title: Significance of gingers (Zingiberaceae) in Indian System of Medicine - Ayurveda: An overview.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Family Zingiberaceae consists of the large number of medicinal plants and is well-known for its use in ethnomedicine and play a major role in Indian System of Medicine, Ayurveda.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  The aim of this study is the documentation of Zingiberaceous plants used in Ayurveda, adding information to the systematics, vernacular names and chemistry with experimental data.
  
  
  METHODS
  The live plants were collected from wild and successfully conserved at Herbal Garden of Arya Vaidya Sala, Kottakkal. The experimental data of each species has been collected from the various sources. The photographs were taken and all relevant data documented.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  A total of 13 species belonging to 7 genera of Zingiberaceae were documented. The work will be useful to students and researchers as it provides an easy access to Zingiberaceous plants used in Ayurveda.
authors.affiliation: Department of Plant Systematics and Genetic Resources, Centre for Medicinal Plants Research, Arya Vaidya Sala, Kottakkal, Malappuram, Kerala, India.
authors.forename: Konickal Mambetta Prabhu
authors.initials: KM
authors.lastname: Kumar
authors.affiliation: Department of Plant Systematics and Genetic Resources, Centre for Medicinal Plants Research, Arya Vaidya Sala, Kottakkal, Malappuram, Kerala, India.
authors.forename: Gopinathan Ramanikutty
authors.initials: GR
authors.lastname: Asish
authors.affiliation: Department of Botany, University of Calicut, Malappuram, Kerala, India.
authors.forename: Mamiyil
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Sabu
authors.affiliation: Department of Plant Systematics and Genetic Resources, Centre for Medicinal Plants Research, Arya Vaidya Sala, Kottakkal, Malappuram, Kerala, India.
authors.forename: Indira
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Balachandran
keywords: Ayurveda; Curcuma; Gingers; Indian System of Medicine; Zingiberaceae