Ashwagandha RootWithania somnifera

Dried lateral roots, cream to pale buff, cut to 5-8 cm and cleaned of crown and rootlets.

About this material

Ashwagandha root is the dried root of Withania somnifera, lifted after the plant completes its annual cycle and the leaves begin to yellow. The crown and the fine rootlets are removed at the farm, since both raise the ash content without adding usable material. What remains is washed, sun-dried to a stable moisture and cut to 5-8 cm lengths, which is the size mills and percolators both handle without a second reduction step. The fracture is short and starchy and the cut surface is uniformly cream. A darker or hollow core usually means the root was lifted late.

Also called

Asgandh, Indian Winter Cherry, Amukkara