Showing papers in "Economic Botany in 1972"

“Ayahuasca,” the South American hallucinogenic drink: An ethnobotanical and chemical investigation

Abstract: The Sharanahua and Culina, small Indian tribes located in the southwestern Amazon basin, use a hallucinogenic drink for medicinal and social purposes. This decoction, called “Ayahuasca” in Peru, is prepared from Banisteriopsis Caapi stems and Psychotria sp. leaves. These plants have been botanically identified on the basis of voucher herbarium specimens and investigated for alkaloid content by means of a gas chromatography-mass spectrometry technique. A list of other occasional plant admixtures is given. Harmine, Harmaline, Tetrahydroharmine, Harmol and 6-Methoxytryptamine have been found in Banisteriopsis Caapi. Dimethyltryptamine, Monomethyltryptamine and 2-methyl-1,2,3,4-tetrahydro-β-carboline have been found in Psychotria viridis and Psychotria carthaginensis. Harmine, Harmaline, Tetrahydroharmine and Dimethyltryptamine have been found in the drink. Quantitative calculations show the amount of each alkaloid administered in the Ayahuasca drink.

The wild progenitor and the place of origin of the cultivated lentil:Lens culinaris

Abstract: 1. The wild species of the genusLens were surveyed. WildL. orientalis was found to be morphologically closest to cultivatedL. culinaris. It is also the only wild species interconnected to the cultivated lentil by a series of intermediate types. 2. Archaeologically lentil was established as one of the primary domesticants that founded the neolithic agricultural revolution in the Near East are. 3. The geographic distribution of wildL. orientalis is centered in the neolithic nuclear area of the Near East are, i.e., northern Israel, Syria, South Turkey, North Iraq, and Western Iran. 4. The conclusion was reached thatL. orientalis is the wild progenitor of cultivatedL. culinaris, and that its domestication took place in the Near East are.

Guinea yams the botany, ethnobotany, use and possible future of yams in West Africa

Abstract: Of all the food crop plants of the tropics, few are as closely associated with a particular group of people, or particular cultural area, as are yams with certain of the West African peoples. Yams are grown and used in many other parts of the tropics, but in few other areas of the world are they so central a feature of day-to-day life. African cultural patterns tend to be strongly oriented towards staple carbohydrate foods in the food/agricultural complex (Uchendu, 1970), and through much of West Africa the yam is still a prominent factor in the cultural life, as well as the material subsistence of the population. In much of West Africa, yams are still the preferred staple food among most of the inhabitants of the forest zone and of the southern parts of the savannah. It may be no coincidence that the highest cultures of forest zone in West Africa Ashanti, Brong Ahafo, Ife, Igbo Ukwu and Beninarose in areas where yam was the staple food. Before the widespread impact of Western European ideologies and education during the present century, rituals associated with events in the yam farming calendar were major cultural junctures in the year among most West African ethnic groups and the yam harvest was regarded as the equivalent of the New Year. The paramount position of the yams has been diminished by in-

Cucurbit seeds: I. Characterizations and uses of oils and proteins. A review

Abstract: Cucurbit seeds can be classified as oil seeds because decorticated seeds contain by weight 50% oil and 35% protein. The oil is unsaturated and generally edible; however, the contents of conjugated trienoic fatty acids in the oil of a few species preclude edibility but increase industrial values as drying oils. Proteins of cucurbit seeds appear edible and supplementation with certain amino acids increases the nutritional value of the protein. However, the possibility that a meal or protein from a given species might be inedible, e.g., through presence of a toxic compound in the seed, must be determined by appropriate feeding tests with the seed products. Thus cucurbits are potentially valuable oilseed crops. Of special interest are certain xerophilous species that grow particularly well in desert regions. Propagation of these species on currently unproductive wastelands could provide an additional source of oil and protein for industrial and edible purposes.

Human influences on plant evolution

Abstract: Significant human influences on plants in the human environment probably began to be felt even before Homo sapiens came to be the sole representative of his genus and, whatever conservation idealists may wish to believe, they were certainly being felt in the earliest days of our species. Nevertheless, the record, if we should ever be able to get hold of it, might be difficult to interpret because of conflicting tendencies. If Paul Martin and others are right (e.g., P. S. Martin, 1970; P. S. Martin & Wright, 1967), early man was a successful exterminator of some of the larger herbivores, thereby reducing grazing pressure and permitting more woody growth in the grasslands. On the other hand, by promoting fires, he may have tended to reduce woody growth and promote grassland expansion. Consequently, we can hope to see a clear human influence on plants only after man became an agriculturist. Agriculture implies (a) the domestication of certain plants and, associated with this (b) the creation of a class of plants which we call weeds, together with (c) interference with natural vegetation as a result of making room for crops to be grown and from the grazing of domesticated animals Road-building, urban developments and other engineering activities have also had their effects.

