Sources of f he Drug 149 



soil develop liowers when the time is right. They do so without 

 attention as to water or nutrition. For this reason unusual attention 

 is given to the corm for ornamental purposes. 



Each flower measines 10 to 20 cm. from base to tip of petal. The 

 six stamens and six floral parts are united in a tube from the top 

 to the carpels below. Three carpels of an ovulary show the relation 

 to the liliaceous group. At tlic base of the long tube is the superior, 

 syncarpous ovulary. Regularh', the corm is deep enough in the soil 

 so that about one-half of the flower is above the surface; thus, the 

 ovulary is well beneath the soil surface. Following fertilization, the 

 ovules begin a development that proceeds during the entire winter." 

 A progression of development and colchicine content was noted over 

 the long period of time that elapses from fertilization to maturation. 

 Pollination development begins soon after, but the content of colchi- 

 cine is low. There is not much increase during the early stages. In 

 other words, the increase in the winter is very small compared to 

 the gain that occurs in content of colchicine as seeds mature. The 

 total time studied extended from August of one year to April of the 

 next.'- '^^ •'^- 



In early spring the fruit capsule rises out of the soil. Expanding 

 leaves accompany the fruit development. In the vicinity of Olomouc, 

 Czechoslovakia, the green capsules contain small, watery ovules until 

 about the middle of May. From May to July the content of colchi- 

 cine increases from 0.2 to 0.5 per cent. As capsules mature, the walls 

 split and seeds fall oiu.' 



5.5-2.- CoJchic.um liiteum Baker. Because of its availability in 

 India, the Indian pharmacopeia accepts this spring-flowering species 

 as a source for colchicine. ^i' ^■'*- ^■^ 



The product called colchicine is Surinjan-i-talkh. Undoubtedly 

 this drua: has been used for manv vears, certainlv before the present 

 studies of pharmacognosy were conceived in their present level. Col- 

 lection of the corm for colchicine must be coordinated with the flower- 

 ing and fruiting cycles. Each corm is inclosed in membranous layers, 

 under which lies a hard, white bud. The daughter corm that pro- 

 duces the next season's plant is found in a groove at the base of the 

 parent corm. 



At altitudes of 7000 ft., the buds develop early in March or late 

 February. Flowers aj^pear when the snow melts; the })lant is one of 

 the earliest to flower in the area. The conmion name for the species 

 is Kashmir hermodactyl. 



A scape bearing golden flowers, two or three per cluster, emerges 

 from the corm. Fruiting stalks develop soon after pollination. The 

 capsules mature, and leaves form. Finally the seeds mature, and a 

 cvcle is thus completed Avitliin one season, from March to May. 



