PLANTS FURNISHlNli ROOT DRUCIS. 



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oval lip. generally marked with purple and narrowed at the base. The seed 

 capsule is large, oblong, or somewhat globular. 



Description of rootstoch-. — The rootstoc-k of this plant Is also rurious. resem- 

 bling in its formation a piece of coral (tig. 4), on account of which it is known 

 by the name " corahoot." The other common nan)es. such as cliickentoe. 

 turkey-claw, etc., all have reference to the form of the rootstock. As found in 

 conunerce. crawley-ruot consists of small, dark-brown wrinkled pieces, the larger 

 ones branched like coral. The taste at Hrst is sweetish, becoming afterwards 

 slightly bitter. It has .i peculiar odor when fivsh. but when dry it is without 

 odor. 



CoUectioii. prircfi. uihI imrs. — Crawlcy-rnut should be colli'dt'd in .Tidy or 

 August. The in-ice ranges from 20 to ."•(> cents a itound. otiicr species of 

 Corallorhiza are sometimes collected and .-ire .said to prob.ibly 

 possess sindlar pro])erties. This root is said to be very 

 effective for promoting perspiration, and it is also use<l as m 

 sedative and in fever. 



CANADA .SNAKEROOT. 

 Asarmn canadensr L. 



Other common tiamcx. — Asarum, wild ginger. Indian ginger, 

 Vermont snakeroot, heart-snakeroot, southern snakeroot. black 

 snakeroot. colt's-foot snakeroot, black snakeweed, broad- 

 leaved asarabacca, false colt's-foot, cafs-foot, colicroot. 



Habitat and range. — This inconspicuous little plant fre- 

 quents rich woods or rich soil along roadsides from Canada 

 south to North Carolina and Kansas. 



Description of plant. — Canada snakeroot Is a small, appar- 

 ently stemless perennial, not more tlmn (> to 12 inches in 

 height, and belongs to the birthwoi-t family (Aristolo- 

 chiacefe). It usually has but two leaves, which are bornt> 

 on slender, finely hairy stems; they are kidney shaped or 

 heart shaped, thin, dark green above and paler green on the 

 lower surface, strongly veined, and from 4 to 7 inches broad. 



The solitary bell-shaped flower is of an unassunung dull 

 brown or brownish purple, and this modest color, together 

 with its position on the plant, renders it so inconspicuous as 

 to escape the notice of the casual observer. It droops from 

 a short, slender stalk produced between the two leaf stems 

 and is almost hidden under the two leaves, growing so close to the ground that 

 it is sometimes buried beneath old leaves, and sometimes the soil must be 

 removed before the flower can be seen. It is bell shaped, woolly, the inside 

 darker in color than the outside and of a satiny texture. The fruit which 

 follows is in the form of a leathery 6-celled capsule. (PI. Ill, fig. 2.) 



Description of rootstock. — Canada snakeroot has a creeping, yellowish root- 

 stock, slightly jointed, with thin rootlets produced from joints which occur 

 about every half inch or so. (PI. III. fig. 2.) In the drug trade the rootstock 

 is usually found in pieces a few inches in length and about one-eighth of an 

 inch in diameter. These are four-angled, crooked, brownish and wrinkled on 

 the outside, whitish inside and showing a large central pith, hard and brittle, 

 and breaking with a short fracture. The odor is fragrant and the taste spicy 



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Fig. 4.— Crawley-root 

 (CoraUofhiza odon- 

 U,rhi-M). After Tor. 

 rey's Flora of New 

 York. 



