anted
by him prior to his departure. [225] The vine is now trained on poles
and trellises, near to many houses.

Among the larger cultivated plants and trees, the banana (_Musa
paradisiaca_), coconut (_Cocos nucifera_), and bamboo (_Bambusa
sp_.) are the most important.

At least twenty varieties of bananas are raised in Abra. The fruit
of some of these is scarcely larger than the forefinger, while
others are quite large. The common type bears a rather small, yellow
fruit locally known as _saba_. In Manabo and several other villages,
plantings covering three or four acres are to be found, but the usual
plot is small, and is situated near to the house of the owner.

Suckers, which sprout from the roots of mature plants, are set out as
needed, either to make new groves or to replace the old stalks, which
are cut down after bearing. Both bud and fruit are eaten. The latter
are cut on the stem while still green, and are hung in the house to
ripen, in order to protect them from bats and fruit-feeding birds.

The coconut (_niog_) is not raised in groves, as in the Christianized
districts, but in many villages every house has two or three trees
towering above it. Even the interior mountain settlements, like Lingey,
Ba-ay, and Likuan, are hidden beneath these trees, thus incidentally
disposing of the fable that "the coconut tree will not grow out of
sight of the sea." Young trees have to be protected by fences during
the first two or three years of growth, or they will be uprooted by the
pigs, but from that time on they require little or no care. They are
not tapped for sap, as is customary in most parts of the Philippines,
but notches are cut in the tree trunks in order to supply foothold for
the fruit gatherer. The nuts are cut off with a knife as soon as ripe,
else they may fall and cause death or injury to people below.

No other fruit serves the people in so many ways. The juice is relished
as a drink, the meat as a food, the oil as a food and hair dressing;
the shells serve as dishes and cups, or are carved into ladles,
while the fibrous covering of the nut is converted into foot wipers,
thread brushes, and the like.

The betel-nut, _bwa_ (_Areca catechu_ L.), is also found in some
villages, particularly in the mountains. It is a tall, slender palm
which yields the nut so prized throughout the Islands for chewing.

Mango-treees, _mangga_ (_Mangifera indica_ L.) appear here and there
in valleys and on mountain side