Name - मॆथिका

Botanical name - Trigonella foenum-graecum

Description - Aromatic herbs. Leaves pinnate, 3-foliolate; leaflets oblanceolate, obscurely dentate. Flowers white or yellowish-white, axillary. Pod 10 to 20-seeded; seeds greenish-brown.

Chemical Constituents- It Contains about 28% of mucilage, 22% of proteins and 6% of fixed oil. Plant contains polysaccharide galactomannans, trigocoumarin. Stems contain saponin. Leaves contain diosgenin, tigogenin, gitogenin, graecumin A-G, trigonelloside C, vitamins. Fruits contain vitamins. Seeds contain tigogenin. neotigogenin, diosgenin, yamogenin, gitogenin, yamogenin tetroside B and C, alkaloid trigonelline, two flavonoid glycosides, quercetin, luteolin and two steroidal saponins which on hydrolysis yield diosgenin and gitogenin, also fenugreek oil.

Use - Seeds aromatic, carminative, tonic and galactogogue; anti-dysenteric and refrigerent. also used in poultices for boils and ulcers and given internally as an emollient in intestinal inflammation.