Note: This is a project under development. The articles on this wiki are just being initiated and broadly incomplete. You can Help creating new pages.

Ocimum basilicum - Basil leaves

From Ayurwiki
Jump to: navigation, search
Basil leaves

Basil leaves also called great basil, Ocimum basilicum or Saint-Joseph's-wort, is a culinary herb of the family Lamiaceae. This medicinal herb can help with flatulence, lack of appetite, cuts, and scrapes. Harvest the young leaves of this annual plant as needed.

Uses

colic, constipation, anxiety, sleep difficulties, migraine, fever, colds, flu, arthritis, cough, bad breath.

Parts Used

seeds, leaves.

Chemical Composition

concentrations of linalool and methyl chavicol (estragole), in a ratio of about 3:1. Other constituents include: 1,8-cineole, eugenol, and myrcene, among others. The clove scent of sweet basil is derived from eugenol. The aroma profile of basil includes 1,8-cineole and methyl eugenol.[1]

Common names

Language Common name
Kannada Tulasi
Hindi Ban tulsi, Jangli tuls
Malayalam Thulasi, Sivathulasi, Krishnathulasi
Tamil Tulaci ilaikal
Telugu Tulasi akulu
Marathi NA
Gujarathi NA
Punjabi NA
Kashmiri NA
Sanskrit Thulasha
English Basilie, Sweet Basil


Properties

Reference: Dravya - Substance, Rasa - Taste, Guna - Qualities, Veerya - Potency, Vipaka - Post-digesion effect, Karma - Pharmacological activity, Prabhava - Therepeutics.

Dravya

Rasa

Tikta (Bitter), Katu (Pungent)

Guna

Laghu (Light), Ruksha (Dry), Tikshna (Sharp)

Veerya

Ushna (Hot)

Vipaka

Karma

Prabhava

Habit

Shrub

Identification

Leaf

Kind Shape Feature
simple silky Fresh basil leaves have a strong and character­istic aroma, not comparable to any other spice, although there is a hint of cloves trace­able

.[2]

Flower

Type Size Color and composition Stamen More information
Unisexual 2-4cm long white 4 flowers are arranged in a terminal spike

Fruit

Type Size Mass Appearance Seeds More information
seeds upto 5 {{{6}}}

Other features

List of Ayurvedic medicine in which the herb is used

Where to get the saplings

Mode of Propagation

Seeds, cuttings.

How to plant/cultivate

Basil grows between 30–130 cm (12–51 in) tall, with opposite, light green, silky leaves 3–11 cm (1.2–4.3 in) long and 1–6 cm (0.39–2.36 in) broad. The flowers are small, white in color and arranged in a terminal spike. Unusual among Lamiaceae, the four stamens and the pistil are not pushed under the upper lip of the corolla, but lie over the inferior lip. After entomophilous pollination, the corolla falls off and four round achenes develop inside the bilabiate calyx.

Commonly seen growing in areas

tropical, Medi­terranean region.

Photo Gallery

References

External Links