Cardamom Varieties & High-Yielding Selections

Botanical grouping

Major cultivars

The guide distinguishes Elettaria cardamomum var. major, including indigenous Sri Lankan types, and var. minor, which includes Malabar, Mysore and Vazhukka cultivars. Cardamom varieties are highly location specific.

Panicle emergence peaks from November to March. Flowering usually begins in February and continues to October, with May-August as the main peak. Capsules require about 90-120 days after fruit set to mature and normally contain 15-20 seeds.

Prostrate panicles

Malabar

Medium-sized plants, usually 2-3 m tall. Capsules are globose to oblong. Better suited to 600-1,200 m, relatively less susceptible to thrips and able to thrive under lower rainfall.

Erect panicles

Mysore

Robust plants, 3-4 m tall. Capsules are ovoid, bold and dark green. Better adapted to 900-1,200 m with assured, well-distributed rainfall.

Semi-erect panicles

Vazhukka

A natural hybrid of Malabar and Mysore with intermediate traits. Robust plants and bold globose or ovoid capsules; widely cultivated in Kerala and Tamil Nadu at 900-1,200 m.

Location-specific releases

Research varieties

Use the search box to find a variety, location, trait, research station or yield potential. Yield figures are the source guide's reported potentials and are not guaranteed farm results.

Research-released small cardamom varieties
No.	Variety	Cultivar	Distinguishing characters	Adaptability	Source	Yield kg/ha
1	ICRI-1	Malabar	Early, profuse flowering; medium panicle; globose bold dark-green capsules; essential oil 8.65%; dry recovery 22.9%.	South Idukki, Kerala; well-distributed rainfall	ICRI, Spices Board, Myladumpara, Idukki	660
2	ICRI-2	Mysore	Performs under irrigation and higher altitude; medium-long parrot-green capsules; oil 6.66%; recovery 22.5%.	Kerala cardamom tracts and parts of Tamil Nadu	ICRI, Spices Board, Myladumpara, Idukki	750
3	ICRI-3	Malabar	Early; non-pubescent leaves; oblong bold parrot-green capsules; oil 6.6%; recovery 22.5%.	Cardamom tracts of Karnataka	RRS, ICRI, Spices Board, Sakleshpur	1000
4	ICRI-4	Malabar	Early, suited to low rainfall; medium panicle; globose bold parrot-green capsules; recovery 17%.	Lower Pulney Hills, Tamil Nadu	RRS, ICRI, Spices Board, Thadiankudisi	650
5	ICRI-5	Malabar	Hybrid; early bearing and high yield; deep-green bold capsule; moderate rot tolerance; oil 7.13%; recovery 23.15%.	Kerala and parts of Tamil Nadu	ICRI, Spices Board, Myladumpara	1650
6	ICRI-6	Malabar	Regular yielder; high oil; deep-green long bold capsules; moderately tolerant to rot pathogens, thrips, borer and drought; recovery 19%.	Kerala and parts of Tamil Nadu	ICRI, Spices Board, Myladumpara	1200
7	ICRI-7	Vazhukka	Hybrid with angular green bold capsules; oil 8.84%; recovery 22.24%.	Wayanad, Kerala	ICRI, Spices Board, Myladumpara	700
8	ICRI-8	Malabar	Dark-green bold capsules; 71% of capsules are above about 7.5 mm.	Karnataka	ICRI Regional Station, Sakleshpur	1200
9	PV-1	Malabar	Early; slightly ribbed light-green capsules; short panicle and close racemes; narrow ellipsoid to elongated capsules; recovery 19.9%.	Kerala and parts of Tamil Nadu	CRS, KAU, Pampadumpara, Idukki	500
10	PV-2	Vazhukka	High yielder; deep-green long bold capsules; oil 6.6%; recovery 23.8%.	Cardamom tracts of Kerala	CRS, KAU, Pampadumpara, Idukki	1200
11	Mudigere-1	Malabar	Tolerant to hairy caterpillars, white grubs, thrips and shoot borer; short panicle; oval bold pale-green capsules; oil 8%; recovery 20%.	Traditional tracts of Karnataka	ZAHRS, UAHS, Mudigere	275
12	Mudigere-2	Malabar	Suited to valley cultivation in Karnataka; oil content 8%.	Karnataka valley areas	ZAHRS, UAHS, Mudigere	475 rain-fed
13	Mudigere-3	Malabar	Tolerant to thrips and borers.	Cardamom tracts of Karnataka	ZAHRS, UAHS, Mudigere	400
14	Appangala-1	Malabar	Suitable for intensive mono- and mixed-crop systems; early and adaptive; about 89% bold capsules.	Karnataka and Wayanad, Kerala	ICAR-IISR, Appangala	745
15	Appangala-2	Malabar	High yielding; resistant to cardamom mosaic/Katte; oil 6.2%; recovery 21.10%.	Karnataka and Wayanad, Kerala	ICAR-IISR, Appangala	927
16	IISR Suvasini	Malabar	Early; suitable for high-density planting; long panicle; oblong bold parrot-green capsules; oil 8.7%; recovery 22%.	Karnataka and Wayanad, Kerala	ICAR-IISR, Appangala	400
17	IISR Avinash	Malabar	Resistant to rhizome rot and leaf blight; elongated quality capsules; oil 6.7%; recovery 20.8%.	Kodagu, North Wayanad, Hassan and Chikmagalur	ICAR-IISR, Karnataka	850
18	IISR Vijetha	Malabar	Tolerant to Katte disease; oil 7.9%; recovery 20.8%.	Kodagu, North Wayanad, Hassan and Chikmagalur	ICAR-IISR, Appangala	650

No varieties match your search.

High-yielding landraces

Farmer selections

Farmer-selected landraces can combine strong capsule characters with local adaptation. Obtain authentic, disease-free material from a reliable source.

No.	Selection	Farmer	Cultivar	Characteristics	Yield kg/ha
1	Njallani Green Gold	Sebastian Joseph	Mysore	Robust tillers; round bold green capsules	3000
2	Pappalu	K. V. Paulose	Vazhukka	Dark-green ovoid capsules; tolerant to thrips, stem borer, root grub and capsule rot	3000
3	Arjun	Menuvin Joseph	Vazhukka	Round bold green capsules; moderately tolerant to thrips; suitable for organic cultivation	2500
4	Elarajan	Benny Kalarickal	Vazhukka	Pale-green oval capsule	2500
5	Thiruthali	T. P. Joseph	Malabar	Slender pseudostem; tolerant to shoot borer	2500
6	Wonder Cardamom	Sabu Varghese	Mysore	Suitable for low altitude and low rainfall	2000
7	Panikulangara Green Bold-1	Joy Peter	Vazhukka	Long bold parrot-green capsules; performs under rain-fed conditions with less shade	3000
8	Patchaikkai	Ramaiah	Malabar	Drought tolerant; suitable for lower-elevation areas of Tamil Nadu	1500

Decision checklist

How to select planting material

Match the variety to your elevation, rainfall pattern, irrigation access and shade environment.
Prefer mother clumps with consistent yield, good capsule size and colour, and no visible viral symptoms.
Review local history of thrips, borer, rot, drought and Katte disease before choosing tolerant or resistant material.
Use verified disease-free nursery plants or suckers from a trusted source; avoid material from virus-affected gardens.
Do not select by reported yield alone. Management level and site adaptation strongly influence performance.

Biosecurity: Cardamom mosaic/Katte and other viral diseases can be spread through infected planting material. Inspect and rogue diseased plants promptly.