may be found in thickets and along the borders of old fields throughout
the United States.
_Description of plant._—This is a common herbaceous perennial about 2 to
4 feet high, with erect or ascending branches, and, like most of the
plants belonging to the dogbane family (Apocynaceæ), contains a milky
juice. The short-stemmed opposite leaves are oblong, lance-shaped oblong
or ovate-oblong, about 2 to 6 inches long, usually sharp pointed, the
upper surface smooth and the lower sometimes hairy. The plant is in
flower from June to August and the small greenish white flowers are
borne in dense heads, followed later by the slender pods, which are
about 4 inches in length and pointed at the apex. (Fig. 22.)
[Illustration: FIG. 22.—Black Indian hemp (_Apocynum cannabinum_),
flowering portion, pods, and rootstock. (After King’s American
Dispensatory.)]
_Other species._—Considerable confusion seems to exist in regard to
which species yields the root which has proved of greatest value
medicinally. The Pharmacopœia directs that “the dried rhizome and roots
of _Apocynum cannabinum_ or of closely allied species of Apocynum” be
used.
In the older botanical works and medical herbals only two species of
Apocynum were recognized, namely, _A. cannabinum_ L. and _A.
androsaemifolium_ L., although it was known that both of these were very
variable. In the newer botanical manuals both of these species still
hold good, but the different forms and variations are now recognized as
distinct species, those formerly referred to _cannabinum_ being
distinguished by the erect or nearly erect lobes of the corolla, and
those of the _androsaemifolium_ group being distinguished by the
spreading or recurved lobes of the corolla.
Among the plants that were formerly collected as _Apocynum cannabinum_
or varietal forms of it, and which are now considered as distinct
species, may be mentioned the following:
Riverbank-dogbane (_A. album_ Greene), which frequents the banks of
rivers and similar moist locations from Maine to Wisconsin, Virginia,
and Missouri. This plant is perfectly smooth and has white flowers and
relatively smaller leaves than _A. cannabinum_.
Velvet dogbane (_A. pubescens_ R. Br.), which is common from Virginia to
Illinois, Iowa, and Missouri. The entire plant has a soft, hairy or
velvety appearance, which renders identification easy. According to the
latest edition of the National Standard Dispensatory it is not unlikely
that this is the plant that furnishes the drug that has been so
favorably reported upon.
_Apocynum androsaemifolium_ is also gathered by drug collectors for
_Apocynum cannabinum_. Its root is likewise employed in medicine, but
its action is not the same as that of _cannabinum_, and it should
therefore not be substituted for it. It closely resembles _cannabinum_.
_Description of rootstock._—The following description of the drug as
found in commerce is taken from the United States Pharmacopœia: “Of
varying length, 3 to 8 mm. thick, cylindrical or with a few angles
produced by drying, lightly wrinkled longitudinally, and usually more or
less fissured transversely; orange-brown, becoming gray-brown on
keeping; brittle; fracture sharply transverse, exhibiting a thin brown
layer of cork, the remainder of the bark nearly as thick as the radius
of the wood, white or sometimes pinkish, starchy, containing
laticiferous ducts; the wood yellowish, having several rings, finely
radiate and very coarsely porous; almost inodorous, the taste starchy,
afterwards becoming bitter and somewhat acrid.”
_Collection, prices, and uses._—The root of black Indian hemp is
collected in autumn and brings from 8 to 10 cents a pound.
It is official in the United States Pharmacopœia and has emetic,
cathartic, diaphoretic, expectorant, and diuretic properties, and on
account of the last-named action it is used in dropsical affections.
The tough fibrous bark of the stalks of black Indian hemp was employed
by the Indians as a substitute for hemp in making twine, fishing nets,
etc.
PLEURISY-ROOT.
_Asclepias tuberosa_ L.
_Pharmacopœial name._—Asclepias.
_Other common names._—Butterfly-weed, Canada-root, Indian-posy,
orange-root, orange swallowwort, tuberroot, whiteroot, windroot, yellow
or orange milkweed.
_Habitat and range._—Pleurisy-root flourishes in the open or in pine
woods, in dry sandy or gravelly soil, usually along the banks of
streams. Its range extends from Ontario and Maine to Minnesota, south to
Florida, Texas, and Arizona, but it is found in greatest abundance in
the South.
_Description of plant._—This is a very showy and ornamental perennial
plant, indigenous to this country, and belonging to the milkweed family
(Asclepiadaceæ); it is erect and rather stiff in habit, but with
brilliant heads of bright orange-colored flowers that attract attention
from afar.
