Ethnobotany of Acorus in China

Hang Shu, Shuang Zhang, Qiyi Lei, Jiangju Zhou, Yuanyuan Ji, Binsheng Luo, Liya Hong, Feifei Li, Bo Liu, Chunlin Long

Abstract


In China, species in the genus Acorus are used for many different purposes, viz., in traditional medicine, for rituals, and as ornamental plants. Acorus calamus (sweet flag) has been a symbolic plant in Chinese culture for many centuries and is used as a ceremonial object in festivals throughout the country. For other Acorus species in China, ethnobotanical records are few. During field investigations from 2006 to 2017, we interviewed 573 individuals representing ethnic groups such as the Miao, Yao, Buyi, Shui, Tujia, Dong, She, Maonan, Zhuang, Yi, and Han people. Various ethnobotanical approaches were adopted in the field surveys, including key informant interviews, semistructured interviews, participatory observation, direct observation, etc. The results have revealed a rich treasure trove of traditional knowledge on Acorus in China. Two species (A. macrospadiceus and A. gramineus) were used by ethnic groups as spices to add flavor to meat. Through the study found that all the species of Acorus had medicinal value, especially A. tatarinowii, deafness, blindness, and digestive disorders were among the conditions commonly treated using these plants. Traditional knowledge of the cultural, ethnomedicinal, and food values of Acorus, based on our recent literature surveys and field investigations in China is presented here. A better understanding of Acorus is vital for conserving the plants and the traditional knowledge associated with them.

Keywords


Acorus calamus; A. gramineus; A. macrospadiceus; A. tatarinowii; ethnomedicine; ethnobotany; Dragon Boat Festival; plant culture

Full Text:

PDF

References


Li H. Flora Reipublicae Popularis Sinicae. Vol. 13(2). Beijing: Science Press; 1979.

Li H, Zhu GH, Bogner J. Acoraceae. In: Wu ZY, Raven P, Hong DY, editors. Flora of China. Vol. 23. Beijing: Science Press and Missouri Botanical Garden Press; 2003. p. 1–2.

Wei FN, Li YK. A new spice, Acorus macrospadiceus from South China. Guihaia. 1985;5(3):179–182.

Motley TJ. The ethnobotany of sweet flag, Acorus calamus (Araceae). Econ Bot. 1994;48(4):397–412. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02862235

Łuczaj Ł. Dzika kuchnia. Warszawa: Wydawnictwo Nasza Ksiegarnia; 2014.

Sharma V, Singh I, Chaudhary P. Acorus calamus (the healing plant): a review on its medicinal potential, micropropagation and conservation. Nat Proc Res. 2014;28:1454–1466. https://doi.org/10.1080/14786419.2014.915827

Ratsch C. Encyclopedia of psychoactive plants. South Paris, ME: Park Street Press; 2005.

Acharya KP, Rokaya MB. Ethnobotanical survey of medicinal plants traded in the streets of Kathmandu valley. Scientific World. 2005;3(3):44–48.

Sharma UK, Pegu S. Ethnobotany of religious and supernatural beliefs of the Mising tribes of Assam with special reference to the “Dobur Uie”. J Ethnobiol Ethnomed. 2011;7:16. https://doi.org/10.1186/1746-4269-7-16

Xiao F. The Origin and customs of the Dragon-boat Festival. Encyclopedic Knowledge. 2005;12(6):57–59.

Mo FS, Wu BL, Wu YZ. A cultural dictionary of Chinese folk festivals. Beijing: China Labor Publishing House; 1992.

Lu DP, Qi P, Xu S, Li HB. The great dictionary of Chinese civilization. Beijing: China Ocean Press; 1992.

Wu BA. Cultural memory and reflection to rescue the Dragon-boat Festival original culture. Northwest Minorities Research. 2005;46(3):77–80.

