428 Notes, chiefly Botanical, made during an [May, 



the tree grows well at 3 — 7000 ft. and flowers abundantly, and its fruit 

 makes the nearest approach to maturity (according to the elevation) 

 from July to October. At Darjiling it follows the English season, 

 flowers in March and fruits in September, when the scarce reddened 

 and still hard fruit falls from the tree. 



It is curious that throughout this, the temperate region, there is 

 hardly an eatable fruit except the native walnut.* English cultivated 

 fruits are extremely poor ; the native are confined to the walnut, some 

 poor brambles, of which the " yellow" and " ground" raspberry is the 

 best, some insipid figs and a very austere crab-apple. The European 

 apple will hardly ripen, pear not at all. Currants and gooseberries 

 shew no disposition to thrive, and strawberries, which grow well, ripen a 

 flavorless berry. Vines, figs, pomegranates, plums, apricots, &c. will 

 not succeed even as trees. 



European vegetables again grow and thrive remarkably well through- 

 out the summer of Darjiling, and the produce is very fair to look upon, 

 sweet and good, but inferior in flavor to the English. 



Of tropical fruits cultivated below 4000 ft. the orange and banana 

 alone are frequent, with lemons of various kinds. The season for these 

 is however very short, that of the plaintain might with care be pro- 

 longed, but the fruit, as I have said above, is poor ; oranges abound in 

 winter, and are excellent in flavor, but neither so large or free of white 

 pulp as those of South America, the "W. Indies or W. coast of Africa. 

 Mangoes are brought from the plains ; they do not thrive in the valleys, 

 and though I have seen the pine-apple plant I never have its fruit. 



A singular and almost total absence of sun's-light in the fruiting 

 season, and of the heat of his direct rays, is the cause of this dearth of 

 fruits. Both the farmer and orchard gardener knows full well in Eng- 

 land, the value of a bright sky as well as a warm autumnal atmosphere. 

 Without this his corn does not ripen and the fruit trees blight. The 

 winter of the plains of India, being more analogous in its distribution 

 of moisture and heat to an European summer, such fruits as the peach, 

 vine and even plum, the fig, strawberry, &c. may be brought to bear 



* The walnut of Sikkim has the shell extremely hard, of Bhotan as remarkably 

 thin, in both the kirnel is excellent ; but not worth the trouble of freeing from the 

 shell in Sikkim. Bhotan walnuts are largely exported from that country, and are 

 in all respects excellent. 



