Huber, Franz

Weckerle, Caroline

Weibang, Sun

Yongping, Yang

RERO DOC Digital Library

NOTES ON ECONOMIC PLANTS Walnuts among the Shuhi in Shuiluo, east- ern Himalayas. - -Walnut  (Juglans regia L.) is an ancient crop plant (1, 2). Its center of diver- sity is in central Asia (3), whereas its natural distribution stretches from southeastern Europe to western China (4). The species is cultivated throughout its native area and has been intro- duced worldwide. It is cultivated broadly by dif- ferent ethnic groups in the Himalayan region (5, 6,7). The past ritual significance of walnut is well documented (8, 9); however, the ritual context is lacking. During the course of an ethnobotanical study in the Shuiluo Valley of Sichuan in south- west China, we documented ritual uses of wal- nuts among the Shuhi, a small Tibeto-Burman ethnic group. The Shuhi live in the subtropical area near the bottom of the Shuiluo Valley (2,000-2,400 meters). They practice subsistence agriculture with crop rotations using wet rice, barley, wheat, and corn as their staple foods. Walnut trees are found mainly around their ham- lets and houses (Fig. 2). Each household owns between 10 and 50 walnut trees. To increase yield, the trunks of the walnuts are carved, which is a widely practiced method in Chinese agriculture (10). Since 2003, walnut saplings, to- gether with Sichuan pepper seedlings (Zanthox- ylum bungeanum Maxim.), have been cultivated outside the villages on steep farmland as a con- sequence of the government's "Sloping Land Conversion Program" to reduce erosion in the upper reaches of the Yangtze River (11). Walnut trees often are located around sacred springs where the water god is worshipped (Fig. 2). Such springs belong to one or more house- holds and the trees growing around these water sources are sacred; cutting them would have dire consequences for family members such as ill- nesses or bad luck. Generally, walnut trees planted around the hamlets are used only for their fruits and leaves, never for timber. The proximity of the trees to the houses in the village not only facilitates their utilization but also mod- erates microclimates and temperatures, which can exceed 40 ~ C during the summer. Similar cultivation patterns also are found among other ethnic groups in the area. Traditional use of walnuts. Among the Shu- hi, walnut fruits are known as kara. The whole tree is called karabeng (beng means growing) or karasei (sei means wood or tree). Until recently, walnuts have been the main source for oil. One household in each hamlet runs an oil press that produces walnut oil in September. Presently, however, commercial vegetable oil is used more and more for cooking; walnut oil is mainly pro- duced for the altar lamps. Walnuts are important for serving guests. They are offered to visitors together with butter tea, tsampa (roasted barley flour), barley wine, or other spirits. In the preparation of butter tea, either walnut mush that has been prepared in a mortar or walnut oil that has been pressed may be used as an additive or substitute for the butter. In years when the trees have yielded a large crop, walnuts may be sold as a cash crop or bartered in exchange for dairy products or for the ingredients for the preparation of barley wine. Walnuts are often given as gifts, which are valued among other ethnic groups in the area also (12). Interestingly, the Shuhi use neither the fruits nor other parts of the walnut trees for medicinal purposes, as is the case among other ethnic groups and in Traditional Chinese Medicine (13). Xi and Zhang (9) point out that the health care properties of the walnut are mentioned in ancient Chinese literature, where there is docu- mentation of the use of the kernels against in- somnia and duodenitis among other diseases. Beside the dyeing properties of the fruits, there also is mention of the belief that pregnant wom- en who eat walnut kernels will have babies with dark black hair. Walnut as a ritual plant. Important religious days for the Shuhi are the 10th, 15th, and 25th of each month in the Tibetan calendar. On these days, whole walnut fruits should be burned dur- ing the morning ritual (songdong) in the ritual burner (songhui) on the flat roof of the houses as a food offering to the gods. One household member, preferably the oldest, conducts the songdong ritual every morning between 7:30 a.m. and 9:00 a.m. Pine (Pinus yunnanensis Economic Botany 59(3) pp. 287-295. 