, such as Xinjiang, Gansu, Inner Mongolia, Ningxia, Xizang, and Shaanxi.
2. Medicinal value
Amomum tsao-ko is pungent in flavor and warm in nature; it has the functions of warming the middle and strengthening the stomach, promoting digestion and smoothing qi, and dispelling cold and dampness, and it can also relieve alcohol toxicity and remove bad breath. The fruit used as medicine can treat heart and abdominal pain, indigestion from food accumulation, diarrhea, vomiting, poor appetite, cough with excessive phlegm, chest fullness and abdominal distension, and other symptoms. The medicinal functions of Amomum tsao-ko are recorded in ancient texts such as Ben Cao Qiu Yuan and Compendium of Materia Medica.
3. Ecological value
Because Amomum tsao-ko grows in mountain hollows under evergreen broad-leaved forests, it does not compete for land with other crops, and it can also make full use of forest resources, protect evergreen broad-leaved forests, conserve water sources, protect soil and water, and create a good ecological environment for stable and high agricultural yields.
4. Economic value
There are many benefits to cultivating Amomum tsao-ko. It can bloom and bear fruit after three years of planting, enter the full fruiting period after seven years, continue bearing fruit for about 20 years, and generally can grow for several decades. In addition, its management is relatively extensive and the investment is low.