AmDe0cU,r'x87h7arm  }     Caraamom  Cultivation  in  Mysore.  607 
great  force  hovering  over  the  lavender  flowers.  But  let  not  the  visitor 
be  tempted  to  chase  the  lovely  insects,  for  most  formidable  and  by  no 
means  beautiful  is  the  harvest  insect,  which  seems  to  have  an  equal 
predilection  for  lavender  fields  and  manifests  a  peculiar  desire  to  leave 
an  impressive  reminiscence  with  all  who  venture  among  the  blossoms, 
and  no  one  who  has  made  its  acquaintance  there  will  ever  forget 
Hitchin. — Phar.  Jour,  and  Trans.,  Oct.  20,  1877. 
CARDAMOM  CULTIVATION  IN  MYSORE. 
Some  time  in  February  or  March  the  felling  party,  one-half  of  them 
provided  with  axes,  and  the  rest  with  large  hack-knives  for  clearing 
the  underwood,  proceed  to  the  forest  and  commence  operations  by 
building,  near  some  stream,  a  temporary  hut  to  shelter  them  at  night. 
The  next  morning  the  head  man  of  the  party,  who  is  necessarily  well 
acquainted  with  the  forest,  and  who  has  previously  chosen  the  sites  for 
the  projected  gardens,  points  out  to  the  coolies  the  trees  that  are  to  be 
felled.  Half  of  the  party  then  commence  to  clear  the  underwood, 
while  the  remainder  set  to  work  with  their  axes  and  fell  the  large  forest 
trees.  The  Coorgs  have  an  idea  that  it  is  of  great  importance  that 
the  ground  should  be  well  shaken  by  the  fall  of  some  heavy  tree,  and 
if  from  any  cause  a  tree  does  not  crash  down  with  sufficient  force, 
they  fell  another  across  it.  Each  plot  generally  consists  of  about  the 
tenth  part  of  an  acre,  and  care  is  taken  to  leave  about  twenty  or  thirty 
yards  of  jungle  between  each  garden,  as  well  as  not  to  make  too  many 
gardens  in  one  year,  lest  there  should  be  a  too  great  and  sudden  dimi- 
nution of  the  moisture,  which  is  so  much  required  by  cardamom  plants. 
From  fifty  to  one  hundred  gardens  are  made  annually,  until  the  whole 
jungle  is  under  cultivation.  If  represented  on  a  plan  a  cardamom  jun- 
gle fully  cultivated  would  be  not  unlike  a  checkered  board.  In  May, 
during  the  early  rains  of  the  southwest  monsoon,  the  young  plants 
shoot  up  in  all  the  cleared  grounds,  but  especially  near  to  the  root  and 
stem  of  the  fallen  tree.  By  the  October  following  they  will  have 
grown  three  or  four  inches,  and  by  the  ensuing  February  will  have 
attained  a  height  of  about  one  foot,  with  from  eight  to  ten  leaves  on 
each  plant.  The  seeds  ripen  in  October,  and  in  the  fourth  year,  or 
about  three  years  and  a  half  from  the  springing  of  the  plant,  a  small 
crop,  called  by  the  Coorgs  "  God  fruit,"  will  be  gathered.    At  this 
