PLANTS FURNISHINC ROOT DRUGS. 



45 



Description of rootstock. — When removed from the earth, the rootstock of 

 (•ram>'s-l)ill (tijr. IT) is about 2 to 4 inches lonj:, thick, with nuiuorous Itrandies 

 bearing the younj; buds for next season's frrowtli. and scars showinj; the remains 

 of stems of previous years, brown outside, white and tieshy internally, and with 

 several stout roots. When dry. tlie rootstock turns a darker brown, is finely 

 wrinkled externally, and has a rou^h, spiny aiipc-irance, caused liy tlie shrink- 

 ing of the buds and branches and the numerous stem scars witli which the root is 

 studded. Internally it 

 is of a somewhat pur- 

 plish color. Crane's- 

 bill root is without 

 odor and the taste is 

 very astringent. 



CoUrctioii. in-icen, and 

 uses. — Crane's-bill root 

 depends for its medici- 

 nal value on its as- 

 tringent i)roperties.and 

 as its astringency is 

 due to the tannin con- 

 tent, the root should, of 

 ccmrse, be collected at 

 that season of the yenr 

 when it is richest in 

 that constituent. Ex- 

 periments have proved 

 that the yield of tan- 

 nin in crane's-bill is 

 greatest just before 

 flowering, wliicli is in 

 April or May, accord- 

 iug to locality. It 

 should, therefore, be 

 collected just before 

 the flowering period, 

 and not, as is commonly 

 the case, in autumn. 

 The price of this 

 root ranges from 4 to 8 cents a 



Crane's-bill root, which is official 

 used as a tonic and astringent. 



Fii, 



17. —Crane's-bill (Grranium maculatinn), flowering plant, show- 

 ing also seed i)ods and rootstock. 



pound, 

 in the 



United States I'harmacopoeia. is 



SENECA SXAKEKOOT. 

 Polyf/ala senetra L. 



Pharmacopoeia I name. — Senega. 



Other common names. — Senega snakeroot. Seneca-root, rattlesnake-root, 

 mountain-flax. 



Habitat and range. — Rocky woods and hillsides are the favorite haunts of 

 this indigenous plant. It is found in such situations from New Brunswick 

 and western New England to Minnesota and the Canadian Rocky Mountains, 

 and south along the Allegheny Mountains to North Carolina and Missouri. 



Description of plant.— The perennial root of this useful little plant sends 

 up a number of smooth, slender, erect stems (as many as 15 to 20 or more), 

 107 



