MYSORE AND COOBG. 283 



tree and walk humbly around it, from right to left 

 praising the deities by which it is possessed. A s 

 the planting of a peepul tree is considered an act of 

 grace, it follows that t^e species is abundant in all 

 parts of the country, but especially in the vicinity of 

 shrines, tanks, and villages, where devotees d^o 

 congregate. The neem, another sacred tree, and the 

 peepul are usually planted together, the operation 

 being occasionally attended by all the peremonies of 

 an ordinary marriage. "When a man is married 

 more than once it becomes necessary that he should 

 perform the ceremony in connection with the plant- 

 ing of the peepul and neem. 



Wood of no value. "Weight 30 — 45 lb. per 

 cubic foot. A coarse fibre is obtained from the inner 

 bark. Birdlime is prepared from the milk-sap, as 

 also an inferior kind of caoutchouc. The medicinal 

 value of the root-bark is highly spoken of, especially 

 in its application to cases of gonorrhoea, asthma, and 

 sterility. Sheep, goats, and cattle, browse fondly on 

 the tender leaves, which are said to improve and 

 increase the flow of milk. The peepul is much 

 prized as a shade -tree for coffee but unfortunately 

 it is not very abundant in the evergreen forest. 



Cultivation.— "When masticated and dropped by 

 crows and other birds, the seeds germinate readily 

 in the fissures of trees, clefts of rocks, on house 

 tops, old walls, and in various out-of-the-way places, 

 but sown by the gardener they rarely or never 

 germinate. It is usual, therefore, to collect seed- 

 lings from the places noted above. Large limbs of 

 the tree take root in moist ground, but unless a 

 hot-bed is prepared it is diflB,cult to raise plants 

 from tender cuttings. Being of epiphytal origin, 

 the peepul tree can sustain itself in the early stages 

 of growth without much assistance from the soil. 



Except that the surface roots are apt to become 

 troublesome, it affords one of our finest avenue trees, 



