A fleshy, herbaceous, perennial vine, climbing up trees to a height of 10-15 m by means of long, whitish, adventitious roots, opposite the leaves. Stem long, cylindrical, 1-2 cm in diameter, simple or branched, succulent, dark green. Leaves alternate, fleshy, subsessile; blade oblong-elliptical to lanceolate, 8-25 cm x 2-8 cm, somewhat rounded at base, acute to acuminate at top, with numerous parallel veins. Inflorescence a short axillary raceme, 5-10 cm long, 6-15(-30)-flowered, with usually only 1-3 flowers open at one time, starting from the base; pedicel very short; flower about 10 cm in diameter, waxy, fragrant, yellow-green; sepals 3, oblong, 4-7 cm x 1-1.5 cm; 2 upper petals resembling the sepals but slightly smaller, labellum (lower petal) trumpet-shaped, 4-5 cm x 1.5-3 cm, obscurely 3-lobed at top, inside hairy at base; column 3-5 cm long, attached to labellum, bearing at its tip 2 pollinia covered by a cap; stigma concave, separated from the pollinia by a thin flap-like rostellum. Fruit a pendulous, narrowly cylindrical capsule, 10-25 cm x 0.8-1.5 cm, obscurely 3-angled, splitting longitudinally when ripe. Seeds numerous, globose, about 0.4 mm in diameter, black.

Aphrodisiac, carminative, emmenagogue and stimulant (fruits)

King's American Dispensatory
PROSEA (Plant Resources of South-East Asia) Foundation

Acetaldehyde, acetic acid, acetophenone, anisaldehyde, anisic acid, benzaldehyde, benzoic acid, benzyl alcohol, catechin, citric acid, creosol, eugenol, furfural, guaiacol, isobutyric acid, malic acid, naphthalene, octanoic acid, oxalic acid, p-cresol, protocatechuic acid, protocatechualdehyde, tannin, vanillic acid, vanillin, vanillyl alcohol (fruits); piperonal (plant).

Vanilla fruits are used to reduce or cure fevers, spasms and caries. It exhilarates the brain, prevents sleep and increases muscular energy. Useful, in infusion, in hysteria, rheumatism, and low forms of fever.