Grayum MH. Evolution and phylogeny of the Araceae. Ann Mo Bot Gard. 1990;628–697. https://doi.org/10.2307/2399668

Duvall MR, Learn GH Jr., Eguiarte LE, Clegg MT. Phylogenetic analysis of rbcL sequences identifies Acorus calamus as the primal extant monocotyledon. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA. 1993;90(10):4641–4644. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.90.10.4641

Singh R, Sharma PK, Malviya R. Pharmacological properties and ayurvedic value of Indian buch plant (Acorus calamus): a short review. Adv Biol Res (Rennes). 2011;5(3):145–154.

Rajput SB, Tonge MB, Karuppayil SM. An overview on traditional uses and pharmacological profile of Acorus calamus Linn. (sweet flag) and other Acorus species. Phytomedicine. 2014;21(3):268–276. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.phymed.2013.09.020

Phillips R, Foy N. Herbs. London: Pan Books, Ltd.; 1990.

Jaiswal Y, Liang Z, Ho A, Chen H, Zhao Z. Metabolite profiling of tissues of Acorus calamus and Acorus tatarinowii rhizomes by using LMD, UHPLC-QTOF MS, and GC-MS. Planta Med. 2015;81(4):333–341. https://doi.org/10.1055/s-0035-1545694

Shu H, Zhang S, Ji YY, Long CL. Acoraceae plants, potential ornamentals. Works of the State Nikita Botanical Gardens. 2017;145:114–118.

Reyes-García V, Guèze M, Luz AC, Paneque-Gálvez J, Macía MJ, Orta-Martínez M, et al. Evidence of traditional knowledge loss among a contemporary indigenous society. Evol Hum Behav. 2013;34(4):249–257. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.evolhumbehav.2013.03.002

Alexiades MN. Selected guidelines for ethnobotanical research: a field manual. New York, NY: New York Botanical Garden; 1996.

Long CL, Wang JR. The principle, method and application of participatory rural assessment. Kunming: Yunnan Science and Technology Press; 1996.

Chambers R. The origins and practice of participatory rural appraisal. World Dev. 1994;22(7):953–969. https://doi.org/10.1016/0305-750X(94)90141-4

Chambers R. Participatory rural appraisal (PRA): challenges, potentials and paradigm. World Dev. 1994;22(10):1437–1454. https://doi.org/10.1016/0305-750X(94)90030-2

Si MQ. Records of the Grand Historian. Beijing: Zhonghua Book Company; 1965.

Zhang FX. Nuo culture in the Dragon-boat Festival. Journal of Shanxi Normal University (Social Science Edition). 2009;36(2):91–93.

Cheung F. TCM: made in China. Nature. 2011;480(7378):S82–S83. https://doi.org/10.1038/480S82a

Sun XY, Sun FJ. Shennongbencaojing. Huhehot: Inner Mongolia People’s Publishing House; 1996.

Li SZ. Compendium of materia medica. Beijing: People’s Medical Publishing House; 1979.

Luo WH. The preliminary research on Miao medicine Acorus. Journal of Medicine and Pharmacy of Chinese Minorities. 1996;2(2):43–44.

Jia MR, Li XW. Atlas of ethnomedicine of China. Beijing: Chinese Pharmaceutical Science and Technology Publishing House; 2005.

Yunnan Medicine Research Institute, Yunnan Modern Ethnic Medicine Engineering Technology Research Center. The annals of national medicine in Yunnan. Kunming: The Nationalities Publishing House of Yunnan; 2008.




DOI: https://doi.org/10.5586/asbp.3585

Journal ISSN:
  • 2083-9480 (online)
  • 0001-6977 (print; ceased since 2016)
This is an Open Access journal, which distributes its content under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits redistribution, commercial and non-commercial, provided that the content is properly cited.
The journal is a member of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and aims to follow the COPE’s principles.
The journal publisher is a member of the Open Access Scholarly Publishers Association.
The journal content is indexed in Similarity Check, the Crossref initiative to prevent scholarly and professional plagiarism.
Publisher
Polish Botanical Society