Regions: North India

The sanjeevani of the rocks — curls up bone dry, then greens again in an hour of rain.

A short-season millet of the northern hills, sown when the season has been lost.

A floating rosette that shades a tub and starves the algae — but a weed if it escapes.

Half the country’s calories — and a bucket of it on a terrace teaches more than any book.

The world’s most stubborn weed, and an aromatic tuber used for centuries.

Brown flower spikes over strap leaves; the reed that cleans a village pond.

The tall reed of Indian riverbanks, and the standard plant for a reed-bed filter.

The slender hill bamboo of Uttarakhand, cut for baskets and matting.

Yellow culms striped green; the ornamental clumping bamboo of Indian gardens.

The kusha grass of ritual, holding sandy soil across the northern plains.