Morphological information

Tubers palmate. Stem 30-90 cm, usually fistular, leafy upwards. Leaves many, 5-15 cm, erect, oblong, linear-oblong or lanceolate, tip flat or concave. Spike 2.5-15 cm, cylindric, dense flowered; bracts green, acuminate, usually much exceeding the flowers. Flowers about 17 mm from the dorsal sepal to tip of lip, dull purple, sepals and petals acute or obtuse, lateral sepals ovate, reflexed; lip oblong or rhamboid, crenate, entire or very obtusely 3-lobed, spotted with darker purple, sides deflexed, midlobe small or obsolete; spur straight or curved, stout, equaling or shorted than the ovary, pendulous.

Flowering                      : June-August

Fruiting                         : September-November

History                         :

Parts                            : Root.

Status                          : Rare, endangered.

 

Medicinal

The roots yield the commercial salep, eaten as farinaceous food, nervine tonic, aphrodisiac, mucilage and jelly from the roots is given in diarrhoea, dysentery and chronic fevers, its extract with sugar and spice as drink in general debility and infusion to relieve hoarseness.
A paste made out of the tubers is applied over cuts and bruises. It is also orally used to cure body ache.

 

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