2i8 the botany of IHE KACHIN HILLS NORTH-EAST OF MVITKYINA. 
variety of Calanthe brevicornu occurred in great quantity. Two 
flowers of this were placed in a note-book along with a description.* 
The staple crop throughout the Kachin Hills is rice, this being 
supplemented by Indian corn, pumpkins, vegetable marrows, various 
runners, such as Dolichos LabUzb ; bringals, small tomatoes and 
chillis are also grown to a slight extent in most villages. At 
one village, Wadze bok, these small tomatoes were found growing 
freely in a semi-wild condition. Daring two season’s experience at 
Sad6n some years ago the writer tried peas, broad beans, kidney 
beans, potatoes, cabbages, cauliflowers, beet-ioot, lettuce, celery, 
asparagus, radishes ; all were found to grow fairly well. A kind 
of red ant, however, attacked the roots of most of the plants, more 
particularly those of turnips, which were in consequence continual 
failures. 
Ground for cultivation is cleared as follows A patch of jungle 
having been selected, the smaller trees are felled and the larger ones 
ringed during the cold weather ; the whole is then set on fire in 
Pklarch or April, The larger pieces of half-burned delled timber are 
afterwards removed, and the surface of the ground is broken by 
means of small hoes, so that the ashes are mixed with the soil. It is 
commonly supposed that land is allowed to lie fallow for from four 
to seven years, because the soil is so poor that it will not sooner 
yield another crop. It seems, however, that the true reason is that 
after one crop has been reaped the land, being exposed to the windSi 
becomes self-sown with so many species of forest-grasses and\^t;e(js 
that these defy all efforts to eradicate them, and would ‘inevitably 
choke any crop that might be planted the second sc^ason. The land 
is consequently allowed to lie fallow till the tjree-jungle has become 
large enough to displace the herbaceous growth ; it is then a compara- 
tively simple matter to clear away thi« tree-jungle. In sowing rice, a 
line of men and women start from the foot of the hill and work up- 
wards. By means of a stick held m the riyht hand small holes are 
made in the ground aud-the seed, dropped in from the left hand, is 
then rougnly cove red Weeding is carried on continuously from 
the time the plants are about six i'nches high. Both red and white 
rice are grown. 
paddy cultivation was met with north of Kwitu except in 
the Nachawng Kha Valley between the villages of Galing and 
Pelap ; this last was entirely worked by Lashis. From Kwitu south- 
HVards wet-cultivation is in the h.ands of Chinese Shans ; buffaloes are 
• This description is given under the species refevred to in the systematic list, 
