Growing spaces: ground

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.

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

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

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

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

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

Khus — a grass whose roots hold a slope together and scent a summer room.