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Trichoderma grows profusely and also could be reused for ethyl alcohol produc- V. VENKATESWARA SARMA produces millions of conidia. Before tion employing Saccharomyces cere- extracting cellulase enzyme from the visiae in the subsequent stage. Straw SSF-grown substrate, if the spores are is used for composting and as a feed separated and made into a spore suspen- for cattle. Instead of straw directly Department of Biotechnology, sion, it could be applied directly in the being used in composting, various inter- Karpaga Vinayaga College of agriculture fields which would serve as a mediate steps could be undertaken to get Engineering and Technology, biocontrol agent. The residual straw that several other benefits, as suggested G.S.T. Road, Palayanoor Post, is still left after separation of cellulase above and schematically represented in Chennai 603 308, enzyme and spores of Trichoderma sp., Figure 1. e-mail: [email protected]

Flowering of baccifera (Bambusaceae) in northeastern India

Flowering of is a botanical vegetative growth prior to flowering in the northeastern states of India during enigma. The factors responsible for this have been noted in different locations 2004–08 and about 26 mt of bamboo will are still not clearly established. and there is a wealth of reports that give flower and die. Millions of people who flower only once and die after flowering a reliable picture of the flowering cycle depend directly or indirectly on Muli to regenerate from seeds1. The strange of this . A study by the Jorhat- bamboo for their livelihood will suffer, phenomenon of simultaneous flowering based Rain Forest Research Institute and if famine strikes the whole populace in bamboo clumps in vast areas is called (RFRI) has estimated that the ‘gregarious of the region could be at risk. The gregarious flowering and causes ecologi- flowering’ of M. baccifera or Muli bam- neighbouring regions of and cal havoc. The bamboo clumps die after boo will occur in several northeastern states could also be equally affected. flowering and it takes a few years before in 2004, over an area of 18,000 km2. The The large fruits of Muli bamboo are bamboo produce seeds again, leav- states identified are (Figure also eaten by non-human consumers and ing bare, exposed soil which could be 1 a–d), Tripura, , Meghalaya and the sudden enormous increase in their disastrous in mountainous regions. This parts of . According to the esti- availability will cause a rapid explosion would lead to food scarcity, since several mate of INBAR3, flowering of M. baccif- in the populations, whose numbers animals depend on this . The second era occurred in approximately 1.76 m ha are related to the availability of food factor is that feed on the flowers and seeds of the dying bamboo tree. This activates a rapid birth rate among the rodents, which leads to the huge rat population feeding on agricultural crops in the fields and granaries, thus leading to famine. This had happened in Mizoram2 in the late 1950s. is a sympodial bamboo growing to about 20 m height Unlike other sympodial bamboos, the rhizomes are long and so rather than growing as compact clumps, M. baccif- era produces groves of widely spaced culms, more akin to those of large mo- nopodial bamboos. It is an aggressive colonizer and often forms the dominant vegetation on the tropical and subtropical hill slopes on which it grows. It is natu- rally distributed in a swathe cutting south to north from southwestern Myanmar through western central and northern Myanmar and the Chittagong hill tracts of the eastern to the northeastern states of India, where it represents between 60 Figure 1. a, Melocanna baccifera without flowers in Mizoram. b, M. baccifera – Green and 95 regional bamboo resources. patch without flowers which is sourrounded by flowered plants (in pale colour). c, Pro- The first recorded flowering of M. fusely flowering M. baccifera. d, Enlarged flower of M. baccifera. e, Fruits attached to baccifera was in 1863; various periods of culms. f, Germinating seeds from fruits.

