Travels in Peru and India / While Superintending the Collection of Chinchona Plants and Seeds in South America, and Their Introduction into India.

CHAPTER XXIII.

SELECTION OF SITES FOR CHINCHONA-PLANTATIONS ON THE NEILGHERRY HILLS.

The Dodabetta site—The Neddiwuttum site.

In selecting sites for chinchona plantations in the Neilgherry hills we had to compare the climate and other conditions of growth which prevail in the chinchona forests and open pajonales in the Andes with any similar localities which might be found in Southern India. For the first experimental sites, it was of course important that the resemblance, as regards elevation, temperature, and humidity, should be as close as possible; but there was every reason to hope that, under cultivation, these plants, like most others, would adapt themselves to conditions of soil and climate extending over a far more extensive area.

It was necessary to fix upon two sites in the first instance, one at the highest point at which chinchona-plants were likely to flourish, for the species from Loxa and others growing at great elevations, and as an experimental plantation; and another in a lower and warmer position for the plants of C. succirubra, C. Peruviana, C. micrantha, and the tree C. Calisaya. The highest point at which these plants will flourish, and the greatest exposure they will bear without injury, are the most favourable conditions for the formation of quinine; while, if the sholas in the upper plateau of the Neilgherry hills should prove to be adapted for their growth, their cultivation might be indefinitely extended in a climate suitable for English settlers.

Previous to my arrival on the hills Mr. McIvor had selected a site for the highest plantation in a wooded ravine or shola at the back of the hills which rise above the Government gardens; and, after a careful examination, I came to the conclusion that it was well suited for the growth of the hardier species, and for the experimental culture of all the kinds which have been introduced into India. It has been named the "Dodabetta" site, from the peak, the highest point of the Neilgherries, and 8640 feet above the sea, which rises up immediately behind it.

With regard to the species for which I considered the Dodabetta site to be suitable, it will be well in this place to recapitulate the circumstances under which they grow on their native mountains.

The shrub variety of C. Calisaya (lat. 13° to 15° S.) flourishes in open pajonales, quite exposed, at elevations from 5000 to 7000 feet above the sea, and in April and May I found the mean temperature to be 60?°, minimum 55°, and range 17°. The C. nitida (lat. 10° S.) grows at similar elevations, but we have no exact information respecting the temperature and humidity. The varieties of C. Condaminea (lat. 4° S.) flourish at heights from 6000 to 8000 feet above the sea, where the mean range is from 45° to 60°, in a moist climate, and in exposed but always dry situations; and one kind, the C. crispa, the seeds of which have been received in India and Ceylon, grows in a deposit of peat, 8000 feet above the sea, in a temperature falling as low as 27°.[417] The C. lancifolia (lat. 5° N.) is found at 7000 feet above the sea and upwards, where the annual range is from freezing-point to 75°, in an exceedingly moist climate. The rainy season lasts for nine months, when the constant rain is only interrupted in the day by interchanging sun-rays and fog-clouds. In the dry season cold clear nights follow days in which a warm sun penetrates through the fog, which almost constantly lies on the damp foliage of the forest.[418] Mr. Cross mentions that he saw trees of C. succirubra on his way to Loxa, growing at elevations of from 8000 to 9000 feet above the sea.

The site, in the Dodabetta ravine, slopes down from 7700 to 7600 feet above the sea, yet, from local causes, it is several degrees warmer than the station at Ootacamund; and the temperature agrees with that of the species of chinchona-plants described above. The annual temperature of the peak of Dodabetta, of Ootacamund, and of the warmer station of Kotergherry, are given on the following page.

The Dodabetta site, being four or five degrees warmer than Ootacamund, throughout the year, has a temperature, on the whole, somewhat warmer than the lofty regions where the species of chinchona grow, for the cultivation of which this position was selected. The elevation above the sea exactly corresponds, and the amount of humidity is about the same. The ravine is full of fine trees, with a variety of exposures, the general aspect being north-west; a clear little stream flows through it; and, in most parts, the soil consists of a rich loam four or five feet deep. Outside the wooded ravine there are tree Rhododendrons, Berberis, Gaultherias, lilies, Lycopodia, and brake-ferns, scattered about on the grassy slopes; and the character of the scenery and vegetation very closely resembles that of the pajonal country between the valleys of Sandia and Tambopata in Caravaya, where the shrub Calisaya flourishes. The site is protected by rising grounds from the cold northerly winds, and the colder breezes blowing over it from ridge to ridge prevent the warm air in the ravine from rising, so that the temperature became warmer as we ascended through the wood, and in the highest part there were orchids and pepper-vines hanging on the trees.

The analogy between the flora of the Dodabetta ravine and of the loftier parts of the chinchona region was another point which influenced my decision. Within the ravine there are nine species of chinchonaceous plants, namely—

Hedyotis LawsoniÆ.	Canthium umbellatum.
Hedyotis stylosa.	Grumilea elongata.
Lasianthus venulosus.	Grumilea congesta.
Coffea alpestris.	Psychotria bisulcata.
Coffea grumelioides.

