Tagar (Valeriana wallichii) Herb Overview

Tagar (Valeriana wallichii)

Tagar (Valeriana wallichii) is a dried rhizome, stolon, and small portion of root of valeriana wallichii. It is a hairy perenniall herb, growing in temperate Himalayas from Kashmir to Bhutan and hills up to and an altitude of 3,000m. It grows moderately fast up to 5 m tall in its natural habitat. The leaves are oval having 8 to 15 cm long, prominently veined, dark glossy green with a leathery texture. Fruits are rare but when produced are curved, ribbed, cylindrical seed pods up to 7 cm long.

Scientific Classification of Tagar (Valeriana wallichii):

  • Kingdom: Plantae – Plants
  • Subkingdom: Tracheobionta – Vascular plants
  • Superdivision: Spermatophyta – Seed plants
  • Division: Magnoliophyta – Flowering plants
  • Class: Magnoliopsida – Dicotyledons
  • Subclass: Asteridae
  • Order: Dipsacales
  • Family: Valerianaceae – Valerian family
  • Genus: Valeriana L. – valerian
  • Species: Valeriana wallichii

Tagar (Valeriana wallichii) Synonyms:

  • Sanskrit: Kalanusari, Kalanusarika, Nata
  • Assamese: Tagar
  • Bengali: Tagar Paduka
  • English: Indian Valerian
  • Gujrati: Tagar Ganthoda, Tagar Gantho, Ghodawaj
  • Hindi: Mushkbala, Sugandhabala
  • Kannada: Mandibattal, Mandyavanthu, Mandibattalu, Tagar
  • Kashmiri: Bala, Mushkbala
  • Malayalam: Thakaram
  • Marathi: Tagar, Ganthode
  • Oriya: Tagarapaduka, Jalashiuli
  • Punjabi: Mushkobala, Sugandhbala
  • Tamil: Tagarai
  • Telugu: Grandhi Tagaramu
  • Urdu: Tagar

Tagar (Valeriana wallichii) Description:

Tagar (Valeriana wallichii)a) Macroscopic: The Rhizome of tagar is about 4-8 cm long and 4-10 mm thick pieces, dull yellowish-brown. It is somewhat rough, slightly curved and un branched. The upper surface is marked with raised encircling leaf scars, and under surface bearing numerous, small, circular prominent, root scars and a few stout rootlets. The crown bearing remains of aerial stems with fracture short, scale leaves.

The stolon connecting rhizomes stout is about 1-5 mm long and 2-4 mm thick. It is yellowish-grey in color, longitudinally wrinkled, usually having nodes and internodes and bearing adventitious roots. The stolon is about 1-2 mm thick. The root is yellowish-brown and is about 3-5 cm long and 1 mm thick. The odour is strong and reminiscent of isovaleric acid. The taste is bitter and somewhat camphoraceous.

Tagar (Valeriana wallichii)b) Microscopic: The transverse section of rhizome shows cork and is consisting of 5-15 layers of lignified, cells occasionally containing oil globules. The cortex parenchymatous containing numerous starch grain oil globules and yellowish-brown substance.

The 2 or 3 outer layer of cortex, collenchymatous occasional root traces appear as paler strands. The endodermis is single layered, pericycle, pareachymatous and within it 12-18 collateral vascular bundles is present separated by dark medullary ray. The starch occurs as single or occasional compound grains of two components, individual grains being 7-30 µ mostly, and 10-25 µ in diameter calcium oxalate crystals absent.

Stolon: The transverse section of stolon shows cork, consisting of 2-5 layers. The cortex is having 25 layers. The pareachymatous is followed by 20 collateral vascular bundles, which in young stolons separated by cellulosic parenchymatous medullary rays. In older stolons it become lignified, pith wide and lacunar, root traces absent.

Root: The transverse section of root shows small, central parenchymatous pith and is surrounded by tetrach to polyarch xylem and a wide parenchymatous bark.

Identity, Purity, and Strength of Tagar (Valeriana wallichii):

  • Foreign matter                         Not more than 2 percent,                   Appendix                     2.2.2.
  • Total Ash                                 Not more than 12 percent,                 Appendix                     2.2.3.
  •  Acid-insoluble ash                 Not more than 10 percent,                 Appendix                    2.2.4.
  •  Alcohol-soluble extractive     Not less than 30 percent,                   Appendix                     2.2.6.
  •  Water-soluble extractive       Not less than 19 percent,                    Appendix                    2.2.7.

Chemical Constituents of Tagar (Valeriana wallichii):

The roots and rhizome of tagar contain cyclopentapyrans (tranquilizing, sedative, and bacteriocidal properties), linarin iso-valerinate, iridoid ester glycoside.
Indian valerian oils which is extracted from roots is rich in valeranone, maalioxide, maalitol.

Ayurvedic Properties and Action of Tagar (Valeriana wallichii):

  • Rasa (taste): Katu, Tikta, Kshaya
  • Guna (quality): Laghu, Snigdha
  • Virya (potency): Ushna
  • Vipaka (taste conversion after digestion): Katu
  • Karma: Raktadoshahara, Vishaghana, Manasdoshahara, Tridoshahara

Ayurvedic Formulations made by Tagar (Valeriana wallichii):

The main formulations of tagar are Mahanarayana taila, Jatiphaladi churna, Dhanvantram taila, Devadarvadyarishta, Bala taila

Therapeutic Uses of Tagar (Valeriana wallichii):

Meda, Apasmara, Visha, Shiroroga, Bhuta, Unmada, Netraroga, Raktadosha, Shoola

Dose of Tagar (Valeriana wallichii):

1-3 g of the drug in powder form.

Reference:

Ayurvedic Pharmacopeia of India.

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