763 



m 



ploughing and levelling ; the plants are scattered broadcast 

 over the land and are then thrust into the mud at about 

 16-20 in. apart, 2-4 inches of water having previously been 

 let on; weeding is attended to as required and water is added, 

 according to the size of the plant which v/hen full grown will 

 stand a depth of about 16 inches. Two or three pickings may 

 be obtained from a crop planted in March. Tlie flowering stem 

 is pulled or spht in two either by the teeth or a specially shaped 

 knife; the reeds are then laid out to dry, being heaped every 

 night and redistributed in the morning; after drying they are 

 tied into bundles of convenient size and are then ready for the 

 market. The yield per feddan [about an acre] varies with the 

 condition of the soil, as much as 40 qantars [nearly 1000 lb.] 

 being obtained in a season's cropping ; but the average cultivator 

 is satisfied if he gets half this amount {Sheijherd, seq, j>p. 78-79). 



The foUoMdng references may also apply to C. exaltatus. 



Ref,—'' Samar {Cypenis alopecuroides) as a Reclamation 

 Crop," Shepherd, in Agric. Journ. of Egypt, ii. part 2, 1912 

 (Cairo 1913) pp. 78-80. '' Cyperus alopecuroides,^' in *' Investi- 

 gations of Materials suggested for the Manufacture of Paper," 

 Bull. Imp. Inst. xvii. 1919, pp. 152-154. 



Cyperas 



Afr 



/ZZ.-^Clarke, 111. Cyperaceae, t. 12, ff. 3-6. 

 Old Calabar, Oban, Cameroons, Lower Guinea and the Congo. 

 A decorative plant increasing by runners; suitable for 

 : baskets. Introduced to cultivation at Kew in 1897; 



anum 



thrives in its native country in moist shady places. 



Cyperus Haspan, Linn. ; Fl. Trop. Afr. VIII. p 



III. 



fl' 



Lagos, Abeokuta, Nupe, Sokoto and widely distributed in 

 Tropical Africa and many hot countries, including India. 



Salt is prepared on a small scale for local use by tlie Natives, 

 East Africa. The ash is treated mth water in a basket, the 

 Uquid which passes through is boiled down and the salt recovered. 

 This is somewhat similar to the " Kegr " salt of Nigeria (see under 

 Salvadora persica, p. 428). Analysis shows the percentages of 

 Potassium chloride, 77-77; Potassium sulphate, 18-48; Ferric 

 oxide, and Alumina, 0-23; SiUca, 0*25; Water, 2-39; Insoluble 

 matter, 0-35 and traces of calcium, magnesium and sodium salts 

 (Der Pflanzer, viii. 1912, p. 678; Bull. Imp. Inst. 1913, p. 148). 



A plant with long creeping rhizomes, found on the sandy 

 banks of the River Nun (Niger) (Vogel Herb. Kew) in ditches, 

 Sokoto (Dalziel, No. 459, Herb. Kew) in moist places, Nupe 

 (Barter, No. 1572, Herb. Kew), and a common weed in rice-fields 

 in many hot countries. 



Cyperus maeulatus, Boeck. ; Fl. Trop. Afr. VIII. p. 363. 



Vernac. name. — Turadi (Nupe, Barter). 



Abinsi (Dalziel, No. 811, 1912, Herb. Kew); Nupe (Barter, 

 Nos. 1213, 1571, Herb. Kew) in Nigeria and also known from 



