{ 2096 ) 

 Ferula persica. Persian Fennel-Giant. 



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Cfoss and Order. 



PeNTANDRIA DlGYNIA. 



Generic Character. 

 Fructus ovalis, compresso-planus, striis utrinque 3. 



Specific Character and Synonyms. 



Ferula persica ; foliis supra decompositis : foliolis multifidis 



acutis decurrentibus, umbella primordiali sessiii. Willd. 



Sp. PL I. p. 1413. f/orf. /Cezo. e</ eft. 2 p. 137. But. 



Repos. 558. Persoon Syn. I. p. 312. n. 13. 

 Assa f(etida. //o/>e in Philos. trans, v. 75. 1785. />. 36. f. 



3. £4. 

 Ferula Assa foetida. Mart. Mill. Bid. n. 9. Excluso 



Synonnymo Kaempferi. 



Seeds of the Ferula persica were sent to Pallas from the 

 mountains of Ghilan in Persia, supposed to be those of the 

 plant producing the Assa foetida. From these several plants 

 were raised by the Professor at Petersburgh, and two of these 

 were sent by Dr. Guthrie to the late Dr. Hope, Professor of 

 botany in Edinburgh, one of which lived and produced seeds, 

 and from this source probably sprung the plant in the Apo- 

 thecaries garden at Chelsea, from which our drawing was 

 made. 



That this is the real plant producing the Assa foetida, 

 seems confirmed by the strong smell of that drug which per- 

 vades the whole herb, and indeed we have picked otf small 

 globules of true Assa foetida that had exuded from the stem. 

 At the same time it is evident that it is not the same species 

 as described by the accurate K.e upper. This author, whilst 

 he allows that the inhabitants of Chorasan and Laristan, the 

 two provinces famous for this production, believe that their 



plant* 