The stems are rather stout, erect, hairy, about 1 to 2 feet in height,
sometimes branched near the top, and bearing a thick growth of leaves.
These are either stemless or borne on short stems, are somewhat rough to
the touch, 2 to 6 inches long, lance shaped or oblong, the apex either
sharp pointed or blunt, with a narrow, rounded, or heart-shaped base.
The flower heads, borne at the ends of the stem and branches, consist of
numerous, oddly shaped orange-colored flowers. The corolla is composed
of five segments, which are reflexed or turned back, and the crown has
five erect or spreading “hoods,” within each of which is a slender
incurved horn. The plant is in flower for some time, usually from June
to September, followed late in fall by pods, which are from 4 to 5
inches long, green, tinged with red, finely hairy on the outside, and
containing the seeds with their long silky hairs. (Pl. VI, fig. 3.)
Unlike the other milkweeds, the pleurisy-root contains little or no
milky juice.
_Description of root._—The root of this plant is large, white and
fleshy, spindle shaped, branching. (Pl. VI, fig. 3.) As found in
commerce it consists of lengthwise or crosswise pieces from 1 to 6
inches in length and about three-fourths of an inch in thickness. It is
wrinkled lengthwise and also transversely and has a knotty head. The
thin bark is orange brown and the wood yellowish, with white rays. It
has no odor, and a somewhat bitter, acrid taste.
_Collection, prices, and uses._—The root, which is usually found rather
deep in the soil, is collected in autumn, cut into transverse or
lengthwise slices, and dried. The price ranges from 6 to 10 cents a
pound.
Pleurisy-root was much esteemed by the Indians, has long been used in
domestic practice, and is official in the United States Pharmacopœia. It
is used in disordered digestion and in affections of the lungs, in the
last-named instance to promote expectoration, relieve pains in the
chest, and induce easier breathing. It is also useful in producing
perspiration.
_Other species._—Besides the official pleurisy-root there are two other
species of Asclepias which are employed to some extent for the same
purposes, namely, the common milkweed and the swamp-milkweed.
The common milkweed (_Asclepias syriaca_ L.) is a perennial, native in
fields and waste places from Canada to North Carolina and Kansas. It has
a stout, usually simple stem 3 to 5 feet in height and oblong or oval
leaves, smooth on the upper surface and densely hairy beneath. The
flowers, similar in form to those of _Asclepias tuberosa_, are pinkish
purple and appear from June to August, followed by erect pods 3 to 5
inches long, wooly with matted hairs and covered with prickles and borne
on recurved stems. The plant contains an abundance of milky juice.
The root of the common milkweed is from 1 to 6 feet long, cylindrical,
and finely wrinkled. The short branches and scars left by former stems
give the root a rough, knotty appearance. The bark is thick, grayish
brown, and the inside white, the root breaking with a short, splintery
fracture. Common milkweed root has a very bitter taste, but no odor.
It is collected in autumn and cut into transverse slices before drying.
Common milkweed root ranges from 6 to 8 cents a pound.
Swamp-milkweed (_Asclepias incarnata_ L.) is a native perennial herb
found in swamps from Canada to Tennessee and Kansas. The slender stem,
leafy to the top, is 1 to 2 feet in height, branched above, the leaves
lance shaped or oblong lance shaped. The flowers, also similar to those
of _tuberosa_, appear from July to September, and are flesh colored or
rose colored. The pods are 2 to 3½ inches long, erect, and very
sparingly hairy.
The root of the swamp-milkweed, which is also collected in autumn, is
not quite an inch in length, hard and knotty, with several light-brown
rootlets. The tough white wood, which has a thick central pith, is
covered with a thin, yellowish brown bark. It is practically without
odor, and the taste, sweetish at first, finally becomes bitter. This
root brings about 3 cents a pound.
COMFREY.
_Symphytum officinale_ L.
_Other common names._—Symphytum, healing-herb, knitback, ass-ear,
backwort, blackwort, bruisewort, gum-plant, slippery-root.
_Habitat and range._—Comfrey is naturalized from Europe, and occurs in
waste places from Newfoundland to Minnesota, south to Maryland.
_Description of plant._—This coarse, rough, hairy perennial herb is from
2 to 3 feet high, erect and branched, with thick, rough leaves, the
lower ones ovate lance shaped, 3 to 10 inches long, pointed at the apex,
and narrowed at the base into margined stems. The uppermost leaves are
lance shaped, smaller, and stemless. Comfrey is in flower from June to
August, the purplish or dirty-white, tubular, bell-shaped flowers
numerous and borne in dense terminal clusters. (Pl. VI, fig. 4.) The
nutlets which follow are brown, shining, and somewhat wrinkled. Comfrey
belongs to the borage family (Boraginaceæ).
