Thus this beautiful
plant is only appreciated by those whose instinct leads them to
its discovery. The wild hogs plough up the patinas and revel in
this delicate food. The plant itself is almost lost in the rank
herbage of the patinas, but its beautiful pink, hyacinth-shaped
blossom attracts immediate attention. Few plants combine beauty
of appearance, scent and utility, but this is the perfection of
each quality -nothing can surpass the delicacy and richness of
its perfume. It has two small bulbs about an inch below the
surface of the earth, and these, when broken, exhibit a highly
granulated texture, semi-transparent like half-boiled sago. From
these bulbs the arrowroot is produced by pounding them in water
and drying the precipitated farina in the sun.
There are several beautiful varieties of orchidaceous plants upon
the mountains; among others, several species of the dendrobium.
Its rich yellow flowers hang in clusters from a withered tree,
the only sign of life upon a giant trunk decayed, like a wreath
upon a grave. The scent of this flower is well known as most
delicious; one plant will perfume a large room.
There is one variety of this tribe in the neighborhood of Newera
Ellia, which is certainly unknown in English collections.
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