Origin of mango (Mangifera indica)

Abstract: The commercial cultivars of mango have originated predominantly in India through seedling selections of the variants due to recombination and segregation of characters in the progenies. It has been found that suitable environment can help in wider diversity in the seedling progenies with much improved types as in Florida, where the Haden and other cultivars have bigger-sized fruits with more attractive colour than the parent Mulgoa with dull colour. The predominance of nucellar lines in Malaysia and the Philippines is possibly a result of genotype environment reaction. The nature of inheritance of this character should be studied more in detail.

The area of origin ofManihot esculenta as a crop plant—a review of the evidence

Abstract: It has been suggested by Mangelsdorf and his co-workers (1964) that the two subdivisions (according to toxicity) into which cultivated manioc falls “had a separate and local history of cultivation,” and an examination of the evidence presented above makes it possible to elaborate on this suggestion It may be proposed that sweet manioc was first domesticated in Mesoamerica as one item in an assemblage of vegetatively propagated crops Although suit-able progenitors representing the full range between sweet and bitter manioc may have been available, there is no evidence to indicate that bitter manioc was utilised in Mesoamerica at an early date, and early historical sources only record the use of the less poisonous varieties When only the sweet varieties occur, they characteristically form part of a crop complex dominated by maize, and sweet manioc may have been spread with maize by the human migrations that penetrated into South America Bitter manioc, on the other hand, is likely to have first come under cultivation in northern South America and to have achieved great prominence as the major crop in horticultural systems depending mainly on vegetatively propagated crops Recovery of clay griddles from archaeological sites and the distribution of associated characteristic painted pottery types suggest that this process may have been initiated in the interior of Venezuela, with later migrations towards the coast via the Orinoco (Rouse & Cruxent, 1963) Subsequent intercommunication between, and migration of, Amerindian tribes has evidently caused both types of manioc to diffuse widely and to become established as crops of major importance In Brazil, where there is considerable varietal diversity and an abundance of relatedManihot species, there must have been particularly favourable conditions for hybridisation and the development of new varieties of manioc; but on present evidence it seems unlikely that bitter manioc was first domesticated there

Protein yield of various crops as related to protein value

Abstract: When comparing yields of protein per unit of land area from plant sources it is customary to consider all proteins as being of equal value. However, biologically available protein is not necessarily the same as total protein. The present investigation was initiated to evaluate protein yield of selected crops from the standpoint of quality as well as quantity. The biological quality or protein value of proteins is determined by the content of those amino acids which cannot be synthesized in the body but which are essential for normal metabolic functions. Eight of the 20 amino acids contained in food are not synthesized but are essential for a normal human adult (Rose, 1949). Also, sufficient nitrogen must be ingested in the daily diet to synthesize the non-essential amino acids. Furthermore, for optimum utilization in protein synthesis the essential and non-essential amino acids must be present simultaneously (Geiger, 1947). The relative value of proteins is determined by comparison with a complete protein, such as that of an egg, which provides no additional growth when supplemented. These values are expressed in such terms as biological value (BV), net protein utilization (NPU), and chemical (protein) score (PS). Each of these has its limitations and consequently is within limits of possible error. Values obtained from a biological test may be low if some of the essential amino acids are not absorbed. Protein scores indicate only the utilization of protein after absorption (FAO/

Ethnobotanical notes from Amazonian Brazil

Abstract: During the course of a year of field work in Amazonian Brazil in 1971, I visited four different tribes of Indians in widely separated localities (Fig. 1). While among these tribes, we were able to gather much ethnobotanical information, some of which is presented here. Many of the plants discussed have already been reported in other sources cited, but some of the plant uses given here are recorded for the first time. The principal aim of this study, however, is to provide well documented evidence of these plant uses correlated with herbarium voucher material. The collections cited are deposited in the herbaria of the New York Botanical Garden (NY), the Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas da Amazonia (INPA), and the Economic Herbarium of the Botanical Museum of Harvard University (ECON). Three of the four tribes visited now live on the fringes of western civilization and show a varying degree of acculturation. Therefore, it is extremely urgent to gather as much ethnobotanical information as possible before it is permanently lost. We made a special effort to collect data from the Indians on their uses of plants.