These are mostly ornamental pretty shrubs, from six to eight feet high, with clusters of white or cream-coloured flowers. The other genera of which the wood is composed are as follows:—Vaccinium, Myrsine, Symplocos, Ilex, Michelia, Sapota, Isonandra, and Cinnamon among the trees; Eugenia, Myrtus, Jasminum, Osbeckia, Sonerila, Solanum, Viburnum, and Acanthus among shrubs; Lonicera, Passiflora, Rubia, and pepper-vines among the climbers; with an undergrowth of Lobelia, Begonia, Convolvulus, orchids, and ferns. The Osbeckias and Sonerilas represent the melastomaceous plants, the constant companions of chinchonÆ in South America.

It was no small advantage that this excellent site for a chinchona plantation was close to the Government gardens, and that it would thus be under the constant supervision of Mr. McIvor. It receives a supply of moisture during both monsoons, and is, therefore, as good a position as could have been selected on the higher plateau of the Neilgherries, though there are many sholas which will be found equally well adapted for the growth of the hardier chinchonas. These precious plants will, it is to be hoped, before very long, form large plantations on all parts of the hills, and become one of the most important products of the Neilgherries. In the mean while Mr. McIvor, the Government Superintendent, using the Dodabetta site as an experimental plantation, will be enabled to demonstrate the successful results of chinchona culture, and to raise thousands of plants for the supply of private enterprise.

The most extensive operations must, however, necessarily be carried on at much lower elevations, where the C. succirubra, the species richest in febrifugal alkaloids, will flourish best, and where vast unoccupied forests afford space for plantations on a large scale. A northern aspect is the one best adapted for the vigorous growth of trees on the Neilgherry hills, and we, therefore, proceeded to examine the forest-covered slopes overlooking the table-lands of Wynaad and Mysore, for a site for the lower chinchona plantation. We started from Ootacamund early one November morning, and rode across the central plateau of the hills, consisting of rounded grassy undulations, intersected by wooded sholas. In some of the hollows the streams had formed large swamps, where there were extensive deposits of peat. The traveller's bungalow of Pycarrah, the first on the road towards Wynaad, is ten miles from Ootacamund, on the banks of a river of the same name. Several huge boulders of syenite obstruct the stream and cause it to foam noisily round them, and the wet stones were covered with Podostemads, herbaceous branched floating plants, with the habit of liverworts. We saw several otters playing in the water, and peering at us from behind the rocks. Six miles beyond Pycarrah is the bungalow of Neddiwuttum, on the edge of the rapid descent into Wynaad, and the road descends from the upland slopes through a jungle where the ferns first appear, and maiden-hair, ceterach, and other ferns grow by the roadside. Some garden marigolds from England had been planted near the Neddiwuttum bungalow, and they had spread themselves in masses over the adjacent slopes.

The tract of forest land which we came to examine is close to the bungalow, and from the grassy hill above it there is a glorious view of Wynaad, and of the plains of Mysore, stretching away to the horizon. Here the mountains sink abruptly down to the Wynaad table-land, and the Moyaar river thunders down in a long waterfall, divides Wynaad from Mysore, and, flowing through a deep gorge to join the Bowany in Coimbatore, eventually swells the waters of the great river Cauvery. The land available for immediate occupation comprises about 400 acres of uncleared forest on the mountain slopes, at an elevation from a little over 6000 to a little under 5000 feet above the level of the sea, and with a mean temperature about 8° warmer than that of Ootacamund.

I selected this site for a plantation of C. succirubra, C. Calisaya, C. micrantha, and the very delicate C. Peruviana, because, with a good supply of water, and a deep rich soil on a base of decomposing laterite and syenite, it had a suitable elevation above the sea, temperature, and amount of humidity. The information we possess on these points, with regard to the above species, is by no means complete; but it is sufficiently exact to enable us to form a correct opinion. Mr. Spruce gives the following details respecting the climate of the region of C. succirubra, in latitude 1° 40´ S. The zone of the "red bark" is from 2450 to 5000 feet above the sea.

From the 1st of June to the 31st of December is the dry season in the "red-bark" region, when the days are usually sunny in the early morning, and mists generally begin to form as the sun declines; while after the autumnal equinox there are heavy rains and thunder-storms. In the wet season the early part of the day is foggy, and there is heavy continuous rain during the afternoons and nights. In the region of C. Calisaya, from 13° to 16° S. lat., and from 4000 to 6000 feet above the sea, the dry season lasts from April to the end of August. April and August are showery months. May is also showery, but clear in the forenoons, and the mean temperature during the first half is 69°, mean maximum 71½°, and mean minimum 62½°. June and July are hot dry months, with little rain, a bright hot sun in the day, but cold clear nights. In September the rains begin, increase in October, and pour down incessantly from the beginning of November to the middle of March, with very hot, damp days and nights. We have no detailed information respecting the region of C. micrantha and C. Peruviana, species which flourish in 10° S. lat., from 4000 to 5500 feet above the sea. From May to November the sun shines powerfully, yet heavy rains fell from day to day in June and July 1860, and it was not until August that the days were clear and bright. At Casapi, in this region, where a register was kept, it rained during half the days in the year.[419] From November to May is the rainy season, and sometimes the rain pours down for six or seven days without intermission.[420]

