C. A. BAJES^Efe 169 



These appearances seem to be more or less general in the groups. The varieties 

 in the Sunnabile group generally have strict, bayouet-Uke leaf ends, and when 

 the leaves bend, they do so in a broad continuous curve. This character of 

 the leaf ends adds not a little to the general strictness of habit of the group, 

 as contrasted with that of Saretha (Plate VII). 



Tillering. 



The indigenous canes of India are well known to have much greater 

 tillenng power than the thicker canes of the tropics and, in well grown clumps, 

 as many as fifty canes are by no means uncommon. All the varieties giown 

 at Coimbatore in the two groups were examined with regard to this character 

 at crop time, but this related only to canes, the shoots not yet forming canes 

 being omitted. Another observation was, however, made for a different 

 purpose in which all the shoots above one foot in length were counted in five 

 members of each group. 



(1) Each varietal plot consisted of three rows, twenty feet long, antl 

 there were ten stools in each row. Owing to other demands, only one row 

 (that is ten clumps) was available for cane counting at harvest. The figures 

 obtained were generally low, owing presumably to the poor growth in the 

 plots during 'this season. The Saretha class, generally, had more canes 

 than the Sunnabile. The greatest n.umber of canes was found in Rahi (27 per 

 clump), while Ramui and Buna Churmee followed with one less in each. In 

 the Sunnabile group, the greatest number of canes was foun.d in Bansa, where 

 there were 17. Several varieties of each series were specially poorly grown or 

 destroyed by rats, but the general tendency was marked. The average 

 number of canes per stool was 15 in the Saretha group and 12 in the 

 Sunnabile. 



(2) In connection with another piece of work, the canes and shoots over 

 one foot in length were counted in a series of varieties during each month 

 of the growing season, the last counting taking place just before harvest. 

 In this series five of the Saretha and five of the Sunii.abile groups were included, 

 besides varieties belonging to other groups. The following are the results of 

 the last counting. 



Saretha series : Chin 29, Saretha 28, Khari 24, HuUu Kabhu 22, Ganda 

 Cheni (poorly grown) 16. 



Sunnabile series : Kaghze 20, Bansa 18, Sunnabile 17, Naanal 15, Dhor 

 (poorly grown) 12. 



