As we strolled in the market of Kumily, scent of freshly cut spices, sold in every nook and corner of this small town increased our urge to visit one of the many spice plantations on the outskirts. Our guided tour to the kingdom of spices offered us the sight of lush green vegetation and the smell of aromatic air.
In places like Kerala, where coconuts are in abundance, the shell of half a coconut is used as the collection container for the latex. The shells are attached to the tree via a short sharp stick and the latex drips down into it overnight. This usually produces latex up to a level of half to three quarters of the shell. The latex from multiple trees is then poured into flat pans, and this is mixed with formic acid, which serves as a coagulant resulting in rubber crump. After a few hours, the wet sheets of rubber are wrung out by putting them through a press. Later on these sheets are sent onto factories where vulcanization and further processing is done to it. I closed my eyes and saw these white sheets were spread for our royal white carpet welcome to the “Kingdom of Spicesâ€.
On the auspicious occasion of our visit to the spice kingdom we were offered betal nuts.
The first dignitary to meet us was the charming “Prince of Spices†– Vanilla. Who would not like to be in the company of this prince charming with pleasant flavors? Ice creams and custards look naturally elegant in his company. When I have to choose an ice-cream flavor and I am in no mood of experimentation, the safest and surest bet is Vanilla. Vanilla is a climbing orchid and needs supporting trees for its cultivation. It can be cultivated as an intercrop in coconut and Pepper farms. Ideal time for planting Vanilla is when the weather is neither too rainy nor too dry and it requires shade for its growth. For it’s flowering artificial Pollination is done. After pollination the bean takes 9-11 month for their maturity.
From there we were invited to the audience of “The King of the Spices†– Pepper. As a kid I always avoided facing the King. Now as an adult I can face him. I know that he would be a little harsh initially but would have medicinal effects on my throat later on.
This King is a climber and for its success & its kingdom to flourish, it needs strong bishop like Coral tree to support it. The berries are separated from the spike by thrashing. After drying in Sun for three days they turn into black and hence are called Black Pepper. The green and white Pepper is also made from the same plant but the processing is different.
For making white pepper the ripe red pepper berries are plucked and immersed in running water for 8-12 days and then through thorough wash the outer skin is removed and dried in the Sun. After a few hours, it turns into white and thus we have white pepper.
The pepper berries for green Pepper are collected before they ripe and taken to the factory. By means of dehydration the green color and the fragrance can be retained.
From there we were invited to the Private chambers of the “Queen of the Spices†– Cardamom. The presence of queen adds grace to everything, be it a cup of tea, kheer (rice pudding) and for that matter any sweet dish.
Yield from Cardamom starts three year after its plantation and continues up to 10-12 years. Cool humid weather is necessary during the flowering season for forming the fruits. The flowers are formed at the bottom and it takes 90-120 days for fruit maturity. Harvesting is done once in 30-45 days. September to March is the main picking season.
Drying is very important, done in specially designed curing chambers called Cardamom store. 24-36 hours of drying is required at a temperature of 50-60 degree centigrade to retain the green color. After drying polishing is done by rubbing against hard surface or using polishing machines.
After that we saw the glimpses of the “New born Princess†– Clove. It is the dried unopened flower buds of the clove tree. Unopened mature flower buds are carefully collected by hand and dried in sun for 3-5 days till they become crisp and dark brown in color. I don’t know whether the princess cried or not at her birth, but I know that when I was about to cry with my toothache, a single piece of clove in my mouth had the effect of most effective pain killer.
As we came out of the royal Palace, we started hearing the waxing and waning sound of the night guard at duty – “Jaagte rahoo, jaagte rahoo.†That was the aromatic coffee – our companion of those many night outs. Robusta and Arabica are two main varieties of coffee commercially cultivated in Periyar region. The ripe fruits are hand plucked and dried in sun for 7-12 days till the seed rattle within the husk. Then it is taken to coffee mill and the husk is removed. While roasting the color changes to brown and the aroma is produced.
Then we saw the gracious Lady Love in red. For few moments we could not take our eyes away from her. We were told that she was the colorful Helicornian Flower. Her beauty is preserved longer in vase than any other flower. Can anyone remain not attracted towards her?
Then we noticed “a magician†performing his tricks on the audience. We were warned not to go too close to him. We were told that he hypnotizes people and keeps them under his spell. That was cocoa, a papaya like fruit. From the dried and partially fermented fatty seed of the cacao tree, sinfully delicious chocolates are made. Cocoa is grown in hot weather with abundant rains.
In one corner we saw that person with rough look and mannerism. We were told that if we go close to him and probe him hard, the upper roughness gives way to inner sweetness.
I was expecting that the pineapple/Ananas grows on trees like that of palm or coconut, but was surprised to see that its plant was medium tall herbaceous perennial plant.
Then we met a person who started his life being very open in nature and once he became aware of realities of life, closed himself and have stories hidden around him that can be revealed one day layer by layer.
This beautiful leaf in the spice kingdom convinced me that the “Painter GOD” enjoys his miniature paintings equally as much as HE enjoys painting on bigger and wider canvas.
In that wonderland of Spices we saw ladyfingers growing on trees and not on the herbaceous plants. We spotted little “Dennis the Menace†– the red chilies. It looks innocently small and cute, but one bite of it and I can bet that its red color would be visible on my face.
No story is complete without villainous character in it. We too met a treacherous character planning a murder. My body shivered when I came to know that for years this tree is waiting for Newton to sit under it, to observe and propose the gravitational force.
With agricultural land shrinking, traditional way of paddy cultivation is no longer viable. Many of these farmers have moved to massive cultivation of pepper, cardamom, coffee, tea and vanilla. Previously these spices were always intercropped, but the lure of higher income made farmers to go for it in big ways. Spice plantation involves huge funds and any reduction in prices or farm failure due to diseases leaves farmers in penury. In recent years there are some incidents of farmers committing suicides in this part and that is the cruel and saddest part of the Spice plantation.