Seasons: Monsoon

East Indian lemongrass, distilled in the north-east for citral oil.

Coppiced for its inner bark; the leaf is a spice in its own right.

The tejpatta of north Indian cooking — a hill tree, not the Mediterranean bay.

A creeping pepper of the eastern and southern forests, with catkin-like spikes.

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

The gongura of Andhra kitchens — sour leaves and later, calyces for sherbet.

Grown for fibre and calyces in the west and centre; a striking tall annual.

Bengal’s fibre crop, and its young leaves are a monsoon green.

A fibre hibiscus of eastern India, quick and very tall.

Desi cotton — the indigenous species, hardier than the imported kinds.