382 XXIII. LEGUMINOSAE 



its growth suffers in the process and increases rapidly when the weeds are 

 overtopped. The leaves fall about December-February, and new growth 

 starts in March (Dehra Dun). The seedling is somewhat frost-tender in early 

 youth. 



Natural reproduction. The seeds are sometimes scattered through 

 the pods dehiscing on the tree in dry hot weather, but perhaps more commonly 

 they escape either through the dehiscence of the pod after reaching the ground 

 or through the pod valves becoming eaten by white ants or rotting off. Ger- 

 mination commences early in the rains and continues for a time during the 

 rainy season ; many seeds lie ungerminated until the second rainy season. 

 Germination is most successful on loose soil where the seed becomes buried ; 

 if it takes place on the surface of the ground the radicle is apt to dry up or to 

 become eaten by insects or birds before it can penetrate the soil. 



Rate of growth. Little is known regarding the rate of growth of this 

 species. Two trees measured for seven years in a sample plot in the Siwaliks 

 showed the following growth : 



1. Girth class 12 to 24 in. ^mean annual girth increment for the period, 



Oil in. 



2. Girth class 24 to 36 in. mean annual girth increment for the period, 



0-6 in. 



3. Bauhiuia retiisa, Ham. Vern. Kayidla, semla, kurdl, Hind. ; Nirpa, Tel. 



A moderate-sized tree, never quite leafless, with entire or emarginate 

 coriaceous leaves 4-6 in. broad, somewhat broader than long. Bark 0-3- 

 0-5 in. thick, dark brown, longitudinally cracked, pale pink inside. The bast 

 yields a fibre and the cortex a clear gum, for which the trees are extensively 

 tapped in some localities. Gamble says the wood is the best of those of the 

 bauhinias, but is not much used. Silviculturally the tree is important in the 

 outer Himalaya, as it covers the hill-sides at elevations intermediate between 

 those at which many of the low-level species disappear and Quercus incmia 

 and its associates commence. 



Distribution and habitat. Sub-Himalayan tract and outer Himalaya 

 from the Beas to Nepal, Chota Nagpur, Orissa, Central Provinces (Raipur, 

 Bilaspur, South Chanda, Bhandara, Balaghat), and the Circars. In the outer 

 Himalaya it is gregarious at elevations chiefly between 3,000 and 4,500 ft., 

 but on southern slopes it occasionally ascends to 6,000 ft., as below Naini Tal, 

 where it is associated with Quercus incana and Pmus longifolia ; it is also 

 found in the Siwalik hills. According to Parker it occurs in the Jowlian reserve, 

 Khanpur range, Hazara, but has not been collected between this and the 

 Beas. It is always found on well-drained ground, on hill slopes or the sides 

 of ravines. In the Himalayan and sub-Himalayan region it occurs mainly on 

 shale, sandstone, and conglomerate. In Chota Nagpur it is common on the 

 hills, especially on northern slopes, in Singhbum and elsewhere. Haines says 

 it is very common on quartzite along the Konar nadi, Hazaribagh, and that 

 it is found on quartzite rocks near Deori, Bhandara, Central Provinces. 



In its natural habitat the absolute maximum shade temperature varies 

 from 95 to 115 F., the absolute minimum from 28 to 42 F., and the normal 

 rainfall from 40 to 90 in. 



