Regions: Himalaya & the hills

Timur — the numbing hill pepper of the eastern Himalaya, on a thorny shrub.

A north-eastern hill fruit, sour and used for pickle and jam.

The Himalayan butter tree, giving cooking fat and an enormous honey flow.

The north-eastern shoot bamboo — fermented shoots are a regional staple.

The tea of the Brahmaputra valley — one bush on a balcony is enough for a pot.

Black cardamom of Sikkim — deep shade under alder, at hill altitudes.

A scrambling hill plant whose root gives a lasting red dye.

Reetha — the washing fruit of the sub-Himalayan tract, from a good shade tree.

Ladakh and Himachal fruit — blossom in March, fruit in June, dried for winter.

A cold-desert shrub of Ladakh, nitrogen-fixing and vitamin-dense.