2005 9 2005 by The New York Botanical Garden Press, Bronx, NY 10458-5126 U.S.A. 288 ECONOMIC BOTANY [VOL. 59 Fig. 1. Walnut grove beside a Shuhi hamlet. Franch.) or pistachio (Pistacia weinmannifolia Poiss. ex Franch.) is burned as incense, tsampa mixed with marigold flowers (Tagetes erecta L.) and barley wine is offered, and a conch-shell trumpet is blown three times (Fig. 3). Usually the songhui is directed to the most important mountain gods of the region: the three "Gongga Brothers" in the west. Beside the Gongga Mountain gods, up to 12 additional mountain and water gods of the region as well as impor- tant lamas are worshiped. The offering is in- tended to please the deities and to assure their Fig. 2. Ritual for the water god during Tibetan New Year at the sacred spring in a walnut grove. support and protection of the village and the house. Burning walnuts on these special days illustrates their cultural importance. These ritu- als are very old and can be traced back to the foundation of the B6n religion in the Tibetan area (14). Fig. 3. Songdong ritual on the flat roof of the house in the morning. Pine or pistachio are burned for incense purposes, tsampa mixed with marigold flowers and barley wine is offered, and a conch-shell trumpet is blown three times. 2005] NOTES 289 Also around the 10th of each Tibetan calendar month, there is a ritual day of prayer that is cel- ebrated in one house in each hamlet. Attended at least by one person from every household, this ritual is conducted by a lamaist lay priest or by a dumbu, the traditional ritual specialist of the Shuhi. The ritual might be combined with a fertility ritual for the fields of the household where it takes place. In this case, together with other major crop plants such as rice, barley, and wheat, walnuts are offered to the gods and placed on plates in the storage room. Instead of conducting the prayer ritual, twice a year the prayer flags near the hamlet gates are replaced. Again, this is combined with a fertility ritual for the whole hamlet, including circum- ambulation of the hamlet by a procession headed obligatorily by a woman. To facilitate the accep- tance of the new prayer flags by the ancestors and the gods, walnut branches together with rho- dodendron twigs (Rhododendron trichostomum Franch.) collected higher up in the mountains, are stuck into the earth around the base of the flagpole. Walnut leaves also are used for decoration during the spring harvest festival, which takes place at the beginning of May as a celebration of the barley and wheat harvest. The living room and the tala, the holy place beyond the hearth, are decorated with walnut leaves. No special reason for the exclusive use of walnut leaves was mentioned except for the color green, which is appreciated by the gods. The importance of the color green and its ability to bring luck has also been reported for the Yi people in northern Yunnan (15). Furthermore, walnuts together with other crops play a role during dumbu rituals against illness and in funeral rites as food for gods, de- mons, and the soul of the deceased. The same rituals are known among the Naxi and Mosuo (16, 17). If the nuts are offered as food, they might be opened in advance to ease consump- tion by the deities (Fig. 4). Cultural importance of walnuts. Although the traditionally produced walnut oil is being re- placed by commercial vegetable oil, walnut is still one of the most important crop plants among the Shuhi. This is reflected in its wide use as a ritual plant, food, cash crop, barter, and gift. Results from picture grouping analysis re- veal different emic categories for plants among Fig. 4. Food offering to a local mountain god. Thewalnuts and tangerine are opened to ase consumption by the deity. the Shuhi, such as "plants that can be eaten" and "plants for worshiping the gods." These categories do not have distinct Shuhi names but were circumscribed by the informants. Walnut mostly is grouped together with cultivated fruit and crop plants (e.g., barley and wheat), belong- ing to the "plants that can be eaten" category. It therefore seems that the food use of walnut is predominant. However, as an important food plant, it has to be shared with the gods. Either the fruits are burned together with incense or they are presented together with other crops as food for the gods, demons, and deceased souls. In fertility rituals conducted by ritual specialists, walnut and other crop plants represent the plants whose abundant growth is assured by the ritual, a use also reported for other ethnic groups of the region, such as the Naxi, Mosuo, and Pumi (16, 17). The Yi of the Zixishan region in Yunnan, who consider certain plants as primal ancestors, denominate walnut as one of their benefactors during the development of their society (15). This again points to the cultural importance of walnuts among different Tibeto-Burman ethnic groups. Acknowledgments. We are very grateful to all our informants for their openness and hos- pitality. We thank Elisabeth Hsu and Zhang Shi- ya who initiated and enabled research in the Shuiluo Valley. Moreover, we thank Xiao Wang, Gao Fu, Markus Schiesser, Roland Naef, and Beatrix Ntischeler for their help in many aspects of the fieldwork, and Andy Wilkes for critical comments on the manuscript. The project has been funded by the Ciba Research Foundation, 290 ECONOMIC BOTANY [VOL. 59 Switzerland and the Swiss National Science Foundation PBZHA- 104354. Literature Cited. (l) Caramiello, R., A. Zeme, P. Ge- mello, M. Barra, and C. Preacco. 