For the last 6000 years turmeric has been used in Ayurvedic medicine to alleviate pain, balance digestion, purify body and mind, clear skin diseases, expel phlegm, and invigorate the blood. Nowadays, this plant has acquired great importance with its anti-aging, anti-cancer, anti-Altzheimer, antioxidant, and a variety of other medicinal properties. The need of the hour is to verify and validate the traditional uses by subjecting them to proper experimental studies. To do this effectively there needs to be a single comprehensive source of the knowledge to date. Turmeric: the genus Curcuma is the first comprehensive monographic treatment on turmeric. It covers all aspects of turmeric including botany, genetic resources, crop improvement, processing, biotechnology, pharmacology, medicinal and traditional uses, and its use as a spice and flavoring. Bringing together the premier experts in the field from India, Japan, UK, and USA, this book offers the most thorough examination of the cultivation, market trends, processing, and products as well as pharmacokinetic and medicinal properties of this highly regarded spice. While Ayurveda has known for millennia that turmeric cleanses the body, modern science has now discovered that it produces glutathione-s-transferase that detoxifies the body and therefore strengthens the liver, heart, and immune system. By comparing traditional uses with modern scientific discoveries, the text provides a complete view of the medicinal value and health benefits of turmeric. Heavily referenced with an exhaustive bibliography at the end of each chapter, the book collects and collates the currently available data on turmeric. Covering everything from cultivation to medicine, Turmeric: the Genus Curcuma serves as an invaluable reference for those involved with agriculture, marketing, processing or product development, and may function as a catalyst for future research into the health benefits and applications of turmeric.

Cardamom otherwise known as Malabar cardamom, true cardamom or small cardamom second only to pepper in its importance during the Renaissance period, is often qualified as the Queen of Spices because of its very pleasant aroma and taste. The Western Ghat forest of the Malabar coast, India, is the centre of origin and diversity for cardamom and it might have been nature's design that the King and Queen of spices (black pepper and cardamom) originated in the same forest.
This volume contains sixteen chapters, fourteen on cardamom and one each on large cardamom and false cardamoms. All aspects of the cardamom crop have been covered in this volume, and each chapter is written by experts in their respective fields. This volume is visualised as both a textbook and reference work for scientists and students of horticulture, plantation crops, botany and related fields, and will go on to serve as the main reference volume on cardamom for many years to come.

eBook available with sample pages: 0203216636

Ginger: The Genus Zingiber is the first comprehensive volume on ginger. Valued as a spice and medicinal plant from ancient times both in India and China, ginger is now used universally as a versatile spice and in traditional medicine as well as in modern medicine.
This book covers all aspects of ginger, including botany, crop improvement, chemistry, biotechnology, production technology in the major producing countries, diseases, pests, and harvesting. It also explores processing, products, economics and marketing, pharmacology, medicinal applications, and uses as a spice and flavoring. Experts in the areas of genetic resources, botany, crop improvement, and biotechnology of ginger give an in-depth analysis of these key aspects, and each chapter concludes with an extensive bibliography.

Cinnamon and Cassia, the "Spices of Life," together constitute one of the most widely used group of spices. A comprehensive volume, Cinnamon and Cassia: Genus Cinnamomum explores in detail Srilankan cinnamon, Chinese cassia, Indonesian cassia, Indian cassia, camphor, and also the important related and useful spices of Cinnamomum. The introductory chapter depicts the history of these spices, followed by a detailed analysis of botany and crop improvement that examines taxonomy, morphology, embryology, reproduction, and propagation. A chapter on chemistry details the unique composition of cinnamon and cassia; it precedes an explanation of crop management, harvesting, and processing of Srilankan cinnamon. This book points out that Vietnamese and Chinese cassia are the same, with differences only in harvesting and processing. It also includes chapters on Indian and Indonesian varieties of cassia, along with overviews of the camphor tree, and coverage of cinnamon and cassia pharmacology, toxicology, end uses, economics, and marketing. The volume concludes with an informative chapter on other economically useful species of Cinnamomum. Written by a panel of experts from throughout Asia, this volume is the only comprehensive monograph on these spices, benefiting those engaged in study, cultivation, marketing, processing, and product development.

Cardamom otherwise known as Malabar cardamom, true cardamom or small cardamom second only to pepper in its importance during the Renaissance period, is often qualified as the Queen of Spices because of its very pleasant aroma and taste. The Western Ghat forest of the Malabar coast, India, is the center of origin and diversity for cardamom and it might have been nature's design that the King and Queen of spices (black pepper and cardamom) originated in the same forest. This volume contains sixteen chapters, fourteen on cardamom and one each on large cardamom and false cardamoms. All aspects of the cardamom crop have been covered in this volume, and each chapter is written by experts in their respective fields. This volume is visualized as both a textbook and reference work for scientists and students of horticulture, plantation crops, botany and related fields, and will go on to serve as the main reference volume on cardamom for many years to come.

Cinnamon and Cassia, the "Spices of Life", together constitute one of the most widely used group of spices. A comprehensive volume, Cinnamon and Cassia: Genus Cinnamomum explores in detail Srilankan cinnamon, Chinese cassia, Indonesian cassia, Indian cassia, camphor, and also the important related and useful spices of Cinnamomum. The introductory chapter depicts the history of these spices, followed by a detailed analysis of botany and crop improvement that examines taxonomy, morphology, embryology, reproduction, and propagation. A chapter on chemistry details the unique composition of cinnamon and cassia; it precedes an explanation of crop management, harvesting, and processing of Srilankan cinnamon. This book points out that Vietnamese and Chinese cassia are the same, with differences only in harvesting and processing. It also includes chapters on Indian and Indonesian varieties of cassia, along with overviews of the camphor tree, and coverage of cinnamon and cassia pharmacology, toxicology, end uses, economics, and marketing. The volume concludes with an informative chapter on other economically useful species of Cinnamomum. Written by a panel of experts from throughout Asia, this volume is the only comprehensive monograph on these spices, benefiting those engaged in study, cultivation, marketing, processing, and product development.

Black Pepper is the first monograph to be published on this important spice, the most widely-used by mankind. This monograph includes chapters on all aspects of the crop's botany and its improvement, agronomy, chemistry, post harvest technology, processing, diseases, insect pests, marketing, economics and uses. The available information is collected and presented for the use of students, teachers and research workers. All the chapters are written by experts in their fields.

The book -- a veritable 'treasure trove' of all that is known about the crop -- is meant for undergraduate and graduate students, teachers and researchers in the areas of agriculture, horticulture and crop botany. This will serve both as a text book and as a reference book. It is hoped that this monograph will remain the major reference source for all pepper workers for at least the next decade.