_Description of root._—Comfrey has a large, deep, spindle-shaped root,
thick and fleshy at the top, white inside, and covered with a thin,
blackish brown bark. (Pl. VI, fig. 4.) The dried root is hard, black,
and very deeply and roughly wrinkled, breaking with a smooth, white,
waxy fracture. As it occurs in commerce it is in pieces ranging from
about an inch to several inches in length, only about one-fourth of an
inch in thickness, and usually considerably bent. It has a very
mucilaginous, somewhat sweetish and astringent taste, but no odor.
_Collection, prices, and uses._—The root is dug in autumn, or sometimes
in early spring. Comfrey root when first dug is very fleshy and juicy,
but about four-fifths of its weight is lost in drying. The price ranges
from 4 to 8 cents a pound.
The mucilaginous character of comfrey root renders it useful in coughs
and diarrheal complaints. Its action is demulcent and slightly
astringent.
The leaves are also used to some extent.
STONEROOT.
_Collinsonia canadensis_ L.
_Other common names._—Collinsonia, knobroot, knobgrass, knobweed,
knotroot, horse-balm, horseweed, richweed, richleaf, ox-balm,
citronella.
_Habitat and range._—Stoneroot is found in moist, shady woods from Maine
to Wisconsin, south to Florida and Kansas.
_Description of plant._—Like most of the other members of the mint
family (Menthaceæ), stoneroot is aromatic also, the fresh flowering
plant possessing a very pleasant, lemon-like odor. It is a tall,
perennial herb, growing as high as 5 feet. The stem is stout, erect,
branched, smooth, or the upper part hairy.
The leaves are opposite, about 3 to 8 inches long, thin, ovate, pointed
at the apex, narrowed or sometimes heart shaped at the base, and
coarsely toothed; the lower leaves are largest and are borne on slender
stems, while the upper ones are smaller and almost stemless. Stoneroot
is in flower from July to October, producing large, loose, open terminal
panicles or heads of small, pale-yellow lemon-scented flowers. The
flowers have a funnel-shaped 2-lipped corolla, the lower lip larger,
pendent, and fringed, with two very much protruding stamens. (Pl. VII,
fig. 1.)
_Description of root._—Even the fresh root of this plant is very hard.
It is horizontal, large, thick, and woody, and the upper side is rough
and knotty and branched irregularly. (Pl. VII, fig. 1.) The odor of the
root is rather disagreeable, and the taste pungent and spicy. In the
fresh state, as well as when dry, the root is extremely hard, whence the
common name “stoneroot.” The dried root is grayish brown externally,
irregularly knotty on the upper surface from the remains of branches and
the scars left by former stems, and the lower surface showing a few thin
roots. The inside of the root is hard and whitish.
_Collection, prices, and uses._—Stoneroot, which is collected in autumn,
is employed for its tonic, astringent, diuretic, and diaphoretic
effects. The price of the root ranges from 2 to 3½ cents a pound.
The leaves are used by country people as an application to bruises.
CULVER’S-ROOT.
_Veronica virginica_ L.[5]
_Synonym._—_Leptandra virginica_ (L.) Nutt.[5]
_Pharmacopœial name._—Leptandra.
_Other common names._—Culver’s-physic, blackroot, bowman’s-root,
Beaumont-root, Brinton-root, tall speedwell, tall veronica, physic-root,
whorlywort.
_Habitat and range._—This common indigenous herb is found abundantly in
moist, rich woods, mountain valleys, meadows, and thickets from British
Columbia south to Alabama, Missouri, and Nebraska.
[Illustration: FIG. 23.—Culver’s-root (_Veronica virginica_), flowering
top and rootstock.]
_Description of plant._—Culver’s-root is a tall, slender-stemmed
perennial belonging to the figwort family (Scrophulariaceæ). It is from
3 to 7 feet in height, with the leaves arranged around the simple stems
in whorls of three to nine. The leaves are borne on very short stems,
are lance shaped, long pointed at the apex, narrowed at the base, and
sharply toothed, 3 to 6 inches in length, and 1 inch or less in width.
The white tube-shaped flowers, with two long protruding stamens, are
produced from June to September and are borne in several terminal,
densely crowded, slender, spikelike heads from 3 to 9 inches long. (Fig.
