Page 71 - Arabian Studies (I)

The Cultivation of Cereals in Mediaeval Yemen 57

knife. Then one applies dung to it again if it be weak, watering it
once every eight days, cutting it every forty days, watering it after
cutting, and looking after it to remove any stones or pebbles that
appear among it. One waters it as often as it needs water, that being
when its lower leaf turns yellow. It is best not cut until it flowers and
seed formation shows in it. Its leaf grows no less, but it goes on for
ten years provided only that the watering and dunging be (constant­
ly) repeated, and it be cut at its proper time only. No pest such as
locusts2 0 0 and the like touches it. What is most harmful to it is the
pasturing of animals over the ground in which it is, or that it be cut
above ground-level and some of its roots remain exposed, and it be
cut before its (proper) time, i.e. at less than forty days.
If one wants to take seed from it, one lets it remain uncut till its
seed forms and dries. Thereupon one cuts the seed off, exposes it to
the sun, beats it out, cleans it of its husk and straw, and removes it
(for storing). It is best not to take seed from it except when the
lucerne is in a way to being exhausted. Then another piece of new
ground should be (chosen) for it, brought into a good state of tilth,
and sown with it.

8. The eighth species is Tahaf-mzV/e/2 0 1 (Eragrostis abyssinica).

My father, God rest him, said in al-Ishdrah: Tt is sown as kinab/kinib
is sown and does not require a great deal of water, standing sixty
nights and then being harvested. It does well and bears at whatever
time it is sown. It is not eaten until it is well pounded so that nothing
but the heart of its grain remains — it has more grains than kinab.
Anyone who wants to eat it prepares it like rice and anyone who
wants to make bread out of it does so.’
He (the author’s grandfather) said in Milh al-malahah:2 0 2 The
way it is cultivated is that good places are ploughed up for it, and
cleaned of grass by two ploughings, one lengthwise, the other
breadthwise, and, in places where there is grass, by four ploughings.
Well made bunds for it are then set up, and the places from which
earth has been shifted by the scraper-board are ploughed, then the
ground is watered thoroughly. The tahaf-millet is scatter-sown in the
ground when it first drinks at the first watering. Then it is watered
after scatter-sowing until the place is filled with water. Hand
scatter-sowing of it is carried out in the same way as sesame is
scatter-sown, and it sprouts the next day after its scatter-sowing.
When it is half a month old it is given one irrigation with water, then
left half a month and a third watering applied to it. It is harvested
with the [fretted] knife [sharim] and the sickle [manjal] which is
the sharim, and the mahashsh [sickle] and the miqta4 [cutter] in