THE MONOCOTYLEDONS 491 
HABITAT 
UnorrFiciAL DruGc PArT UsepD BoTANICAL ORIGIN 
Allium Bulb (fresh) Allium sativum Southern Europe 
Convallarize Inflorescence Convallaria majalis Europe, Asia, 
Flores United States 
Veratrina Mixture of Asagrzea officinalis Mexico and 
alkaloids Central America 
DIoscOREACE OR YAM FamILy.—T wining perennial herbs or 
undershrubs arising from large tuberous roots or knotted root- 
stocks. Leaves alternate, peti- 
oled, simple, palmately-ribbed 
and netted-veined. Flowers 
small, dioecious, regular, having a 
six-cleft, calyx-like perianth, six 
stamens and a three-celled inferior 
ovary. Fruit usually a membra- 
nous, three-angled or winged, 
three-celled capsule. 
OFFICIAL DRUG Part UsEep 
Dioscorea Rhizome 
BoTANICAL NAME HABITAT 
Dioscorea villosa United States 
IRIDACEZ OR IRIs FAMILY.— 
Perennial herbs with underground 
rhizomes (Iris) corms (Crocus) or 
bow 
Fic. 367.—Iris_ versicolor (Blue 
bulbs (Gladiolus) sword shaped 
or linear, equitant, two-ranked 
leaves and usually showy, perfect, 
regular or irregular flowers which 
emerge from a spathe of 2 or more 
bracts. Perianth of 3 sepals (often 
petaloid), and 3 petals arising 
Flag). Note the fleshy rhizome bear- 
ing equitant, sword-shaped leaves and 
long stalked flower clusters. The 
flowers are violet-blue, the outer 
segments of the perianth limb being 
spatulate, variegated with yellow, 
green or white on the claw and marked 
with purple veins. (Reproduced from 
U. S. Dept. Agric. Miscellaneous Publ. 
77.) 
from the summit of a tubular re- 
ceptacle above the ovary; stamens 3; ovary inferior, 3-celled, style 
single, stigmas 3, sometimes expanded and colored, as in Jris. 
Fruit a three-celled, loculicidal, many-seeded capsule. Seeds 
with fleshy or horny endosperm. Rootstocks, tubers, or corms 
mostly acrid. Fibrovascular bundles in stems and _ leaves 
phlocentric. 
