Piper sarmentosum Roxb. ex Hunter
Family
Piperaceae
Synonyms
Chavica sarmentosa (Roxb. ex Hunter) Miq.
Vernacular Names
| Malaysia | Chabai, kadok batu. |
| Indonesia | Karuk (Sundanese), cabean (Javanese), sirih tanah (Moluccas). |
| Philippines | Patai-butu (Sulu). |
| Cambodia | Môrech ansai. |
| Thailand | Cha phlu (Central), nom wa (Peninsular), phlu ling (Northern). |
| Vietnam |
Ti[ee]u l[oos]t, tat ph[aws]t. |
Geographical Distributions
Piper sarmentosum is distributed from India to southern China and from the Philippines southward to the Moluccas.
Description
Piper sarmentosum is an erect or ascending, stoloniferous herb or shrublet, up to 1 m tall. The leaves are with 2-8 cm long petiole. The lower leaves are ovate-cordate, 7-15 cm x 5-10 cm and 5-7-veined while the highest leaves are obliquely oblong, 7-11 cm x 3-5 cm and 3-veined.
The inflorescence is an erect spike and about 1-2 cm long. The bracts are circular, white and about 1 cm in diametre. Short stamens while stigmas are 3-4.
The fruit is a berry, connate to each other and adnate to bract but with free apex.
Ecology / Cultivation
Piper sarmentosum grows in thickets up to 600 m altitude, preferably in shady circumstances. In the past P. sarmentosum has been confused with P. longum L., which does not occur in Malesia.
Line Drawing / Photograph
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References
- Plant Resources of South-East Asia No.13: Spices.
