India, March 19 -- The scene is full of descending motion expressing immense silence (like the snowfall in the Himalayas). A small crowd has gathered, wordlessly watching the surreal phenomenon, here in central Delhi, in a stone courtyard overlooking poet Ghalib's tomb. Hundreds of leaves are drifting down from an enormous pilkhan tree, its branches spread superwide.

In the western world, the month of March is a time when new leaves appear on trees that were bare during the winter. In Delhi, the month of March is a time when scores of trees become bare, making a big show of letting go of their leaves. This is part of their annual strategy to survive the forthcoming summer's extended dry spell. Leaves being discarded to temporarily stop t...