UMBELLIFERJE. 160 



ter in the cultivated root, renders it a wholesome and nutritious food. July 

 Bienn. Parsnep. 



14. HERA'CLKUM. 



Fruit compressed, flat, with a membranaceous margin and 

 3, dorsal, obtuse ribs to each carpel; flowers radiant; invo- 

 lucre deciduous; petals notched. 



Warned after the hero Hercules, it beinor a rank, robust plant. Cal. of five 

 small, acute teeth. Pet. obcordate, radiani in the exterior flowers.— Large^ 

 perennial herbs. 



H. lana'tum. 



Leaves ternate, petiolate, toraentose beneath : Jetiflets petioled, round-cordate, 

 lobed; fruit orbicular. A large, coarse-looking, umbelliferous plant, growing 

 about moist, cultivated grounds. Stem about 4 feet high, thick, furrowed, 

 brandling, and covered with spreading hairs. Leaves very large, on chan- 

 neled stalks. Leaflets woolly underneath, irregularly cut-lobed and serrated. 

 At the top of tiie stem and branches are its huge umbels, often a foot broad, 

 with spreading rays, and long-pointed, lanceolate involucels. Involucre of 

 lanceolate, deciduous leaflets. Petals deeply heart-shaped, white. June- 

 Perennial. Cow-parsnep. 



15. ANE'THUM. 



Involucre ; petals involute, jellow ; carpels compressed^ 

 with 3 ribs; intervals one-ribbed. 



Gr. avct)^ upwards, ^iiva;^ to spring; from the rapidity of its growth. 



1. A. grave'olens. 



Fruit compressed. The native country of the dill is Spain. Distinguished 

 from the next species by its annual root, its glaucous leaves, and its broader 

 and flatter seeds. These have a warm, burning taste, and are used in medi- 

 cine as a carminative. Stem 3 feet high, with umbels of yellow flowers. Dili 



2. A. FANl'CULUM. 



Fruit ovate. Native of S. Europe. Root strong, fleshy, perennial. Stem 

 about 4 feet high, with numerous leaves much divided, less glaucous than the 

 Dill. Umbels of about a dozen spreading rays. Flowers yellow. Its medi- 

 cinal properties are similar to those of the Dill, though less active. Fennel 



16. CARUM. 



Fruit elliptic, obloni^. with equidistant ribs; intervals con- 

 vex; calyx minute or obsolete; petals obcordate, unequal; 

 styles dilated at base, spreading; receptacle permanent ; cen- 

 tral flowers barren. 



From Curia, where it is native according to Pliny. 



C. Ca'rui. 



5/6771 branched ; sheaths ventricose ; common involvcre 0. Native of Eu- 

 rope, &.C. This plant is cultivated chiefly for the seeds which are often added 



