— 118 — 
“Gedim”’, wheat — (Triticum sativum). 
Triticum durum. 
“Zyrk”, rye — (Secale cereale). 
Naked barley — (Hordeum himalayense Rtt.). 
“Zyrz”, millet — (Panicum miliaceum). 
“Shatra”, rape — (Brassica napus). Oil is pressed from the 
seeds and used for lighting. 
“Sach”, Lathyrus sativus. Fodder-plant. 
“Bakla”, horse-beans — Vicia Faba. 
Alfalfa — Medicago sativa. 
In the western part of the country, the province of Ish- 
kashim, the following were also found: 
“Sedérklang”, peas (Pisum sativum). 
“Sagher”, flax (Linum usitatissimum), found also wild in upper 
Wakhan. 
“Misfar”, Carthamus tinctorius, an oleaginous plant. 
In gardens or small fields the following plants are like- 
wise grown, for the production of stimulants. 
Tobacco (Nicotiana rustica), poppy (Papaver somniferum), 
and in Ishkashim the thorn-apple (Datura stramonium). No 
small percentage of the population is addicted to opium, and 
it is said that an intoxicating drink is distilled from the 
thorn-apple. 
The sickle is used in harvesting. By the middle of Sep- 
tember, when our expedition reached Wakhan, rye and barley 
were in, and the wheat and millet harvest begun. The sheaves 
are stacked for drying in curiously shaped shocks, and born 
home on the backs of men or donkeys. Carts are unknown, 
and only the wealthy own horses. The old primitive method 
of threshing is used. The cereal to be threshed is spread 
out on a flat place. Oxen or donkeys, which have been 
muzzled, are driven round a pole in the middle, and in this 
way the kernels are trampled or shaken out. A winnowing- 
shovel is used to separate the chaff from the grain. It is 
tossed into the air on a windy day. The chaff is blown out, 
and the grain falls to the ground. 
