54 



SEEDS AND PLANTS IMPORTED 



33784 and 33785— Continued. 



33785. Passfflor-V sp. Passion fruit 



•'A spocios which has all the aspect of smilax." 



33786 and 33787. Cymbopogon spp. 



From Trivandrum, Travancore, southern India. Presented by Mr. N. Kunjan 

 Pillai, Director of Agriculture, Travancore, southern India. Received April 

 1, 1912. Numbered June 20, 1912. 

 Roots of the following; quoted notes by Mr. Pillai: 



33786. Cymbopogox citratus (DC.) Stapf. Citronella grass. 

 {Andropogon citratus DC.) 



This species and the next have been listed in previous numbers of these in- 

 ventories as Andropogon citratus and A. nardus, respectively, but recent stu- 

 dents of grasses, and especially Stapf, who has published a monograph of the 

 oil grasses, recognize the two as belonging to the distinct genus Cyrnbopogon. 



"A grass yielding oil in a fairly large quantity. It is locally known as Sam- 

 barapulla, being used for flavoring buttermilk. This grass is more common in 

 Ceylon and along the east coast. In the interior of Travancore it occurs not in 

 abundance. There is reason to believe that the grass came from Ceylon, 

 because near Cape Comorin and up to a place called Arakkanikulam the grass 

 occurs in abundance. Another peculiarity is that, while I have never seen 

 this grass in flower in Ceylon either under cultivation or in a native condition, 

 it flowers freely amidst the bowlders of Arakkanikulam on either side of the 

 main road and also near the cape in Maruthuvamala. This I think is due to its 

 transport into a hotter locality. The bowlders get heated and the grass lying 

 between gets 'forced,' as plants are in the hothouses in other countries. When 

 I saw the grass the last time it was getting a disease corresponding to the black 

 rust of cholam (maize). The pest was just beginning. The plants which 

 I have selected are free. This grass is mixed with other andropogons and dis- 

 tilled. The industry is in the hands of the uneducated and no sorting of 

 varieties is done, because knowledge is absent." 



33787. Cymbopogon nardus (L.) Rendle. Citronella grass. 



{Andropogon nardus L.) 



"A grass very common all over Travancore, except at great elevations and 

 very near the seacoast. In soft allu\T.al loam and under careful cultivation 

 this grass grows to a height of 6 or 8 feet. This grass can be very easily identi- 

 fied by a light magenta tinge from the bottom upward. The spikes are short 

 and the leaves are narrow. It is locally known as Chukku-Nari-PuUu (the grass 

 smelling like Zinziher officinale). 



"In Travancore I do not know of many places where this grass is taken up for 

 cultivation. It is collected from the jungle by women getting between 4 and 5 

 chuckrums (2 to 3 annas) a day. A monster vessel of copper is installed as a 

 primitive vat. In one day 1^ bottles of oil could be obtained. The prices vary 

 from 3 to 6 rupees for a bottle of 24 ounces. 



Mr. A. F. Sanderson, the then Deputy Conservator of Forests, and I^Ir. Miller, 

 a manager of the Vellanad Plumbago Mines, made an attempt to open an estate 

 of oil-grass. They went on for some time unmindful of the outside talk and col- 

 lected a fair quantity of oil, but the business was dropped because it was taken 

 up only as a side industry of test. Other beginnings were made which were but 

 short-lived. One hundredweight of leaves is said to yield about 3 ounces of oil. 

 The pure oil is thin, colorless, and strong, with a citronlike flavor. 



