The soil of Bengal is a combination of thousands of youth. Riverine silt, rainfall has given our country a fertile land. There are more than five thousand species of wild plants in the country. But sadly, many wild plants are now on the verge of extinction.
Wild species are also getting lost in the aggression of foreign trees. Not much research is being done on our own plants. Instead, cities, villages, methopaths and natural forests are being used for planting and cultivating foreign fruit trees, woody trees and flowering trees. Many quarters and individuals are inspiring people to cultivate foreign fruits and vegetables. As a result, people are losing interest in native plants.
But our Kabiraj, Adivasi, rural people are still dependent on native plants for various medicines and fruits. All our poets have glorified the nature and plants of our country.
The fruit is one of the most desired fruits of our childhood. We didn't get that easily. We used to call it betuin fruit as a child. As soon as the fruit was ripe, I would carefully hit the cane. Even then, cane thorns would pierce the legs and clothes. When the juicy part came out of the outer shell of the fruit, the teenagers of Anand village used to share it with everyone. Cane bushes were rarely seen in the village.
Cane thorny, evergreen, ascending palm. Stems long, thorny and branchless. Narrow and tubular stems are usually 5-15 mm in width. New leaves emerge from the apex of each stem and grow. As the stem grows, the lower part of it starts to harden. A thorny container vine emerges to hold a container. A kind of sweet scent comes from the tree before the cane flowers. Then bees, ants, flies come to drink the juice and get drunk.
Rattan usually grows on the side of village roads, behind houses, in fallow lands and in some moist places in the forest. Within a few days, the cane became thick and turned into a broom. This species grows all over Bangladesh. The scientific name for this species of cane in the Arecaceae family is calamus tenuis. In addition to the natural environment of the forest, cane trees grow in the haor. I have seen this cane bush at Shalutigarh Haor on the banks of Sari river, Jilkar haor on the banks of Surma river and Patharchauli haor. It is native to the Himalayan tropics, Bangladesh, India and Myanmar.
Cane is a very valuable and economical plant. High quality handicrafts, more use of cane for making home furniture. Cos flavored fruit is a favorite of rural children. This fruit is sold in the market. In different parts of the country, young cane stems are also eaten as curry.
