Soh Plow

Soh plow (also known as amla or Indian gooseberry) is the Khasi name for Phyllanthus emblica, a small to medium-sized tree, 1.5-3 meters tall, with a crooked trunk, spreading branches, and light green leaves. It mostly grows in hilly forest areas. The fruit is nearly spherical, light greenish yellow in color, and quite smooth and hard in appearance, with six vertical stripes or ribs. The tree flowers in April and May and the harvesting period is between November and December. The soh plow berries are harvested by hand after climbing to upper branches bearing the fruits. Their taste is sour, bitter, and astringent, and the consistency is quite fibrous. Soh plow is eaten raw and used as a chutney when ground together with ginger and chili. It is also believed to have medicinal properties and is used to treat cough. The fruits can also be made into other transformed products, such as pickles or fruit wine. In the West Jaintia Hills district in northeastern India, soh plow can be found mostly in the forest area of Madankynsaw village and Saphai village, which are 60-75km from the main city and capital of the state of Meghalaya, Shillong. In this area, about 3,000 kilograms of the fruit are harvested annually. The fruit is harvested both for household consumption and commercial sale, though it is sold in small quantities and market demand is low. According to community members soh plow is at risk of disappearing from the area because of large amounts of deforestation, and as a direct result of the trees being cut down for charcoal production.