The trans-domestication concept as applied to Guar

Abstract: The interrelat ionship between the domestication of plants and the development and needs of human society has been well documented (24, 101). Extensive investigations have been conducted on the domestication process for many of the staple New and Old World food crops (26, 42, 44, 62, 69, 70, 88, 91). Food plants tha t complement the staple crops in the human diet have also at t racted the at tent ion of students of plant domestication, though less extensively than the pr imary food crops (10, 43, 50, 79). In addition, there are domesticated food plants of relatively minor economic importance, the use of which follows a cyclical pat tern depending on time and circumstance. Examples of minor domesticated food plants are some pulses and cereals, used either for human food or animal feed, spices, condiments, and religious and ceremonial foods. Because they are peripheral to the development of civilization, minor crops are rarely thought of as subjects for intensive plant domestication studies. Nevertheless, investigations on the domestication process of te r t ia ry crop plants have certain a::tvantages over pr imary and secondary

Origin and genetic improvement of Indian cauliflower

Abstract: Among the cole crops, cauliflower (Brassica oleracea L. var. botrytis L. subvar. cauliflora DC.) follows cabbage in importance with regard to area and production in the world. However, in India cauliflower is more widely grown than cabbage. This crop grows at latitudes 110 N to 60? N with average temperature ranging from 5?-8?C to 25 ?-28 0C. In its vegetative growth period it may stand temperatures as low as -100C and as high as 40?C for a few days. The total area under cauliflower in the world is 164, 594 hectares. Italy and India have the largest areas, each covering about 25 percent of the total acreage (2, 3). In India, cauliflower is grown both in the hills and in the plains and from 110 N to 350 N. Some of the most important cauliflower growing states in India are Uttar Pradesh, Mysore, West Bengal, Punjab, and Bihar. It is also grown commonly in the northern Himalayas and in the Nilgiri Hills in the south. Cauliflower is harvested from late August or early September to late February or early March in the north Indian plains and from March to November in the hills. Cauliflowers cultivated in the Indian plains can be broadly classed into four maturity groups depending upon time of curd availability: I, September to early November; II, mid-November to early December; III, mid-December to mid-January; and IV, mid-January to early March. Of these groups, the first three are typically Indian cauliflowers while the fourth is of Snowball, Erfurt,

The partial and complete domestication of the oil palm ( Elaeis guineensis )

Abstract: The oil palm (Elaeis guineensis Jacq.) is an important oil crop. Large quantities of mesocarp-oil and kerneloil are consumed in Africa and are exported from there and southeastern Asia to North America and Europe, where they are used mainly for food (margarine), in soap and candle making, and in the tin industry. Furthermore, in most African areas the oil palm is tapped for its wine by cutting the stem of the female or male inflorescence or by making a hole in the palm.'s "cabbage." Disastrous is the felling of palms after which the palm wine is taken. In some areas only raffia palms (Raphia) are tapped, while the oil palm is the source of oil. This takes place, for example, in southeastern Nigeria, where raffia palm seedlings are traded and planted on the compound. From an area in Central Africa, it was reported that, at the end of the 19th Century, the only use made of the oil palm was to fashion old empty inflorescences into brooms (Stuhlmann, 1894). It is probable that at present the usefulness of the palm ha.s been told to the people. But still in Central African Republic two decades ago palm oil was used only as a chrismal oil (Tisserant, 1953). Enormously great numbers of oil palms must occur in the world. For Nigeria alone, 250 millions of stemmed palms have been estimated (Zeven, 1967). To this figure the large number of seedling palms should be added. Fig.

Chemistry of the Aroids I. Dieffenbachia seguine, amoena and picta'

Abstract: Although numerous chemical and biological studies have been conducted on Dieffenbachia plants, the identity and composition of the toxic constituents has not been established. Bigelow (3) first reported that the acrid property in species of Arum (A. triphyllum) appears to depend upon a distinct vegetable pripcipal which is extremely volatile and disappears almost entirely upon heating, drying or simple exposure. Madaus (18) implicated a poisonous alkaloid, glycoside or a bitter substance to be the toxic substance. Madaus and Koch (19) postulated that it might be of hormonal nature. Calcium oxalate (raphides) was considered but, according to Barnes (1) the amount of soluble or total oxalate was no more than is found in several edible vegetables. Barnes suggested a sapotoxin. He found that water and acid extracts of D. picta and D. seguine contained a low concentration of toxic constituents as compared to expressed juice and that juice from the stem is more irritating than of the petiole or leaf. Drach and Maloney (8) and Dore (7) implicated insoluble and/or soluble oxalate or glycosidal principles. Pohl (21, 22) suggested a protein. In this investigation, the authors found that Dieffenbachia seguine, D. amoena and D. picta all contain L-asparagine and a proteolytic enzyme. Long sharp raphides of calcium oxalate are also present in the leaf blade. Fur-

