BAUHINIA 379 



SiLVicuLTURAL CHARACTERS. The tree is a light-demander, though some- 

 imes found in slight shade. It is affected to some extent by frost, but has 

 5ood power of recovery. In the abnormal drought of 1907 and 1908 in the 

 orests of Oudh it proved to be decidedly hardy. The tree produces root- 

 ;uckers and coppices well. 



Natural reproduction. The pods fall towards the end of the hot season 

 )r early in the rains. If the seed be extracted from the pods germination 

 ;ommences with the early showers of May and continues for some time during 

 he rains, some seed lying even until the second rains before it germinates. 

 Che pods being indehiscent the seeds do not escape for some time after the 

 )ods fall ; this they do ordinarily through the pods rotting or becoming eaten 

 )y white ants, but in any case it is probable that under natural conditions 

 nost if not all of the seed fails to germinate until the rains of the following 

 T'ear. An important aid to successful germination is the covering of the seed 

 )y earth and debris, which often takes place under natural conditions during 

 he period in which the seed lies on the ground before germinating. When 

 germination takes place on the surface of the ground there is much mortality 

 hrough the drying up of the radicle or its destruction by birds and insects. 

 sTatural seedlings are capable of struggling successfully through low weeds 

 bnd grass, but their growth is kept back until the weeds are overtopped. In 

 Iry hot situations the seedlings tend to die back for a few years, finally 

 tarting upward growth when the root-system has established itself. 



Artificial reproduction. Experiments at Dehra Dun have shown that 

 he best results are obtained by direct sowings in lines, the young plants being 

 :ept weeded and the soil being loosened from time to time. Line sowings 

 vith field crops, the crop employed being the lesser millet or mandwa {Eleusine 

 oracana), gave good results provided the lines were kept clear of crops to 

 I width of 2 ft. 



Transplanting can be carried cut successfully with small nursery plants, 

 he seed being sown in nursery drills not less than 9 in. apart in April or 

 klay and the seedlings transplanted during the first rains ; the long taproot 

 )revents successful transplanting later unless regular watering can be carried 

 )ut, and experiments in pruning down the stem and taproot were only partially 

 uccessful. 



This is one of the species which have been raised by sowings in conjunction 

 vith field crops (sesamum, tur or arlmr, and cotton) in the Amraoti forest 

 livision, Berar.^ 



SiLVicuLTURAL TREATMENT. The tree is only of secondary importance, 

 bnd is treated as an accessory species. Where a regular system is applied to 

 ,he mixed forests in which it occurs the treatment usually followed is that 

 )f coppice or coppice-with-standards. 



Rate of growth. So fa^r as available statistics show, the rate of growth 

 n high forest is slow. Sample plot measurements in the Siwaliks, extending 

 )ver a period of twelve years, showed the following mean annual girth incre- 

 nents for the period : 



Trees 12-24 in. in girth 0-21 in. (four measurements). 



Trees 24-36 in. in girth 0-33 in. (four measurements). 



^ Ind. Forester, xxxvii (1911), p. 8. 



