232 ON SALE P. 
consumption of the salep root is followed by a larger pro- 
duce of it, as the people are thus compelled to turn up 
the soil, by which the development of the small tubers is 
much promoted. 
After the inflorescence, namely, in April and May, the 
crop begins, and lasts till August. For this purpose, the 
soil is turned up to the tops of the mountains, the tubers 
picked out, and the ground again made flat. The tubers 
are now repeatedly washed in a running water, and the 
smaller separated from the larger ones. The first are strung 
on thread by women and children, and quickly dried in the 
sun. The tubers which come from these parts to Greece, 
are scarcely as large as a pea, and are generally of a much 
darker color than those not strung upon thread, which are sold 
for double price. These latter are said to retain their white 
color by being quickly dried in a baking oven, by which 
they acquire a horny character, which is imparted to them 
by merely quick drying, and not, as stated in pharmaceu- 
tical works, by being previously dipped in boiling water. 
Whether this immersion is customary in Persia or not, I 
cannot say with certainty, the Saleptsicks in Constantino- 
ple, who import their salep from Persia, do not mention 
anything of the kind. 
Some roots possess a somewhat saline taste, which pro- 
ceeds, however, not from their having been dipped in salt 
water or sea water, but from the soil where they grow, for 
the various sorts of orchis thrive very well on the coast. 
The salep imported from Persia, which is sold in the 
bazaars of Smyrna and Constantinople, and which is at the 
same time distinguished for its whiteness and corneous ap- 
pearance, is particularly said to have a very saline taste. 
In the East, however, where the consumption is greatest, 
this sort is not liked, and, therefore, the Macedonian kind 
is preferred. 
The collectors pay particular attention to those plants 
with blue blossoms, as they consider the root to be "the 
