35 
Part I] Lindsay and Harlow : Lac and Shellac 
religious feeling among Hindus against their infection with lac. 
Babul is the most important tree in Sind, but lac has not been 
successfully cultivated on it in other parts of India. Arhar is 
successfully used as a host-plant for lac in Assam but its success 
in India proper remains to be established. The lac produced on 
Arhar in Assam forms a fine heavy incrustation ; but unfortunately 
the colour is dark and the general quality poor. It is more suitable 
for the manufacture of garnet lac than of TN. In other localities 
with special conditions other species will be found suitable, e.g., 
Shorea Talura in Mysore. 
With lac so valuable a product, so tempting to thieves and 
requiring a comparatively large labour 
Rotation. . . . 
supply for its propagation and collec¬ 
tion, concentration must be the key-note to cultivation. A heavy 
lac crop, however, impairs the vitality of the trees and a definite 
rotation of coupes in a definite cropping series should be fixed 
with a view to giving them a period of rest- The terms crop¬ 
ping series and coupe are used for want of better, and will be clearly 
understood by all engaged in forest work. The cropping series will 
be the unit and its size should be such that it can be watched by 
one lac watcher or, where continual watching is required, by one 
series of reliefs. For convenience of control it will be found best to 
keep the cropping series in Government Forests fairly large, and 
gangs of watchers may be necessary. No series, however, should be 
so large that parts of it are more than a few miles from a central 
point of control. 
The rotation will depend chiefly on the species of the host, 
modified by locality, soil and climate. No research work has been 
done to find the correct rotations, but the following are suggested. 
If experience shows them to be either too short or too long, there 
will be no difficulty in making the necessary alterations :— 
Kusum ... 
3 years 
6 coupes. 
Ber 
1 year 
2 coupes, if on good soil. 
Ghont ... 
2 years 
4 coupes. 
Palas 
2 years 
4 coupes, possibly i£ years only. 
This means that for Kusum, for example, the area will be divided 
into six half-yearly coupes and each coupe will bear a crop for 
[35] 
