flabellifer) , from the fruit of which is extracted a liquor, pleasant and refreshing when newly drawn, highly intoxicant when fermented; coco-nut; and the small thinbaung (Phoenix paludosa) used for house-building. Bamboos for which the Burman has a thousand uses, abound in every district, the most notable species being myinwa (Dendrocalamus Strictus), thaikwa (Bambusa Tulda), Kyathaung (Bambusa polymorpha), tinwa (Cephalostachyum pergracile). Among innumerable varieties of grasses, canes, and reeds may be mentioned the fine thin reed (Phrynium dichotomum) of which are woven the beautiful mats of Danubyu; and thetke grass (Imperata arundinacea), commonly used for thatching. Valuable fibre is yielded by Shaw (Sterculia spp.).
Trees of minor importance are kabaung (Strychnos nuxvomica); thitka (Pentace burmannica); tanaung (Acacia leucophloea); and kaunghmu (Parashorea stellata). The india-rubber fig (Ficus elastica) is found in Myitkyina and beyond the administrative border.
Of little present economic value are the vast mangrove, swamp, and savannah jungles which thickly fringe the coast and tidal streams, abounding in dense bushes, creepers, elephant grasses, and reeds. The mangrove jungle of Hanthawaddy, which may be regarded as typical of the Delta
is characterized specially by Bruguiera and Rhizophora. Behind these forests and along the borders of tidal channels are the tidal forests, the most characteristic trees of which are Sonneratia apetala and Avicennia tomentosa. These forests have a thick scrubby growth, similar to that of the mangrove forests. Nipa fruticans and Pandanus foetidus form dense bushes, and Phoenix paludosa is very common. Creepers and climbers abound, including Acanthus volubilis, Flagellaria indica, etc.[1]
The mangrove forests may have a prospective value in supplying tan bark.
- ↑ Imperial Gazetteer of India—Burma, 1. 242.
