Regions: South India

The fastest usable material on earth; one clump supplies poles for years.

The dry-country bamboo of central India, solid-stemmed and drought-hardy.

The biggest citrus, tolerant of humidity and common in eastern gardens.

Double-lobed aromatic leaves used across the north-east and the far south.

Tiered branches and huge leaves that turn red before falling — a coastal shade tree.

Sacred, enormous and the most valuable bird tree in any Indian city.

The tree that becomes a grove; only for parks, campuses and village greens.

A thorny hedge shrub that gives pickling fruit and keeps animals out.

Handsome, thorny and productive on poor dry soil; good in a big pot.

Evergreen, wind-firm and cropping twice a year on the coasts.