1 Junr, 1898.] QUEENSLAND AGRICULTURAL JOURNAL. 473 
‘Economic Botany. / 3 ‘ ae, z 
No. 7. MELON 
PIGEON PEA, or DAL (CAJANUS INDIOUS, Spreng.). 
. “By J. F, BAILEY. _ 
Derivation.—The generic name is derived from catjang, the Amboyna 
name. ne 
Description —An erect leguminous shrub with slender, furrowed, grey- 
silky branchlets. Leaves 3-foliate. Leaflets 3, thinly silky above, densely 
beneath. Flowers. yellow, or sometimes veined with red. Pods 2-8 inches 
long, and z-Inch to 4-inch broad, finely downy. 
Cultivation, Uses, §c.—Though a perennial, Dal is treated as an annual 
in India, because it does not produce a good second year’s crop, and because 
the wood is so useful for fuel. It is also the best wood for procuring fire by 
friction. The charcoal made from it is in esteem for gunpowder. 
_ Dal is one of the most widely diffused and valuable of, tropical pulses, 
being considered in India as next in rank to the Chick Pea (Cicer arietinum), 
and is in use amongst all ciasses of natives asa nutritious ésculent (Bot. Mag.). 
The seeds are chiefly eaten mixed with rice, a mess known as kedjari. Drury 
states that they are apt to produce costiveness. Horses and cattle are very 
fond of the young branches and leaves, either in a fresh or dried state. 
Tn this issue of the Journal are reproduced two excellent illustrations of 
this crop as it appears growing at the Queensland Agricultural College. Mr. 
A.J. Boyd states that “about an acre was sown there as an experiment, and has 
turned out most satisfactorily, both as regards weight of fodder and value as 
feed for stock, the dairy cattle being especially fond of it. It was sown in 
rows about 6 feet apart and 4 feet between the plants, and grew without a 
check to a height of over 8 feet before commencing to flower. It branches as 
profusely as the Hibiscus family, and produces a very considerable amount of 
sott-leat fodder. This has now been cut and chaffed for the silo. ‘The thiek 
stems and harder portions of the branches are left in the field, as they would 
be useless as cattle feed. Amongst other good points of the pigeon pea is its 
usefulness as a destroyer of weeds. Similar in growth to a dense scrub, the 
soil beneath it is perfectly free from weed growth of any kind. It might 
consequently be of value as a destroyer of nut-grass, owing to the dense shade 
it produces, and it would be worth while to make a trial of it with this view. 
As to the weight of fodder per acre no information is available at present, but 
judging from the appearance of the crop it must be very considerable.” 
Expianation oF Prater, 
Fic, 1. Wing. 
», 2and 3. Keel. 
> 4. Stamens. 
‘'y», 5. Valve of Pod. 
6. Side and hilum aspect of Seed 
All enlarged from Botanical Magazine. 
