Travels in Peru and India: While Superintending the Collection of Chinchona Plants and Seeds in South America, and Their Introduction into India.Markham, Clements R. (Clements Robert), Sir
History
Travels in Peru and India: While Superintending the Collection of Chinchona Plants and Seeds in South America, and Their Introduction into India.
Markham, Clements R. (Clements Robert), Sir
Cinchona; India -- Description and travel; Peru -- Description and travel
The thirty Wardian cases which I sent out round Cape Horn were three
feet two inches long, ten feet ten inches broad, and three feet two
inches high; and, with soil and plants, each case weighed a little
over three hundredweight. The collection of plants of _C. Calisaya_,
_C. ovata_, and _C. micrantha_ filled fifteen cases; and the other
fifteen received the collection of _C. succirubra_ at Guayaquil. I also
had six cases of somewhat smaller dimensions constructed at Lima for
the plants from Huanuco. The fifteen cases containing the collection
of chinchona-plants from Caravaya sailed from the port of Islay on the
23rd of June, and reached Panama on the 6th of July, 1860, when 207 had
already begun to throw out green shoots. On their arrival in England,
in August, these 207 plants were in a most flourishing and healthy
condition, and continued so until their arrival at Alexandria early in
September. But the intense heat of the Red Sea, where the thermometer
ranged from 99° in the night to 107° in the day-time, proved too much
for them, and the damage was increased by a detention of a week at
Bombay. Their roots were attacked by rot, yet, on their arrival in
the Neilgherry hills, their leaves still looked fresh, and several
hundred green cuttings were obtained from them, which, however, failed
to strike. The cases containing the chinchona-plants from Huanuco left
Lima in September, and were also in a most promising state when they
reached England, but on their arrival in India they were all dead. The
"red-bark" collection, under the able management of Mr. Cross, sailed
from Guayaquil on the 2nd of January, 1861. On their arrival in England
in excellent order, six of them were left at Kew as a precaution, and
replaced by six plants of _C. Calisaya_ supplied by Sir W. Hooker. At
that season the climate of the Red Sea is cool, and, owing to this
circumstance and still more to the intelligent watchfulness of a good
practical gardener, 463 plants of _C. succirubra_ and six of _C.
Calisaya_ were handed over to the superintendent on the Neilgherry
hills, in as vigorous and healthy a condition as could possibly have
been hoped for after such a voyage.
The "grey-bark" seeds arrived in the Neilgherry hills early in January,
1861, and the "red-bark" in the following March, and both collections
came up abundantly. The supply of seeds of _C. Condaminea_ reached
their destination in Southern India in February 1862. In order to guard
against all accidents, a portion of the seeds of each species was left
in England, and a depôt of young chinchona-plants has thus been formed
at Kew Gardens, with a view to fall back upon them in the event of
possible failures or misfortunes in India.[385] Seeds of each of the
species were also sent to Ceylon, to which Sir W. Hooker added a few
plants of _C. Calisaya_ from his stock at Kew.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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