The Litchi Tree & Good Old Days
Lychee or Litchi, the latter being the way I like to spell it, may just be my favourite fruit; well, my likes and dislikes, just like fruits, are seasonal in nature. I also think its very psychological; Litchis literally paint the fresh food market red in spurts, but before you blink, they are out of season. I think the fact that they are available in the market for such a short duration has a lot to do with me wanting them more. Isn’t it how it works everywhere?
The lure of scarcity spiking demand…
What is economics but a study of pulls and pushes by demand and supply?
What is dating if not a balance between attraction and availability, sadly, off lately…
Is it even fame, if not held together by scarcity & mystery?
Enough with the rhetorical questions. Coming back to Litchis. The humble tropical fruit is native to China and South-East Asia. Doesn’t come as a surprise as I am deeply drawn to most things oriental. I love everything Japanese from their art, philosophy, work ethics, culture, food, dress to even products. It takes a lot to be the only country to have never been colonized. I can write endlessly about my love of Asian countries, moving slightly back to China; cultivation of Litchis here dates back to the 11th century, as documented and this is where it originated. Litchis have a pink- red, rough-textured soft shell that keeps the fleshy sweet whitish edible fruit safe for us; I’d call it nature’s smart plan. Litchis are fruits to tall evergreen, sturdy trees with longish leaves.
I am not writing this article just because I was eating them just now, well that is one of the reasons but not the only one. When I was a kid, I used to live with my family in Assam. My dad was an employee at a British Tea Company; a prominent mercantile leftover over the British Raj. Well, it’s common knowledge that India was a British colony for 89 years. While they were,here they set up a lot of things for the Empire, not us obviously; if we benefited, it was of consequence, not intent.
So for their White Sahibs who’d manage large estates in Assam, Tamil Nadu and other parts of India, estates growing and manufacturing tea, coffee, other agro products, they constructed huge bungalows. These bungalows were dotted with trees, had sprawling lawns, sometimes even Tennis Courts and Swimming Pools, depending on who it was built for in the company “food chain”. Post independence, these bungalows started being occupied by the new brown sahibs, like my dad, who stepped into this colonial setup of making a living.
The deal was, my dad would get to work in rural Assam, as an exception, West Bengal; he’d get a lot of perks, a company bungalow, house help instead of a big fat paycheck. He of course got paid but more in kind than cash, to save tax, was what I told as a kid. One such house in a Tea Estate called Addabarie, where my dad was posted, had a Litchi tree. As a kid I loved the idea of climbing trees but was a little scared. So we had help as mentioned before and there would always be one housemaid as a rule apart from others, who’d double us as my playmate. So this young lady and I would spend the afternoons playing without disturbance as my parents had a napping ritual. The whole tea industry had the same routine and followed similar rituals, probably set by the Brits. Her name was Chandra. I remember her very clearly and we’d often climb the Litchi tree, sit there, chit chat, watch the ants march by, and eat off the tree. Those were my favourite times. My parents got me an army of barbie dolls because that’s what I always wanted and we’d play. Chandra was creative, she knew how to knit and sew and I’d help her. We’d make new clothes for the dolls , bathe them regularly, comb their hair, change their clothes and have different arrangements for them. Their clothes and things needed washing and cleaning; that was also on the list. Chandra’s dad also used to work for us and I often remember hanging out at her place. I was an only child for eight years and these were my only accessible friends. Other children of my age lived far off. The Litchi tree is probably the only tree I have ever climbed and it holds a special place in my heart.
I actually wanted to fill this article with trivia, facts, information, but writing, for me, is often free flowing. It takes me to hidden places in my mind. Each time, somewhere down the process, I lose control of my initial intention or planned article. This was to be a love letter to Litchis; which brings to my next mini memory, except that it is in the present, so more of a description. I love litchis, a fact well established by now! I developed a green thumb last year, more of a craze, less of a talent. I killed the Chrysanthemum, Hibiscus (twice), Sada Bahaar; but look at the list of survivors — Aloe Vera, Money Plant, Button Rose, Tulsi, Mint, Chili, Peanuts, Spinach (they dried out eventually), Jamun, and yes you guessed it right, Litchi. These are my potted plants all growing together in the kitchen window annex. I also have wild grass. Some kind of grass started growing and now I water it. So whatever I eat, has seeds, is planted in my garden. It started with peanuts, and the Litchi trial is on. I had all but lost hope with the Litchi seeds till the monsoons came to my rescue. It’s so pretty.
I also wanted to include some trivia on Litchis:
- Fresh Litchis were an object of such desire that in the Tang Dynasty, one emperor set up a dedicated horse relay to deliver the fruits to the imperial court from harvests made far to the south.
- It was introduced to the West in 1656 by Michal Boym, a Polish Jesuit missionary.
- It traveled to the Pakistani region, then under British Raj, in 1932 and remained an exotic plant until the 1960s; and that’s when its commercial production began.
- It is known as the ‘queen of fruits’ because it is packed with nutrients.
- Raw lychee fruit is 82% water, 17% carbohydrates, 1% protein & contains negligible fat.
- The raw pulp is rich in vitamin C, having 72 mg per 100 grams — an amount representing 86% of the Daily Value.
- It’s a good source of several vitamins, minerals and healthy antioxidants and besides being sweet and nutritious.
- India is the second largest producer of litchi in the World after China.
- The oldest Litchi tree in India was planted in 1878 by the pioneer Missionary Rev. Dr. E. W. Clark at Molungyimsen, Mokokchung, Nagaland, where it stands even today. This 145 year old tree still bears fruit.
- Bihar accounts for 40% of the India’s Litchi production. It is grown largely in the districts of Muzaffarpur which is the litchi bowl of India, Vaishali, Samastipur, and East Champaran.
- Litchi is cultivated commercially in more than 20 countries.
- Important Litchi growing countries are China, India, Vietnam, Thailand, and South Africa.
- Having unripe Litchis on an empty stomach can be poisonous.