The Neddiwuttum site, being about 8° or 10° warmer than Ootacamund, has a temperature exactly similar to that of the forests where the above species of chinchonÆ flourish. Its elevation above the sea is also the same as that of the chinchona forests. It is true that Mr. Spruce gives the extreme upper limit of the "red-bark" region at 5000 feet; but Mr. Cross saw that species growing at an elevation of 8000 feet; and the great importance of cultivating this species at the highest possible elevation is demonstrated by Mr. Spruce's observation that the bark of trees growing low down and near the plains is by no means so thick as that of trees which flourish in a loftier and more temperate climate.[421] The Neddiwuttum site is within the limit of the region which receives both monsoons. Though protected to some extent from the south-west, it receives a full share of the rains during the summer, and is also supplied with moisture by the north-east monsoon, coming across Mysore between October and December. During the remaining months it is visited by mists and heavy dews in the nights until the south-west monsoon again commences in May. It will probably be found that these species of chinchonÆ will bear a much drier climate than we at present suppose; and I have no misgivings that the amount of humidity at Neddiwuttum will not be amply sufficient for their successful cultivation. The only person who has visited this site since its selection, who is capable, through personal knowledge of the South American chinchona forests, of forming an opinion, is Mr. Cross. It is exceedingly satisfactory to find that he not only approves of it for the cultivation of plants of the "red-bark" species, but that, from the superior depth and richness of the soil, he considers that they are likely to thrive even better than in their native forests near Limon, on the eastern slopes of Chimborazo.

In the Neddiwuttum forest, among other plants, I found the Hymenodictyon excelsum,[422] wild yams, coffee-plants, cinnamon, pepper-vines, Andromedas, Osbeckias, wild ginger, a Balanophra with a scarlet flower, and abundance of orchids and ferns. On the edge of the forest there was a little hut, merely a few branches covered with grass, and leaning against the trunk of a tree, with some empty honeycombs lying about. It was the habitation of a family of Mooloo Kurumbers, a wild race who live in the forests, and run away in great terror when any one approaches them. The establishment of the plantation will soon make them alter their haunts from the neighbourhood of Neddiwuttum.

The magnificent view from this point embraces a great part of Wynaad. Far below there was a small coffee-estate, its bright green contrasting with the more sombre hues of the surrounding forest; and more to the left, though out of sight, is the extensive plantation which, together with a tract of forest on the slopes of the Neilgherries, is owned by Messrs. Ouchterlony and Campbell.

After passing the night at Pycarrah, we started next morning to examine another site further to the eastward, and overlooking the plateau of Mysore. We crossed several ranges of grassy hills, with streams in the intervening valleys flowing through thickets of tree rhododendrons, with the gorgeous crimson flowers just beginning to bloom, Osbeckias, and a Lasianthus with a beautiful glossy leaf. The hills were dotted with a St. John's-wort with a bright orange flower (Hypericum Hookerianum). We soon reached the edge of the plateau, overlooking the low country, and looked down on the wide plains of Mysore, with some Neilgherry peaks in advance of us, and a valley between, where there was bright green cultivation, and crimson patches of amaranth, surrounding the Badaga village of Choloor. Between the place where we stood and the Choloor valley there were some fine patches of forest on the steep hill-slopes; but they did not offer the same advantages as Neddiwuttum for a first experimental chinchona plantation. This side of the hills is drier, the soil poorer, and water is less abundant, though it is nearer Ootacamund, and both labour and supplies are more easily procurable. Returning to Ootacamund we rode up to a Todar-mund, where something unusual had evidently occurred. About thirty Todars were walking in a line through the forest glades below, and several jackals were prowling about in the broad daylight. We afterwards heard that a huge tiger had killed one of the Todar buffaloes that morning, and retreated into the shola on the edge of which we had just had luncheon. They expected him to come out at sunset for his supper.

We continued our excursion to the summit of the Kalhutty peak, overlooking the Seegoor ghaut, whence several fine tracts of forest-land slope down; but Neddiwuttum was decidedly preferable in every respect to all the localities which we examined on the northern side of the Neilgherries, and to the eastward of that site. The part of the hills on the south, towards Coonoor and Kotergherry, was out of the question on account of the summer drought, as it is completely screened from the south-west monsoon by the spurs from the Dodabetta peak; and the forests towards the Sispara ghaut, being too far west to receive moisture from the north-east monsoon, were not so good as Neddiwuttum, at least for a first experiment.

When the success of the chinchona culture on the 400 acres of the Neddiwuttum plantation is fully established, the experiment may then be extended to the east and west, both by Government and through private enterprise; and these precious barks may be expected to yield remunerative profits to European speculators, while they will at the same time confer an inestimable blessing on the native population.

Everything, however, depends upon the method which is adopted for the cultivation of the chinchona-plants in the experimental plantations; and, in a future chapter, I propose to give a detailed account of the course of events, as regards the chinchona-plants on the Neilgherry hills, up to the latest date.

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