74 COMMERCIAL BOTANY. 



Ipecacuanha is imported into this country, chiefly from 

 Brazil, to the extent of about 65,000 pounds annually, re- 

 presenting a money value of about 15,000. 



JALAP (Ipomcea purga). Though this is by no means a 

 new introduction, the purgative properties of jalap-root 

 having been known in Europe since the sixteenth century, 

 the introduction and cultivation of the plant in the East and 

 West Indies claim a note in this place, if only to put it on 

 record. The plant belongs to the natural order Convol- 

 vulacese, is of a climbing habit, and is a native of the 

 eastern declivities of the Mexican Andes. So far back as 

 1870 some tubers were planted at Ootacamund, which grew 

 remarkably well, indicating that, if found necessary, the 

 plant could be extensively cultivated in that part of India. 

 The propagation of the jalap plants in the Ootacamund 

 Garden from root and stem cuttings was considerably 

 extended, till in 1877 there were upwards of 25,000 plants 

 permanently planted out, covering an area of about five acres. 

 The experience gained in jalap cultivation in Madras showed 

 that the plants preferred a tolerably rich, dry, and friable 

 loamy soil. Well drained grass land is best, and it should 

 be laid out in terraces ten feet wide ; the ground should be 

 dug over to the depth of two feet, and left exposed to the 

 action of the sun for two months. After being drilled and 

 manured, it should be planted with potatoes ; and when 

 these are lifted, the jalap tubers are planted in rows on 

 ridges a few inches high to prevent water from becoming 

 stagnant around them ; when the plants have become es- 

 tablished, ordinary garden culture is all that is required. 



The plants being of a climbing habit require stakes, or 

 trellis, or some such support as is given to peas. The stems 

 die down annually, and the tubers remain dormant for two or 

 three months. The plants give off a number of underground 

 shoots, upon which tubers are formed, and from which fresh 

 plants are readily raised. One acre of land planted as 



