Regions: west

The dye plant of history, nitrogen-fixing and undemanding.

The mehndi hedge of the dry west — scented flowers and dye leaves.

A thorny southern climber whose pods have washed hair for centuries.

The paan vine — grown in shaded enclosures across Bengal and the east.

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

The vine that made the Malabar coast; needs a tree to climb and constant humidity.

The timber tree of the north Indian plain, nitrogen-fixing and fast.

The tree of the Thar — Rajasthan’s state tree, feeding people and stock in drought.

Thorny, nitrogen-fixing and useful on land nobody else will plant.

Glossy-leaved and salt-tolerant, with seed oil once used in every lamp.