The species of Ipomoea closely related to the sweet potato

Abstract: The problem of the origin of the sweet potato, Ipomoea batatas (L.) Lam., has both geographic and biosystematic aspects. The geographical locality where the sweet potato first occurred, or was first domesticated, is generally accepted to be the New World. Hypotheses of an Oceanian or African origin have been discounted by Conklin (2). Nevertheless, the sweet potato was evidently well distributed throughout the Pacific islands and reached even New Zealand in pre-Columbian times (16). Spanish and Portuguese travelers are believed to have disseminated the sweet potato through the tropics so rapidly that the impression was created that the sweet potato was pantropical in distribution prior to discovery of the New World. Although the actual geographical origin and the subsequent spread of the sweet potato throughout the world have ethnological implications, the geneticist or plant breeder is much more concerned with the origin of the sweet potato from related species. This interest is not a matter of idle curiosity. Reconstruction of sweet potato-like plants from related species should provide a new method of introducing useful variation, including disease resistance, to the sweet potato gene pool. In recognition of this fact, considerable emphasis has been placed on the species of Ipomoea

On the relation of harvest methods to early agriculture in the Near East

Abstract: If we might somehow resurrect man who lived 35,000 years ago and provide him with modern clothes, he would appear no different from any other person emerging from the subway station in New York or Boston. However, such an activity for man living 35,000 years ago would be decidedly atypical. In fact, the last 9,000 years of man's life on earth have been unusual. It is only in that short span of time that some of mankind have lived by agriculture. The events and circumstances that encouraged increasing numbers of people to depart from a huntingand-gathering way of life are of interest to both botany and anthropology. The fields of ethnobotany, economic botany, and cultural ecology lean against the fence separating the two sciences. But despite a tightly constructed fence, thoughts tend to slip through even the smallest openings. For example, the village site of (atal Hiiyiik, an early agricultural settlement (5850-5600 B.C.) on the Konya Plain of Turkey (Fig. 1), possesses an abundance of milling implements and baking ovens for the cultivated grain recovered in the storage bins. However, excavators found no flint sickle blades with the characteristic sheen produced by cutting the grain (Bialor, 1961: 72). The lack of harvest tools creates a paradox in the archaeological record, until we look into the harvest methods of some subsistence farmers. In the Middle East and Europe, uprooting of cereals is rare, but surprisingly widespread (Table I). Early harvesters of wheat and barley might have uprooted their crop too. In the Southwestern United States, grasses incorporated in the foundation of large storage baskets or as linings for stor-

Screening of Selected West Bengal Plants for Antifungal Activity

Abstract: A systematic screening of 170 different West Bengal plants was carried out to find antifungal antibiotics, usingAspergillus niger andTrichophyton rubrum as test organisms. From them, four plant species, viz.Curcuma zedoaria, C. aromatica, C. amada, and aBrassica sp. have been found to contain active antibiotic principles with strong inhibitory effects against both test organisms.

The Pre-Columbian distribution of the bottle gourd (Lagenaria sicerarid): A Re-evaluation

Abstract: Recently, Whitaker (1971: 327) has reaffirmed his position that the bottle gourd is indigenous to Africa and may have been diffused either by transoceanic drift or by human transport. The evidence elaborated herein, however, supports the conclusions that (1)Lagenaria is not a monotypic genus and had an ancient pantropical distribution; (2) human utilization ofLagenaria is at least 15,000 years old in the New World and 12,000 years in the Old World; (3) the early dates for the use ofLagenaria are far too early convincingly to suggest transoceanic diffusion by man, although drifting of gourds from Africa or Asia may have occurred; (4) the earliest use ofLagenaria was probably as a wild plant in the context of a hunting and gathering society; and (5)Lagenaria was independently domesticated in the Old and New Worlds.

