806 cook's voyage to oct. 



This short account of the vegetable productions 

 reaches to such parts of the country only as fell within 

 our notice. In the neighbourhood of the Kamtschatka 

 river, where (as has been observed) both the soil and 

 climate is by much the best in the whole peninsula, 

 garden culture is attended to, and probably with 

 great success, as appears from our having received 

 at the same time, with a second drove of cattle from 

 Verchnei, a present of cucumbers, of very large fine 

 turnips, celery, and some other garden-stuff, of which 

 I do not recollect the kinds. 



There are two plants, which, from the great use 

 made of them, merit a particular mention and descrip- 

 tion. The first is called by the natives the sarana ; 

 and by botanists, Lilhim Kamtskatiense flore afro 

 rubente.* The stem is about the thickness of that of 

 the tulip, and grows to the height of five inches, is 

 of a purple colour toward the bottom, and green 

 higher up, and hath growing from it two tier of 

 leaves of an oval figure, the lower consisting of three 

 leaves, the uppermost of four, in the form of a cross : 

 from the top of the stalk grows a single flower, of an 

 exceedingly dark red colour, in shape resembling the 

 flower of the narcissus, only much smaller: from the 

 centre of the flower rises a style of a triangular form, 

 and obtuse at the end, which is surrounded by six 

 white stamina, whose extremities are yellow. The 

 root is of the bulbous kind, and resembles in shape 

 that of garlic, being much of the same size, but 

 rounder, and having, like that, four or five cloves 

 hanging together. The plant grows wild, and in 

 considerable abundance : the women are employed 

 in collecting the roots at the beginning of August, 

 which are afterward dried in the sun, and then laid 

 up for use. On our second arrival, this harvest was 

 just over, and had fallen much short of its usual pro- 



* Gmelin, p. 41. Steller enumerates five different species of 

 this plant. 





