Gazetteer Of The Sialkot District

· 1895 · Public domain (published pre-1930) · archive.org ↗

114

2[ Punjab Gazetteer,

3Chapter I-

4Descriptive'

5Grasses.

6Misce 1 1 a n e o u !

7plants and weeds.

8CH.vr. I.— THE DISTRICT.

9that well-ropes in Lahore are almost always tnade of this grass,

10whilst the practice in this district is to make them out of the

11crushed stalks of sugarcane. Thekahl {8acchariim spontaneum) is

12much more common than the sarr. It is found in large quantities

13on alluvial lands. It is used as fodder only in times of drought.

14Its chief use is for roofing huts and for the ceilings of the larger

15houses. Kahi has of late years been extensively planted on the

16banks of the Degh by the District Board with a view to re-

17claiming the sand, and, the result has been encouraging.

18Duhh {Eeragrostis rynnsuroid^s) is a hardy grass with little sap.

19It is found on the rivers, and having deep, strong roots, is very

20difficult to eradicate. It is called aira in Bajwat, where the

21people dry it to make thatching and mats. The fibre when

22well beaten is used as cordage for beds. D'da [Carex tuberosus)

23is found in lowlying lands and flourishes in the rainy season.

24It makes poor fodder. The roots are greedily eaten by pigs.

25Panni {Anatheriini viuricatum) resembles the dila, but is not so

26disliked by cattle. Its roots make the sweet-smelling hhas-

27khas which is so much used in tittis, or grass screens, which cool

28the house in the hot weather. Sawdnk (Paniciim colonum)

29grows e.xtensively in good loamy soil, and is one of the favour-

30ite fodder grasses. The seed resembles that of kangni and

31is made into cakes by the poorer classes. The seeds are called

32tar tdul, and are eaten by strict Hindus during their -fasts.

33Lunak (Snlda frulicosa) is a useless grass found in saline soil. It

34has very little sap and is disliked by cattle. Madhdna, nnnalsh

35and mar kan belong to the same class. Lucerne grass is grown

36only near the towns. Maina [Medicago denticulata) is of

37spontaneous growth, and is also sown for fodder. It is said to

38possess milk-producing qualities. Besides the above common

39grasses, the following also are found generally on alluvial

40lands; — Bekon, buk, sitli, gandhail, iirdri, pasghand, lai, udat

41majhun, jawdl, hatkarain, kakhon and tarakla. They are all

42bad grazing.

43One of the commonest shrubs is the pilchi or jhdo {Tamarix

44Indira), which grows by the rivers. The only animals that

45will eat it are camels. It is used as fuel, and the dried twigs

46are employed in the manufacture of baskets, and in some parts

47in the revetment {niutha) of temporary wells. The twigs are

48also fashioned into reed pens. The baru {Sorghum halepense)

49grows on sandy soil. Before the rainy season it is poisonous,

50but once the rains have burst it is freely eaten by cattle and

51horses.

52The most prevalent weed is the bughdt or pldji, the wild

53leek. It grows up with the rabi crops. When young it is

54easily weeded out, and is eaten by cattle. It has a fine black

55seed, which gets mixed up with wheat and barley seed and gives

56a lot of trouble. The lehli {Salix tetrasperma) also appears along

57with the spring crops. It has a light pink flower. It is given to

58milch cattle, as it is believed to produce milk. The bhakhra

59( Tribulusl anuginosus) flourishes in the autumn rains, and while