The Nation Oct. 31 1998

Plants With A Past

SPARE a thought for the humble bowl of rice, because it's not quite as humble as you may think. In fact, what you are eating comes from the mists of history.

The origin of our daily grain is said to be the world's oldest strain -- far older than any rice fossils that have been found in Mesopotamia, India or China. In fact, people in mainland Southeast Asia were the first to farm rice anywhere on the planet.

Although Thai scholars are increasingly convinced of these two claims, the majority of Thais remain unaware of them.

It's not just our rice that has a serious history. Many other ingredients in Thai food -- peppers, cucumbers, betel leaves and goards -- are all somewhere between 5,000 and 10,000 years old.

Is this really true?

Well, yes it is, according to Orathai Pholdi, a researcher from Kasetsart University.

Orathai backs up her claims with evidence in her book entitled, Prawat Phuetphan Thang Silpa Watthanatham Thai (The History of Plants with Thai Cultural Values), which has been recognised as the definitive work on floral history, by the Research and Development Institute, Kasetsart University.

However, Orathai's work has arrived too late for some species of our floral heritage, as Thailand has already ''lost'' a number of indigenous plants (especially those with healing properties), to overseas pharmaceutical firms.

For example, plao noi (a herb) was taken to Japan where its medicinal qualities were processed and then developed for the world market.

As was often the case, by the time the ''theft'' was discovered it was too late -- as copyright had already been issued under a new name in a different country.

Government bodies tend to be slow in registering indigenous plants, but Orathai believed it's never too late to start. Motivated by the disappearing beauty and dwindling numbers of wild plants, Orathai was determined to track down as many as she could. It was quest that turned into a seven year, full-time project.

Her works covers two periods of indigenous flora: prehistoric and historic, and provides fascinating accounts of more than 100 types of native plants, while also delving into their association with Thai cultural forms such as rituals, literature, Buddhism, traditional Thai music, textiles, and royalty.

This involved examining archealogical reports, inscriptions, Chinese chronicles, pharmacopoeia, and Thai literature.

Orathai also sheds light on native plants that grew during the Mesolithic age, such as krajap (water chestnut), taeng raan (large cucumber), thua khiew green gram; mung bean); the Neolithic age, with bamboo (bambusa siamensis Kurz), and the Metal age -- mon (mulberry; morus alba Linn) and kancha (marijuana).

There are extensive quotes from an important research undertaken in 1970, by Dr Chester Gorman, who discovered 14 types of plants native to Thailand, from remaining fossils at Tham Phi (the Spirit Cave), in Mae Hong Son province's Pang Mapha district.

Yet Orathai's most surprising discovery is on the origins of rice.

''I'm confident the oldest rice grew in Thailand. Fossils of rice found in Mae Hong Son confirms that rice found in northern Thailand is far older than anywhere else,'' she says.

Indeed, khao chao (non-glutinous variety of rice; Oryza sativa Linn) in Mae Hong Son's Pung Hung cave, near the Spirit Cave, is believed to be 7,000 years old, while the oldest variety found in China and India is only 5,000, according to Dr Gorman's research.

With the discovery of plants dating back to the prehistoric times, Orathai is influenced by Dr Gorman's theory that, ''Thailand is likely to be the world's oldest agricultural area, which threatens the popular belief that ''The Fertile Crescent'' [in Mesopotamia] is the oldest.''

It's unfortunate that Orathai relies perhaps a little too much on Dr Gorman's research, making her own claims of ''new evidence'' not entirely new. She has never been to the places in Mae Hong Son visited by Dr Gorman.

''It's a pity, that I didn't have enough time for travelling,'' says Orathai.

However, what is new is her insightful examination of the plants' cultural roles, which was inspired by her interest in Thai literature.

''I read lots of Thai books, which are interspersed with names of plants, some of which I'd never heard of before.''

Orathai covers a wide variety of flora popular in different historical eras and it appears that the cultural values of these plants are the real driving force in their conservation.

For instance, trees like the asoke (asoka tree; Saracaindica Linn), sala (S.robusta Roxb), bodi (Ficus religiosa Linn), and the mango are considered sacred by Buddhists. For example, Prince Siddhartha was born beneath the branches of a sala tree, while the father of Sirimahamaya -- Lord Buddha's mother -- favoured the asoke to be grown in his palace garden. Meanwhile, the bodi is sacred as it was the tree that the Lord Buddha sat under to meditate and finally achieve nirvana.

''However, many plants found in Thai literature are gradually disappearing due to continued deforestation,'' notes Orathai.

Indeed, works from the Ayutthaya period such as Lilit Phra Lor, Mahachart Khamluang, and Kamsual Sripraat mention of several species which are now very hard to find.

Phayom (chilli), lamjiak (screw pine), and prayong (from the Meliaceae family) from Lilit Phra Lor, are all very rare, as are the obchoei (cinnamon tree) and thian king (henna) -- both from Mahachart -- and the chalood (a climbing plant) from Kamsual.

Orathai's effort ultimately represents an action to conserve the natural heritage of Thailand and she hopes the research will raise concern among the younger generations in safeguarding native plants and their habitat.

''Caring for plants is a very uplifting experience,'' says Orathai, ''it makes people more refined.''

There is an important lesson there.

BY MANOTE TRIPATHI