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PRINT ISSN : 2319-7692
Online ISSN : 2319-7706 Issues : 12 per year Publisher : Excellent Publishers Email : editorijcmas@gmail.com / submit@ijcmas.com Editor-in-chief: Dr.M.Prakash Index Copernicus ICV 2018: 95.39 NAAS RATING 2020: 5.38 |
1Horticultural Research station, Kodaikanal-624 103, India
2Department of Vegetable Crops, Horticulture College and Research Institute, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore-641 003, India
The genus Allium contains seven cultivated species of economic importance: the bulb onion (Allium cepa), aggregatum onion (A. cepa var. aggregatum L), shallot (A. cepa var. ascalonium), chive (A. schoenoprasum), Chinese chive (A. tuberosum), Japanese bunching onion (A. fistulosum), garlic (A. sativum), Leek (A. ampeloprasum var. porrum) and rakkyo (A. chinence). Of which, aggregatum onion Allium cepa var. aggregatum Don (2n= 16) is one of the important species of Allium vegetables as it forms an indispensable part of many diets, both vegetarian and non-vegetarian. Onion is valued for its bulbs having characteristic odour, flavor and pungency. It is an export oriented vegetable and earns a valuable foreign exchange to our country. It is known by different names such as small onion, potato onion, underground onion, shallots, multiplier onion, nesting onions, ever-ready onion. The bulb is anthelmintic, anti-inflammatory, antiseptic, antispasmodic, carminative, diuretic, expectorant, febrifuge, hypoglycaemic, hypotensive, lithontripic, stomachic and tonic. When used regularly in the diet it offsets tendencies towards angina, arteriosclerosis and heart attack. It is also useful in preventing oral infection and tooth decay. Baked onions can be used as a poultice to remove pus from sores. Fresh onion juice is a very useful first aid treatment for bee and wasp stings, bites, grazes or fungal skin complaints. It also aids the formation of scar tissue on wounds, thus speeding up the healing process, and has been used as a cosmetic to remove freckles. This plant has broad-spectrum activities, so that this review focuses on potential uses, Nutritive profile of the bulb, Area, production and export, systematics, Botany, Varietal wealth, package of practices, post harvest management, Seed production and Plant protection aspects of the crop.