Fruitfulness of grape vine buds

Abstract: One of the most important biological characteristics of the grapevine (Vitis vinifera L.) is its capacity to form buds in the axil of each leaf all along the length of its shoots. Grape buds are generally classified as mixed buds, i.e., both leaves and flowers develop from the same bud. Four types of buds are recognized in the grapevine which, for sake of brevity, may be referred to as (a) primary, (b) secondary or accessory or replacement, (c) basal, and (d) latent. As a general rule, on a young shoot two growing points are formed in the axil of each leaf, but as they are enclosed in a common protective scale, they appear as one bud. One of these develops in the same season in which it is formed and gives rise to a lateral. The lateral may soon be checked in growth and drop off in winter or may continue to grow and mature into a cane at the end of the season. However, where no lateral is produced, as it often happens at the proximal bud positions, two primary buds may be formed at the node. The other growing point, in the meantime, develops two accessory or secondary buds, one on each side, and the three thus formed remain enclosed in common scales so that they appear as one large bud which is often referred to as "eye."9 The accessory buds, also called replacement buds, seldom develop further, and the central bud constitutes the main unit. As all these buds arise in the axil of the leaf, they are called axillary buds. The compound bud (eye) remains dormant over winter in temperate climate and resumes growth in the following spring. If the central bud is killed by

A reinvestigation ofBalanites aegyptiaca as a source of steroidal sapogenins

Abstract: The sapogenin content of the seed and the epicarp/mesocarp ofBalanites aegyptiaca from Egypt, India, Tanzania and Nigeria has been estimated by i.r. spectrophotometric analysis. Experiments applicable on an industrial scale are described showing how the soft fruit wall, as well as the seed, could be used as commercial sources of steroidal sapogenin to assist in meeting the estimated world demand of 1,000,000 Kg of diosgenin by 1973. A procedure whereby the nuts are sawn into two halves to release the seeds is presented as one solution to the problem of decorticating the nuts.

Physiology of the lowbush blueberry

Abstract: Research on the physiology of the lowbush blueberry has been confined to eastern North America. As the demand for this fruit increases further research will be needed in all phases of physiology relating to increased production. Clonal lines were propagated by cuttings in which success varied from 73 to 100 percent. Seeds from a breeding program germinate readily, 80 per cent when extracted from fresh fruit and placed immediately in soil. The factors responsible for rhizome growth are of paramount importance as they must be improved if plantings of superior clones are to be established. Sound management of any crop is based upon a knowledge of the physiology of the species in question. Since evidence on various facets of the physiology of the lowbush blueberry, Vaccinium angustifolium Ait., has only recently started to accumulate (Eck and Childers, 1966), a comprehensive review has been lacking. This paper is an attempt to fill this void and possibly will reveal where further work is needed.

Raishan (Digitaria sp.)—a minor millet of the Khasi Hills, India

Abstract: Information on the distribution, domestication, cultivation and usage of Raishan (Digitaria cruciata var.esculenta), the Khasi’s minor millet, is provided. The crop is rainfed. Sown in April-May, grains are harvested in October and consumed mainly as a substitute for rice. The straw provides a useful winter fodder.

Bald Cypress: endangered or expanding species?

Abstract: Bald cypress [ Taxodium distichum (L.) Rich. ] has been highly prized for lumber since colonial times especially in the southeastern United States. By the early 1900's, expansion of railway facilities had helped greatly to widen the market for cypress lumber. Production peaked in 1913, when more than one billion board feet were milled (3). As large tracts of old growth were depleted, output gradually declined. It still totaled in excess of 400 million board feet in 1940, but dwindled rapidly after World War II. In 1954, the last year for which the Bureau of the Census issued such data, sawmills cut 240 million board feet (1). At present, only a handful of mills reportedly use cypress. Today the view is widely accepted that the cut-over cypress forests in the southeastern United States are not reproducing naturally (5). Is cypress really an endangered species? Exactly what is the status of our present resources? Can the species be restored to economic significance? These questions are at least partially answered by the present analysis. The data are from statistically designed timber resource surveys made by the United States Forest Service on a state-bystate basis at periodic intervals. In the southeastern United States the interval is about 10 years. Each statewide survey is planned to achieve sampling errors of no greater than plus or minus 5% per billion

Diospyros melanoxylon, a bread-winner tree of India.

Abstract: This endemic plant of India and Ceylon is used in various ways. Besides being the source of Indian ebony, its wood is also utilized for making boxes, combs, ploughs and beams. The fruits are eaten and sold commercially. The bark is burnt by tribals to “cure” small-pox. The seeds are prescribed as cure for mental disorders, palpitation of heart and nervous breakdown. Above all, the leaves of this plant constitute one of the most important raw materials of the “Bidi” (Indian cheap smoke) industry.

