A general account of Industrial Plant: Gwar, Rubber, Tea, Coffee
1. Gwar (Cluster Bean):-
Scientific name:- Cyamopsis tetragonoloba
Family:- Fabaceae
Origin:- India
Economic importance:-
> It is grown for green pods used as vegetable and dry seeds.
> It is also grown as forage and green manure crop.
> Some of the varieties are used for extraction of gum (Guar gum).
> It is one of the most important vegetable crops in northern India.
> Among leguminous crops it is comparatively more drought resistant and is cultivated on a large scale as a forage crop in dry regions.
> The gum obtained from this crop is used in various industries particularly textiles, cosmetics, explosives, paper and food processing industries.
> Today it is one of the significant foreign exchange earners of the country.
> Fresh pods contain 82.5% water, 9.9% carbohydrate, 3.7% protein, 0.2% fat, 2.3% fiber and 1.4% mineral matter.
2. Rubber:-
Botanical Name:- Hevea brasiliensis
Family:- Euphorbiaceae
Economic Importance:-
> Para rubber is a tall trees, 25-35 mtr.; stem smooth, straight, un-branched up to a considerable height and then forming a leafy canopy; bark greyish with copious milky latex.
> In India rubber plantations were first started in Kerala in 1905 from seeds obtained from Ceylon.
> Ceylon was however the first country in Asia to start cultivating Hevea brasiliensis from seedlings sent from Royal Botanic Garden, Kew in 1876.
> The latex of H. brasiliensis is obtained by tapping the bark of the trunk. The overflowing latex is collected in a plastic or enamel cup containing a small amount of preservative viz. Ammonia or Sodium sulphite or Formaldehyde to prevent coagulation.
> As the latex stops flowing the cups are emptied into buckets which are carried to the factory. The liquid is strained first through a course sieve to remove the dirt and other impurities. It is then diluted and strained for second time through a fine sieve. The latex is an aqueous serum with a colloidal suspension of rubber particles.
3. Tea:-
Botanical Name:- Camellia sinensis Syn. Thea sinensis
Family:- Theaceae
Economic Importance:-
> It is the most common non-alcoholic beverage, used by more than one-half of the world’s population.
> It is obtained from the dried leaves of Camellia sinensis, a native of Assam or China.
> Tea plant is a small shrub with leathery, lanceolate leaves having serrate margin and many oil glands.
> A volatile oil, tannin (13 to 18%), and an alkaloid theine (2-5%), are present in tea.
> Tea leaves, when infused in hot water, dissolve their alkaloid and oil, and the beverage thus resulted has a stimulating effect. If boiled for a longer period, tannin dissolves making the beverage less beneficial.
> India is a leading tea-exporting country.
> For preparing green tea, the leaves are steamed and dried without fermenting, while for black tea the leaves are withered, rolled, fermented and dried.
> Tannins of tea waste are used in plywood industry.
> Assam, Darjeeling, Nilgiris, Dehradun and Kumaon are the main tea-producing regions in India.
4. Coffee:-
Botanical Names:- Coffea arabica (Arabian Coffee); C. canepbora syn. C. robusta (Congo Coffee); C. liberica (Liberian Coffee).
Family:- Rubiaceae
Economic Importance:-
> It is an important non-alcoholic beverage, like tea.
> More than 90% coffee is obtained from the berries of Coffea arabica.
> Coffee beans are roasted for developing the aroma, flavour and colour and finally ground before they reach to the consumer.
> “Beans” contain caffeine (0.75 to 1.5%), a volatile oil, glucose, dextrins, proteins and a fatty oil.
> Caffeine provide stimulating effect while the volatile oil (caffeole) is responsible for aroma and flavour.
> Leaves and fruits of Coffee also contain some alkaloids.
> In India, C. arabica is grown in Nilgiris and Kamataka.
> Seeds of C. canepbora (syn. C. robusta), a robust evergreen shrub, are used in making “instant coffee”.