t 435 ] 



these two districts 30 to 40 lakhs of Rupees worth of betel-nUts 

 is exported annually to Calcutta. 



667. The betel-nut crop is subject to a severe fungoid 

 plague which has been the subject of recent investigation. 

 Nothing definite is as yet known regarding the nature of the 

 disease and its remedy. 



CHAPTER.LXXI. 



CAMPHOR, TEJPA'TA', AND CINNAMON. 



/CAMPHOR (Cinnamonum Camphor a}, The healthy man- 

 ner in which two rows of these trees are growing at the 

 Sibpur Botanical Garden leads one to expect that there may 

 be a future for the camphor-extracting industry in Bengal. 



669. The camphor tree is found in China, Japan and 

 some of the adjacent islands, including Formosa and the 

 Loochoo islands. It grows wild on hill sides and well drained 

 valleys where the rainfall is abundant in summer. It is an 

 ever-green tree, which is not able very well to stand frost, 

 belonging to the laurel tribe, to which also belong cinnamon 

 and tejpdtd trees. It attains a height of 60 ft. and more, and 

 the trunk attains a diameter of 20 to 40 inches. The leaves are 

 broadly lanceolate and acuminate at both base and apex. The 

 tree has been successfully introduced into Madagascar, South 

 America, Egypt, Italy and France. The soil best adapted for 

 growing this tree is sandy or loamy soil which is not inclined 

 to be wet. Manured properly it grows rapidly and attains a 

 height of 30 ft. in ten years. The berries of the tree are eaten 

 by chickens and other fowls, and the wood of the tree affords 

 a valuable timber for ornamental work. Irrigation is needed 

 to keep the seedlings and young trees alive in places where 

 the rainfall during the summer months does not exceed 50 in* 