CURRENT SCIENCE, VOL. 96, NO. 9, 10 MAY 2009 1165 CORRESPONDENCE

(Figure 1 e and f ). The rats not only dev- intervals is the norm for that species. 8. Ray, K., Spectre of wasteland haunts. Dec- astate the naturally regenerating seeds Only for M. baccifera there is reasonable can Herald, 21 December 2003; http:// and seedlings, and thereby reduce the evidence to suggest that the patterns ob- www.deccanherald.com/deccanherald/dec21/ regeneration rate, but also destroy other served are likely to be representative of n1.asp crops and stored grains. Such famines the species3. The present observation have occurred in the Lushai hills of confirms that the said prediction can be Assam (as Mizoram was known before its true in case of bamboo flowering for the 4 1 independence) , in 1815, 1863, 1911 and above-mentioned species. S. JEEVA 2 1959. Throughout the North East, the S. KIRUBA 3 flowering-induced famine in 1959 claimed 1. Dhar, A., When flowering spells famine. H. LALHRUAITLUANGA The Hindu, 26 October 2003; http:// 3, 10,000 to 15,000 lives, and flowering in M. N. V. PRASAD * 5 www.hinduonnet.com/2003/10/26/stories/ 4 1881 also claimed a similar number . R. R. RAO During December 2005, we observed 2003102604461000.htm 2. Kiruba, S., Jeeva, S., Dhas, S. S. M. and the flowering of M. baccifera in Nong- Kannan, D., Indian J. Traditional Know- poh (91°52′E, 25°53′N) in the East Khasi ledge, 2007, 6, 199–203. 1Department of Botany, Hills, Meghalaya. 3. INBAR, INBAR flowering fact sheets Recent reports about the flowering of International Network of Bamboo and Rat- Nesamony Memorial Christian College, M. baccifera are not from Mizoram tan, Beijing, , 2004; www.inbar. Marthandam 629 165, India 2 alone, but in the huge forested areas int/flowering/M.baccifera.pdf Centre for Biological Research, across the other northeastern states of 4. Anon., Report to the Government of 2/77, Kamaraj Street, Tripura, Manipur and southern Assam, Mizoram, INBAR, Beijing, China, 2001. East Puthalam, which has attracted national and interna- 5. Hazarika, S., Strangers of the Mist: Tales Puthalam 629 602, India 3 tional attention. In Mizoram, the phe- of War and Peace from India’s Northeast, Department of Plant Sciences, Penguin Books, New Delhi, 1995. nomenon is known as ‘’, literally University of Hyderabad, 6. Vibhu, H., Trouble blooms. The Hindu, 27 Hyderabad 500 046, India meaning ‘bamboo dying’ (‘mau’ mean- March 2005; http://www.thehindu.com/ 5–8 4Central Institute of Medicinal and ing bamboo and ‘tam’ meaning to die) . thehindu/mag/2005/03/27/stories/200503 As most bamboo flowering is unpre- 2700010200.htm Aromatic Plants dictable, for no species is sufficient 7. Anon., Alarm bells on bamboo bloom, The Allalasandra, GKVK Post, information available to state unequivo- Telegraph, 13 January 2001; http://www. Bangalore 560 065, India cally that flowering at such long, fixed northeastvigil.in/archives/?p=11566 *e-mail: [email protected]

Essential oils from leaves of micropropagated turmeric

Turmeric (Curcuma longa L.) is known site high oil-yielding planting material. medium and micrpropagated plantlets worldwide for its multipurpose use in An effort was therefore made to explore were maintained with regular sub- medicine, cosmetics, food flavouring and the possibility of an alternative method culturing at 60 days interval. textile industries. Several pharmacological of essential oil production from leaves of Leaves were excised aseptically from activities of turmeric like anti-inflam- in vitro-grown turmeric plants through micropropagated turmeric plant (10– matory, hepato-protective, antimicrobial, biotechnological intervention, as reported 12 cm long) from a culture tube (Borosil, wound healing, anticancer, anti-tumour in other species3. 150 mm × 2.5 cm) and used for extrac- and antiviral properties are due to the An elite cultivar of C. longa L. (cv. Su- tion of essential oil in a Clevenger’s Ap- presence of curcumin present in the rhi- roma) having high rhizome-yielding po- paratus. After harvesting of leaves from zome and essential oil found both in the tential (44.9 t/ha) was collected from the the culture tube, the basal region of the rhizomes and leaves1. There is ever in- High Altitude Research Station, Orissa plant stock was maintained with supply creasing demand for leaf oil of turmeric University of Agriculture and Techno- of fresh nutrient medium, which could due to its use in medicine, perfume and logy, Potangi, Orissa, and was micro- produce extractable leaf biomass after aromatherapy2. The price of leaf oil of propagated from dormant axillary buds another 2 months of culture. GLC analysis turmeric is approximately US$ 1 per of unsprouted rhizomes on MS basal me- of essential oil was carried out in Perkin– 10 ml in the international market. The dium4 containing various combinations of Elmer auto-system fitted with a capillary yield of the aromatic leaf oil is not up to benzyladenine (BA), indoleacetic acid column Carbowax 20 m of 50 m length the desired level due to the huge wastage (IAA) and adenine sulphate (ADS). The flux ionization detector, Okidata 320 re- of leaves during post-harvest processing medium containing 3 mg/l BA, 1 mg/l corded digital computer DEC station fed of the rhizomes, high occurrence of dis- IAA and 50 mg/l ADS was optimum for with turbochrom-3 software and nitrogen eases like rhizome rot, leaf spot and leaf shoot multiplication, producing 5–7 shoots as carrier gas. Samples of essential oil blotch accounting for nearly 60% crop of about 3–4 cm long per culture within were analysed by temperature program- loss, and due to unavailability of requi- every 30 days. Shoots rooted on the same ming of GC (60°C for 10 min followed

1166 CURRENT SCIENCE, VOL. 96, NO. 9, 10 MAY 2009