The Parent Plant 5 



Colchiconr- a name which has been continued in its Latinized form 

 to the present time. 



Dioscorides made very carefid descriptions dealing with such 

 phases as growth, development, and morphology of the plant. His 

 drawings involving two plants (Fig. 1.2), one with fruits, seeds, and 

 leaves, the other with flowers only, clearly show that he associated 



2p2 PcdaciiDiofcoridij'5ttrt<fi?95U(^/ 



Fig. 1.2 — Diagrams showing the seed-producing portion of Colchicum autumnale, and the 

 flower stalk appearing in autumn. A, fruiting; B, flowering. (After drawings by Dioscorides) 



autunnial flowering with sjjring fruiting, both having the same under- 

 ground portion. This was a careful scientific observation for his day. 

 Such great detail was gi\'en to the corm, bud, leaf, flower, and seed 

 that writers copied his observations and drawings for the next fifteen 

 centuries. 



Since the botanical and medical professions were closely allied in 

 the times of Dioscorides, it was natural that the ()l)jccti\e of his study 



