Amomum Roxb. is a moderately large and diverse genus, with several widely cultivated species of economic importance. The first regional treatment of Amomum of Sumatra, in which 23 species are recognised, is presented here. Two species, Amomum mentawaiense A.J. Droop and Amomum oligophyllum A.J. Droop, are newly described, and a further nine species are recorded for the first time from the island. Detailed descriptions and provisional IUCN assessments are provided for each species, and a key to the Amomum species of Sumatra is given. The names Amomum compactum Sol. ex Maton and Amomum cardamomum sensu Roxb. Are lectotypified and a transcription of Solander’s collection notes for A. compactum is provided. Evolutionary relationships within the tribe Alpinieae, and in particular within Amomum Roxb., were reconstructed based on sequences from the nuclear ribosomal ITS region and the chloroplast regions matK and trnL-F. Phylogenetic analyses identified at least seven distinct groups of Amomum species within the Alpinieae, suggesting that the genus as currently defined is polyphyletic. Alpinia and Hornstedtia were also identified as being polyphyletic. Morphological character analysis identified several characters that could be used, in combination, to distinguish between the groups of Amomum and of these, fruit morphology is the most informative. A hypothesis for the temporal and spatial evolutionary history for the Zingiberaceae and tribe Alpinieae was developed using a phylogeny derived from ITS sequence data and Bayesian ancestral area and dating reconstruction analyses. A Laurasian origin of the Zingiberaceae (105 – 72 Ma) is proposed, with the Alpinieae migrating south-east across Sundaland and crossing Wallace’s Line from the west to the east. Long-distance dispersal events are suggested to account for the presence of Aframomum and Renealmia in Africa, and Renealmia in the Neotropics.

The species of Amomum Roxb. (Zingiberaceae) in Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam are revised. Thirty-five species and two varieties are recognised, all names are typified, and detailed descriptions and a key are provided. Nine new species are described and one species is validated. Whilst revising Amomum for the Flore du Cambodge, du Laos et du Viêtnam, we have proposed to conserve the name Amomum villosum Lour. with a recent collection from Laos, which was not included in the protologue, as its type. Our research on the use of Amomum focuses on the use of plants during pregnancy, parturition, postpartum recovery and infant healthcare among three ethnic groups, the Brou, Saek and Kry. The investigations aim to identify culturally important traditions that may facilitate implementation of culturally appropriate healthcare. Data were collected in Khammouane province, Lao PDR, through group and individual interviews with women by female interviewers. More than 55 plant species are used in women's healthcare, of which > 90 % are used in postpartum recovery. This wealth of novel insights into plant use and preparation will help to understand culturally important practices such as confinement, dietary restrictions, mother roasting and herbal steam baths and their incorporation into modern healthcare. Through chemical analyses of Amomum we have recorded compounds with antimicrobial, analgesic and sedative effects that point to an empirical development of the traditional treatments around childbirth. Essential oils of three species used in hotbed and mother roasting, Amomum villosum Lour. Amomum microcarpum C.F.Liang & D.Fang and Blumea balsamifera (L.) DC. were found to contain significant amounts of the following terpenes: b-pinene, camphor, bornylacetate, borneol, linalool, D-limonene, fenchone, terpinen-4-ol and a-terpinene.