Alpinia galanga to cardamom. The rhizome is a common ingredient in Thai curries and soups, where it is used fresh in chunks or cut into thin slices, mashed and mixed into curry paste. Indonesian "rendang" is usually spiced with galangal. Under the names 'chewing John', 'little John to chew', and 'court case root', it is used in African American folk medicine and hoodoo folk magic. Ayurveda considers "A. galanga" (Sanskrit:-"rasna") as a Vata Shamana drug. Known as ("perarathai") in Tamil, this form of ginger is used with licorice root, called in Tamil "athi-mathuram" ("Glycyrrhiza glabra") as folk medicine for colds and sore
Schisandra glabra more. Leaves are elliptic to cordate (heart-shaped), up to 13 cm (5.2 inches) long. The plant is monoecious, with staminate (male, pollen-producing) and pistillate (female, seed-producing) flowers separate on the same plant. Sepals are whitish, petals pink or red. Berries are red, spherical to ellipsoid, up to 15 mm (0.6 inches) long. It can be found in wooded bluffs, hillsides and ravines at elevations less than 500 m (1650 feet). Some sources spell the name "Schizandra", while others use the now-rejected name "Stellandria". "Schisandra" is the accepted spelling. Schisandra glabra Schisandra glabra, the bay star-vine, is the only American species