'IRAQ AND THE PERSIAN GULF' [‎300r] (602/862)

IRRIGATION, AGRICULTURE, AND MINOR INDUSTRY 463
tion is possible; summer vegetables are often grown in the broad
beds of the rivers near the water’s edge. In southern Iraq the con
centrated population of Baghdad has created a market-gardening
industry in the vicinity; here, as also along the Shatt al Arab, vege
tables and the smaller fruit-trees are commonly grown by inter
cropping in palm-groves and orchards. Summer vegetables include
pumpkins—the characteristic vegetable of Iraq—water melons, cu
cumbers, bamia or ‘ladies’ fingers’ [Hibiscus esculentus), tomatoes,
onions—much in demand by nomad tribesmen as keeping vegetables
—badinjas, egg fruit, haricot beans, and potatoes which are increasing
in popularity in northern Iraq. Winter vegetables are cabbage,
cauliflower, carrots, turnips, spinach, beetroots, globe artichokes,
and salads such as cress, radishes, lettuce, and celery.
Fruit. The vine ranks as a principal crop in the Kurdistan moun
tains. It is grown on terraces and without irrigation particularly in
the Shaqlawa district, where the foothills are dotted with vineyards.
The small purple grapes are in season from August to December; the
harvest proper is in October, when the grapes are cut and dried in
the open for raisins or sultanas. In the Assyrian plains white and
purple dessert grapes are cultivated by irrigation in a few vineyards.
Other fruits include peaches, nectarines, apricots, red and white
mulberries, apples, cherries, plums, pears, and quinces, the less
hardy sorts being commoner in central Iraq. Figs are widely grown
especially in Jabal Sinjar and Baghdad districts, both the white and
the black, which is the finer but rarer; the trees bear from their fourth
to their fiftieth year and longer. The Diyala fruit belt, 20 miles long,
between the Khurasan canal and the Diyala river is the main fruit
growing area of central Iraq (photo. 173).
Other fruits include pomegranates, limes, lemons, both sweet and
sour, and oranges. The best orange-groves are at Baquba, but oranges
are also grown near Mosul. Olives and many nuts are grown in
northern Iraq, such as pistachios, almonds, and walnuts. In northern
and central Iraq the timber of walnut and mulberry is in demand for
making ploughs and water-wheels and also for house building.
There is no statistical information about the production or area of
vegetables and fruit-trees, but 88,000 acres are estimated to be under
vineyards and orchards other than palm-groves.
Wild Plants
Liquorice grows abundantly on river banks, both in northern and
southern Iraq; the root is collected in winter, dried—a four months’