WHOLE VOL. ARAUCANIAN CHILD LIFE — HILGER 355 



The chaff is removed on a windy day by letting the wind blow through 

 the kernels as they are slowly let fall off a spadelike wooden implement 

 with which they are lifted off the ground. Before using the grain as 

 food, it is winnowed on a winnowing tray or, if the family lacks one, 

 in a pan or dish. 



Non-Araucanian informants noted that horticulture probably had 

 its beginning among the Araucanians with the introduction of the 

 apple tree. The fact that there is no Araucanian word for apple — the 

 Spanish word, manzana, is used — strengthens the belief. Today groves 

 of wild apple trees (manzana silvestre), producing hard, sour apples, 

 are found scattered throughout the Araucanian country, near creeks, 

 rivers, and lakes, from Pulmari to San Martin de los Andes ; single 

 trees or three or four of them can often be seen at springs, probably 

 locations of former homesteads (pi. 64, j). The southernmost grove 

 is near Meliquina (close to lat. 41° S.) ; a forest of them is found 

 near Lake Alumine (just north of lat. 39° S.). It is said that these 

 cultivated groves and forests resulted from former cultivated ones, 

 and that from their locations one can infer that in the days when 

 settlements had to be accommodated to grazing lands, tolderias were 

 erected nearby at harvest time. Groves of old trees already existed 

 when informants were young. It is interesting to note that the arau- 

 caria (pi. 72, j) are found mainly between latitude 37° and 40° S., 

 practically the same area in which the wild apple is found. 



The personnel of the Intendencia de Parque Nacional de Lanin 

 believe that some wild-apple trees are 300 years or more old. A casual 

 sample felled in 1950 had 180 rings, "and it was not an old or very 

 large tree." In general it is believed that Jesuit Fathers introduced the 

 apple trees from Chile in the seventeenth century. Tree-ring dating 

 might verify the time of introduction. 



Today cultivated apple, peach, plum, and cherry trees are seen 

 about many homes. Every family has a vegetable garden. Gardens 

 are worked with hoes. Women plant the seeds by hand. Informants 

 were raising potatoes, beans, peas, corn, cabbage, lettuce, garlic, and 

 cilantro. Several women were also raising medicinal plants, most 

 frequent among them, toronjil. There is a belief that wheat, potatoes, 

 beans, and peas must be planted during the first quarter of the moon 

 if a good harvest is desired; planting them at any other time will 

 result in an abundance of leaves but a scanty yield. 



An occasional garden and field, today, is fenced in (pis. 64, i ; 70, 

 2; 78, s) ; many more need to be fenced to keep sheep and cattle out. 

 More glades could be planted with wheat if they could be protected 

 against grazing animals. Material for fences is difficult to obtain. 



