538 OILS 



Europe. Enormous quantities of castor seed and poonac are im- 

 ported annually into India, Ceylon, Malaya, etc. 



Gingelly-oil; "Til" or "Benni;" "Tala-tel," 5. (Sesaimini 

 indiciim. Pedaliaceae). An annual plant, 2 to 3 ft. high, indigenous 

 to Ceylon, South India, and tropical Africa, extensively grown in 

 India on account of the small seeds, which are rich in oil. 

 Gingelly-oil, obtained from the seed by expression, resembles 

 almond-oil, and is used for blending with the latter. It is a good 

 table oil, being used throughout India and Ceylon in cooking and 

 medicine ; in England it is used chiefly in soap-making, but also for 

 mixing with olive-oil. In France it is said to be commonly used 

 for salads. The plant may be grown as a summer crop in a sub- 

 tropical climate, as Italy and the Southern United States. The 

 seed is sown broadcast after the land is ploughed, and the crop is 

 ripe in about four months' time. The plants being cut, they are 

 tied in bundles to dry, and the pods upon drying burst and dis- 

 perse the seeds. About 20 bushels of seed may be obtained from 

 an acre, which will yield about 63 gallons of oil. The residue, 

 known as gingelly poonac, forms an excellent food for cattle. It 

 is reported that in the Madras Presidency about a million acres is 

 usually cultivated with Gingelly. The plant is also occasionally 

 cultivated in Ceylon, more especially in the Northern Province. 

 Very large quantities of the oil and seed are imported into Ceylon 

 from India. 



Oil Palm, African. (*Ela'is guincensis). This important palm is 

 a native of West tropical Africa, where it forms one of the principal 

 commercial products of the country, and occurs over enormous 

 areas, both naturally and cultivated, more especially in Southern 

 Nigeria. The fruit supplies the Natives with a favourite article of 

 food, from the stem they extract an intoxicating drink, while with 

 the leaf-stalks and leaves they build and thatch their houses. The 

 fruit kernels, which are of the size of almonds, yield a valuable 

 commercial oil, and are largely exported on this account. The 

 present annual exports of oil and kernels from the Gold Coast are 

 valued at about 200,000. The oil-palm grows to 50 or 60 feet in 

 height, with a straight trunk, bearing a crown of large handsome 

 pinnate leaves. It has been successfully introduced into various 

 parts of the tropics, its introduction into Peradeniya Gardens 

 dating from 1850. Here it grows luxuriantly and bears fruit annu- 

 ally. It thrives best in a rather moist stiff soil, especially in 



* See Bulletin of the Imperial Institute, 1909, Vol. VII, No. 4, and AV' Kit etin, 1892. 