A Description of Some Quince Cultivars from Western Turkey

Abstract: Fruit of quince cultivars (Cydonia oblongaMill.),collected from several sites in Western Turkey, are described. Fruit characteristics are given for eight cultivars and their variation in five other cultivars is described. Distribution, nomenclature and production methods are discussed in relation to programs for collection and conservation of fruit germ plasm.

Pejibaye palm from the pacific coast of colombia (a detailed chemical analysis)

Abstract: A detailed chemical analysis of the fruits of Pejibaye (Guilielma gasipaes) presented, followed by a partial amino acid analysis of the protein and a complete analysis of the fat.

A bibliography of interest in the utilization of vascular aquatic plants

Abstract: Little (1968) and Boyd (1968, 1969) emphasized the food resources that could possibly be developed from native populations of vascular aquatic plants. The utilization of aquatic vegetation as a raw material for leaf protein extraction represents a new source of protein for human diets. Aquatic weeds could also be used extensively in livestock rations in many areas. The use of aquatic macrophytes as food plants is obviously important from the standpoint of alleviating food shortages in certain localities. Furthermore, aquatic weed growths frequently interfere with the utilization of aquatic resources and waterways (see review by Holm, Weldon, & Blackburn, 1969). In many instances chemical and biological control of water weeds is ineffective (Boyd, 1971) and management procedures involving mechanical removal of plants may prove necessary. These plants should then be used as food to offset the cost of removal. Vascular aquatic plants may also be an effective means of stripping nutrients from excessively eutrophic natural waters or from effluents (Hasler, 1969; Steward, 1970; Yount & Crossman, 1970; Boyd, 1970). These plants should also be used as feedstuffs. Relatively few studies have been conducted on the utilization of aquatic weeds. Little (1968) listed 50 papers on the subject, and only a few reports have been published since his compilation. During recent months interest in the utilization of aquatic plants has increased, particularly with respect to the

Datura fastuosa: Its use in tsonga girls’ initiation

Abstract: This paper is a description and sociocultural analysis ofDatura fastuosa ingestion in the girls’ puberty school of the Tsonga (Shangana-Tsonga) of Mozambique and the northern Transvaal The rite involves music/color synesthesia and the hearing of a supernatural voice and is associated by the Tsonga with fertility The origin and function of the rite is discussed and, in connection with certain of its aspects, cross-cultural comparisons are made

Utilisation and Taxonomy of the Desert Grass Panicum turgidum

Abstract: Panicum turgidum Forssk. has been considered economically important because of its use: a) as a sand binder, b) as a forage plant in arid areas, and c) as a source of grains. Its use either as a fodder plant or for grain production, coupled with its extreme drought resistance, makes it a species worthy of further study. Zohary (37) suggested that "improvement by breeding of the palatable species found in the desert and steppe regions may provide an inexhaustible source for the development of impoverished ranges."

Japan's 'laughing mushrooms'

Abstract: Long long ago, some woodcutters from Kyoto went into the Kitayama mountains and lost their way. Not knowing which way to go, four or five of them were lamenting their condition when they heard a group of people coming from the depths of the mountains. The woodcutters were wondering suspiciously what sort of people it might be when four or five Buddhist nuns came out dancing and singing. Seeing them, the woodcutters became fearful, thinking things like, "Dancing, singing nuns are certainly not human beings but must be goblins or demons." And when the nuns saw the men and started straight toward them, the woodcutters became very frightened and wondered, "How is it that nuns come thus out of the very depths of the mountains dancing and singing?" The nuns then said, "Our appearance dancing and singing has no doubt frightened you. But we are simply nuns who live nearby. We came to pick flowers as offerings to Buddha, but after we had all entered the hills together we lost our way and couldn't remember how to get out. Then we came upon some mushrooms, and although we wondered whether we might not be poisoned if we ate them, we were hungry and decided it was better to pick them than to starve to death. But after we had picked and roasted them we found they were quite delicious, and thinking, "Aren't these fine!" we ate them. But then as we finished the mushrooms we found we couldn't keep from dancing. Even as we were thinking, "How strange!"

Ethrel-induced ripening of immature and mature-green tomato fruits

Abstract: Ethrel accelerated the ripening of both immature and mature-green ‘2029’ tomato fruits. The best concentrations and time of dipping used were 2500 to 10,000 ppm and 5 minutes, respectively. Addition of surfactants and DMSO did not markedly influence the effectivity of Ethrel. Ethrel-treated fruits harvested 21 and 28 days after fruit set ripened normally but 14 day old fruits did not.