44 MEDICINAL HERBS AND POISONOUS PLANTS 



important one in tlie South of England, the plant being 

 cultivated for the sake of the substanQes which are con- 

 tained in the strobiles, as the cone-like, leafy fruits are 

 called. The odour peculiar to hops is due to a volatile 

 oil, of Avhich they contain 07 per cent. The bitterness of 

 t]\e Hop is due to a substance called htpamaric acid, and 

 resides, like the oil, in the glands which are found at tlie 

 base of the leaf-structures composing the cone. The vola- 

 tile oil produces soporific and sedative effects, while the 



Fig. 21.— Hop {IJiimitUis Liipidiii) 

 a J ilale flower, h, Female flower, c, Strobile. 



lupamaric acid is stomachic and tonic. It is for tliis 

 combination of properties that the cones are so much 

 prized by the brewer. The strobilus is shown in fig. 21. 

 The young shoots of the Hop when boiled are said to 



make a delicious vegetable. 



# 



This is a herbaceous plant, characterized by the hairy 

 flowers which grow in clusters in the axils of the leaves, 

 and its reddish brittle stems. An infusion of this plant 

 is a favourite medicine in some rural districts. 



Polygonacea.— The Dock and Ehubarb Family. 



The Polygonacege are all herbs, and are best dis- 

 tinguished by their stipules. A stipule is a leaf that 

 is attached to another leaf. In the Polygonaceaj the 