23.) The flowers, as stated, are usually white, though the color may
vary from a pink to bluish or purple, and on account of its graceful
spikes of pretty flowers it is often cultivated in gardens as an
ornamental plant. The fruits are small, oblong, compressed, many-seeded
capsules.
_Description of rootstock._—After they are dried the rootstocks have a
grayish brown appearance on the outside, and the inside is hard and
yellowish, either with a hollow center or a brownish or purplish pith.
When broken the fracture is tough and woody. The rootstock measures from
4 to 6 inches in length, is rather thick and bent, with branches
resembling the main rootstock. The upper surface has a few stem scars,
and from the sides and underneath numerous coarse, brittle roots are
produced, which have the appearance of having been artificially inserted
into the rootstock. (Fig. 23.) Culver’s-root has a bitter and acrid
taste, but no odor.
_Collection, prices, and uses._—The rootstock and roots should be
collected in the fall of the second year. When fresh these have a faint
odor, resembling somewhat that of almonds, which is lost in drying. The
bitter, acrid taste of Culver’s-root also becomes less the longer it is
kept, and it is said that it should be kept at least a year before being
used. The price paid to collectors ranges from 6 to 10 cents a pound.
Culver’s-root, which is official in the United States Pharmacopœia, is
used as an alterative, cathartic, and in disorders of the liver.
DANDELION.
_Taraxacum officinale_ Weber.[6]
_Synonyms._—_Taraxacum taraxacum_ (L.) Karst.;[6] _Taraxacum
dens-leonis_ Desf.
_Pharmacopœial name._—Taraxacum.
_Other common names._—Blow-ball, cankerwort, doon-head-clock,
fortune-teller, horse gowan, Irish daisy, yellow gowan, one-o’clock.
(Fig. 24.)
_Habitat and range._—With the exception, possibly, of a few localities
in the South, the dandelion is at home almost everywhere in the United
States, being a familiar weed in meadows and waste places, and
especially in lawns. It has been naturalized in this country from Europe
and is distributed as a weed in all civilized parts of the world.
_Description of plant._—It is hardly necessary to give a description of
the dandelion, as almost everyone is familiar with the coarsely toothed,
smooth, shining green leaves, the golden-yellow flowers which open in
the morning and only in fair weather, and the round, fluffy seed heads
of this only too plentiful weed of the lawns. In spring the young,
tender leaves are much sought after by the colored market women about
Washington, who collect them by the basketful and sell them for greens
or salad.
Dandelion is a perennial belonging to the chicory family (Cichoriaceæ),
and is in flower practically throughout the year. The entire plant
contains a white milky juice.
_Description of root._—The dandelion has a large, thick, and fleshy
taproot, sometimes measuring 20 inches in length. In commerce, dandelion
root is usually found in pieces 3 to 6 inches long, dark brown on the
outside and strongly wrinkled lengthwise. It breaks with a short
fracture and shows the thick whitish bark marked with circles of milk
ducts and a thin woody center, which is yellow and porous. It is
practically without odor and has a bitter taste.
_Collection and uses._—Late in summer and in fall the milky juice
becomes thicker and the bitterness increases, and this is the time to
collect dandelion root. It should be carefully washed and thoroughly
dried. Dandelion roots lose considerably in drying, weighing less than
half as much as the fresh roots. The dried root should not be kept too
long, as drying diminishes its medicinal activity. It is official in the
United States Pharmacopœia.
Dandelion is used as a tonic in diseases of the liver and in dyspepsia.
[Illustration: FIG. 24.—Dandelion (_Taraxacum officinale_).]
_Imports and prices._—Most of the dandelion root found on the market is
collected in central Europe. There has been an unusually large demand
for dandelion root during the season of 1907, and according to the
weekly records contained in the “Oil, Paint, and Drug Reporter,” the
imports entered at the port of New York from January 1, 1907, to the end
of May amounted to about 47,000 pounds. The price ranges from 4 to 10
cents a pound.
QUEEN-OF-THE-MEADOW.
_Eupatorium purpureum_ L.
_Other common names._—Gravelroot, Indian gravelroot, joe-pye-weed,
purple boneset, tall boneset, kidneyroot, king-of-the-meadow,
marsh-milkweed, motherwort, niggerweed, quillwort, slunkweed,
trumpetweed.
_Habitat and range._—This common native perennial herb occurs in low
grounds and dry woods and meadows from Canada to Florida and Texas.
