Collection, Studies and Selection of Krachai-Dam (Kaempferia parviflora Wall.) Cultivars: Chemical Compositions of Essential Oil from Collected Krachai-Dam Rhizomes

Abstract

The exploration and collection of Krachai-Dam (Kaempferia parviflora Wall. ex Baker) cultivars were carried out at the commercial cultivated area in 3 provinces of the northern and the northeastern Thailand namely Loei, Phitsanulok and Phetchabun  during January to February 2003. The study was done by measuring the internal skin color of collected Krachai-Dam rhizomes in a*L*b* color systems at Chiangrai Horticultural Research Center and the data were analysed by Unweighted Pair Group Method Cluster (UPGMA),  they were classified into six groups. The chemical compositions of the essential oil in the Krachai-Dam rhizomes from each group were studied and compared by using Gas Chromatograph/Mass Spectrometer (GC-MS) during February to April 2003 at the Department of Pharmacognosy,  Faculty of Pharmaceutical Science, Chulalongkorn University.  The results showed that there were significantly different (p< 0.05) among these cultivars in the quantities of the essential oil in the rhizomes. The pale internal skin color cultivars gave much greater amounts of the essential oil than the dark internal skin color, except for ‘Rom-Klao’.There were different among these cultivars in the 51 chemical compositions of the essential oil in the rhizomes. The UPGMA revealed that these cultivars could be divided into 2 main groups (5 subgroups). Two dendrograms showed good relationship between the clusters of chemical compositions of essential oil in rhizomes and the internal skin color of rhizomes, especially the pale internal skin color groups. In conclusion,  the Krachai-Dam cultivars had influenced on the quantities and the chemical compositions of the essential oil in the rhizomes.  The results of the study were beneficial to Krachai-Dam wine production and standardization about the odor of the wine and other products.