Page 82 - A Hand book of Arabia Vol 1 (iii) Ch 4,5

136 ASIR

Agriculture

Cultivation in the Tihamah is dependent partly on the local
rainfall and partly on the water from the wadis which comes down
in flood from the hills. In all the larger wadi-beds dams are made
and the water led off in channels on to the surrounding land. In
most places there are two harvests, the spring and the summer, i
but the Hali district produces three. The principal crops are
dukhn and dhura, sesame, cotton, and the more common kinds of
native vegetables. The most productive regions are between Hali
and Qunfudah and Mikhlaf el-Yemen.
Inland, in the hills and plateaus, dhura and lucerne (berslm) are
grown during the winter ; the summer crops are wheat, barley,
lentils, potatoes, and onions. Wada/ah produces grapes in large
quantities which are converted into raisins and sold throughout
Asir; and in the Beni Malik country and Ibha figs, grapes, apricots,
and a poor sort of olives are grown. Coffee is cultivated oy the
Rijal el-M‘a, by the Balasmar round Jebel Haddah, and by the Beni
Mugheid near Sijam and Radha, but not in quantities sufficient
for local consumption. Dates are grown in a few places on the coast
such as Birk, but by far the largest production is in the fertile valley
of Bishah, where lemons, oranges, and dukhn are also cultivated
extensively.
Inland Asir is richer than the Tihamah, and the main ridge in the
centre and south is almost uniformly productive. The best districts
are Rijal el-M‘a, Thimniyah, Barak, Ibha, and Tanumah.

Live Stock
The Tihamah produces cattle, sheep, goats, and camels in large
numbers. Donkeys of a big white breed are used for riding, and there
is also a smaller type, grey in colour, for carrying burdens. Horses
are only found in Mikhlaf el-Yemen, and are all imported from
inland. There are no mules. In the mountains the same varieties \
of animals are found, but the camels are all inured to mountain
work in a colder climate, and no Arab would think of taking his
beasts down to the plains. The Tihamah-bred animals would, of
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course, fare equally badly inland. The mountain camels are for
the most part white in colour, but those of the Qahtan and Shahran
are black. The two latter tribes are the chief horse-owners. They
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will sell their poorer beasts, but rarely part with their pedigree
animals, of whom they take the greatest care. \
Dogs in Asir are generally well treated, and there is a large black
breed which makes an excellent type of watch-dog. \
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