_Description of plant._—The stout, erect, green or purple stem of this
plant grows from 3 to 10 feet in height, and is usually smooth, simple
or branched at the top. The thin, veiny leaves are 4 to 12 inches long,
1 to 3 inches wide, ovate or ovate lance shaped, sharp pointed, toothed,
and placed around the stem in whorls of three to six. While the upper
surface of the leaves is smooth, there is usually a slight hairiness
along the veins on the lower surface, otherwise smooth. Toward the
latter part of the summer and in early fall queen-of-the-meadow is in
flower, producing 5 to 15 flowered pink or purplish heads, all
aggregated in large compound clusters, which present a rather showy
appearance. (Pl. VII, fig. 2.) This plant belongs to the aster family
(Asteraceæ).
Another species which is collected with this and for similar purposes,
and by some regarded as only a variety, is the spotted boneset or
spotted joe-pye-weed (_Eupatorium maculatum_ L.). This is very similar
to _E. purpureum_, but it does not grow so tall, is rough-hairy, and has
the stem spotted with purple. The thicker leaves are coarsely toothed
and in whorls of three to five, and the flower clusters are flattened at
the top rather than elongated as in _E. purpureum_.
It is found in moist soil from New York to Kentucky, westward to Kansas,
New Mexico, Minnesota, and as far up as British Columbia.
_Description of root._—Queen-of-the-meadow root, as it occurs in
commerce, is blackish and woody, furnished with numerous long dark-brown
fibers, which are furrowed or wrinkled lengthwise and whitish within. It
has a bitter, aromatic, and astringent taste.
_Collection, prices, and uses._—The root is collected in autumn and is
used for its astringent and diuretic properties. It was official in the
United States Pharmacopœia from 1820 to 1840. The price ranges from 2½
to 4 cents a pound.
ELECAMPANE.
_Inula helenium_ L.
_Other common names._—Inula, inul, horseheal, elf-dock, elfwort,
horse-elder, scabwort, yellow starwort, velvet dock, wild sunflower.
_Habitat and range._—This perennial herb has been naturalized from
Europe, and is found along roadsides and in fields and damp pastures
from Nova Scotia to North Carolina, westward to Missouri and Minnesota.
It is native also in Asia.
_Description of plant._—When in flower elecampane resembles the
sunflower on a small scale. Like the sunflower, it is a member of the
aster family (Asteraceæ). It is a rough plant, growing from 3 to 6 feet
in height, but producing during the first year only root leaves, which
attain considerable size. In the following season the stout densely
hairy stem develops, attaining a height of from 3 to 6 feet.
The leaves are broadly oblong in form, toothed, the upper surface rough
and the under side densely soft-hairy. The basal or root leaves are
borne on long stems, and are from 10 to 20 inches long and 4 to 8 inches
wide, while the upper leaves are smaller and stemless or clasping.
About July to September the terminal flower heads are produced, either
singly or a few together. As already stated, these flower heads look
very much like small sunflowers, 2 to 4 inches broad, and consist of
long, narrow, yellow rays, 3 toothed at the apex, and the disk also is
yellow. (Pl. VII, fig. 3.)
_Description of root._—Elecampane has a large, long, branching root,
pale yellow on the outside and whitish and fleshy within. (Pl. VII, fig.
3.) When dry the outside turns a grayish brown or dark brown, and is
generally finely wrinkled lengthwise. As found in commerce, elecampane
is usually in transverse or lengthwise slices, light yellow or grayish
and fleshy internally, dotted with numerous shining resin cells, and
with overlapping brown and wrinkled bark. These slices become flexible
in damp weather, and tough, but when they are dry they break with a
short fracture. The root has at first a strongly aromatic odor, which
has been described by some as resembling a violet odor, but this
diminishes in drying. The taste is aromatic, bitterish, and pungent.
_Collection, prices, and uses._—The best time for collecting elecampane
is in the fall of the second year. If collected later than that the
roots are apt to be stringy and woody. Owing to the interlacing habit of
the rootlets, much dirt adheres to the root, but it should be well
cleaned, cut into transverse or lengthwise slices, and carefully dried
in the shade. Collectors receive from 3 to 5 cents a pound for this
root.
Elecampane, which was official in the United States Pharmacopœia of
1890, is much used in affections of the respiratory organs, in digestive
and liver disorders, catarrhal discharges, and in skin diseases.
ECHINACEA.
_Brauneria angustifolia_ (DC.) Heller.
_Synonym._—_Echinacea angustifolia_ DC.
_Other common names._—Pale-purple coneflower, Sampson-root, niggerhead
(in Kansas).