1992. Palynolog- ical findings in the Centocamere and Marsa Sud sites (Locri Epizephyrii) and their relation to the historical and archaeological hypotheses. Allionia (Turin) 31:7-19. (2) Visset, L., A. L. Cyprien, N. Carcaud, A. Ouguerram, D. Barbier, and J. Ber- nard. 2002. The onset of diversified agriculture at the end of the Mesolithic Period in the Val de Loire (Armorican Loire, France). Comptes Rendus Pale- vol 1:51-58. (3) Fet, G. N. 2001. Terrestrial ecore- gions-Kopet Dag woodlands and forest steppe (PAl008). http:llwww.worldwildlife.orglwildworldl profiles/terrestrial/pa/pa 1008_full.html. (4) Smith, R A. 1976. Minor crops, in N. W. Simmonds, ed., Evolution of crop plants, Longman, London, pp. 301-324. (5) Handel-Mazzetti, H. 1927. Naturbild- er aus Siidwest-China. Erlebnisse und Eindriicke eines Osterreichischen Forschers w~ihrend es Weltkrieges. Osterreichischer Bundesverlag, Wien. (6) Handel-Mazzetti, H. 1929. Anthophyta, VII. Tell, in H. Handel-Mazzetti, ed., Symbolae Sinicae. Botanische Ergebnisse der Expedition der Akade- mie der Wissenschaften i Wien nach Stidwest- China 1914/1918, Manzsche Buchdruckerei, Wien, pp. 1-730. (7) Polunin, O., and A. Stainton. 1984. Flowers of the Himalaya. Oxford University Press, New Delhi. (8) De Cleene, M., and M. C. Lejeune. 2002. Walnut ree, in M. de Cleene and M. C. Le- jeune, eds., Compendium of symbolic and ritual plants in Europe, Vol. 1, Man and Culture Publish- ers, Ghent, pp. 706-725. (9) Xi, R. T., and Y. P. Zhang, eds. 1996. Flora of fruit trees in China: Walnut. China Forestry Publishing Press, Beijing, pp. 9-16 (Chinese). (10) Hebei Agriculture Uni- versity, eds. 1995. Principles on fruit tree cultiva- tion. China Agriculture Press, Beijing, pp. 268-269 (Chinese). (11) Lele, U. J., and G. E Shen. 2002. Introduction, in J. T. Xu, E. Katsigris, and T. A. White, eds., Implementing the natural forest pro- tection program and the sloping land conversion program: Lessons and policy recommendations, China Council for International Cooperation on Environment and Development, http://www. harbour.sfu.ca/dlam/Taskforce/grassPreface.html. (12) Zhang, X. 1998. A Naxi cremation ceremony, in M. Oppitz and E. Hsu, eds., Naxi and Moso ethnography: Kin rites and pictographs, V61kerkun- demuseum der Universitfit Ztirich, ZUrich, pp. 127- 138. (13) Bensky, D., and A. Gamble, eds. and trans. 1993. Materia Medica. Chinese Herbal Med- icine. Rev. Ed. Eastland Press, Washington, D.C. (14) Baumer, C. 1999. B6n. Die lebendige Ur-Re- ligion Tibets. Akademische Druck- und Verlagsan- stalt, Graz. (15) Liu, A. H., S. J. Pei, and S. Y. Chen. 1999. Plant worship of the Yi people in Chuxiong of Yunnan, China. Ethnobotany 11:1-8. (16) He, L. M., and S. C. He. 1998. The Dt6-mb~t ceremony to propitiate the demons of suicide, in M. Oppitz and E. Hsu, eds., Naxi and Moso eth- nography: Kin rites and pictographs, V61kerkun- demuseum der Universit~it Ziirich, Ztirich, pp. 239- 272. (17) Mathieu, C. 1998. The Moso ddaba re- ligious specialists, in M. Oppitz and E. Hsu, eds., Naxi and Moso ethnography: Kin rites and picto- graphs, V61kerkundemuseum der Universit~it Z i- rich, Ziirich, pp. 209-234. --Caroline Weckerle, Kunming Institute of Bot- any, Chinese Academy of Sciences and Institute of Systematic Botany, University of Zurich, Kunming Institute of Botany, Heilongtan, 650204 Kunming, China; email weckerle@ ethnobot.ch, Franz K. Huber, Yang Yongping, Sun Weibang, Kunming Institute of Botany, Chi- nese Academy of Sciences. "Canastos": Ethnobotany and the Economic Importance.--The main natural sources for the manufacture of canastos are the stems of four taxa of lianas (woody vines) from the Bignoni- aceae family, which grows in the tropical forests of Central America. Pilot studies on the Coto Brus Forest Reserve have demonstrated that if the appropriate resources are properly managed, tropical forests can generate substantial market benefits. Canasto weaving in Costa Rica became very popular during the 1920s when the coffee in- dustry was at its peak. The basket-weaving tra- dition is passed down from father to son. Con- trary to many other societies, it appears that women have played no role in this process. Young boys accompany their fathers into the forest where they master the identification of li- anas. Ethnobotanical studies in Costa Rica have fo- cused primarily on the medicinal use of forest plants; to date there are few records of other uses of forest vegetation. Among the existing records is the classic work of Pittier (1), which focused entirely on the general uses of plants but does contain the names of common plant spe- cies. A few additional ethnobotanical ccounts include the works of Ocampo (2, 3, 4), Ocampo and Vargas (5), Williams (6), Camacho-Zamora (7), and Chazdon and Coe (8) among others. Due to the intricate morphology and anatomy of lianas, our knowledge about them has in- 

Walnuts among the Shuhi in Shuiluo, eastern Himalayas

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Walnuts among the Shuhi in Shuiluo, eastern Himalayas

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