120 NAMES OF PLANTS. 



old man, or grey-head ; in allusion to the receptacle, 

 which soon becomes like a grey head. 



Eeiocau'lox, Gronovius. G., erio, wool, and caulon, stem ; 

 in allusion to the downy stems of the species first 

 known. 



Erioph'orum, Theophrastus. G., erio, wool, and 2>^ior, bear ; 

 bearing wool, cotton-sedge. 



Ero'dium. G., erod, heron ; from the beaked fruit, as we 

 say Heron's-bill. 



Eryxg'ium, Dioscorides. " Eryngion in Greek; derived 

 from erygein, sl word which means the act of eructa- 

 tion. Dioscorides states positively that Eryngium 

 dissipates all windiness." — Theis. 



Erys'imum, Theophrastus. G., derived from eryo, to draw 

 (blisters) . 



Erythr^'a. G., erythr, red ; the colour of the flower. 

 C entail' reum, Dioscorides. See earlier, under Centaurea. 

 This plant is the Centaureum minus of Fuchs, 

 Centaureum parvum of Gerard. In Lancashire and 

 Cheshire it is not uncommonly called Sanctuary, 

 which is a corruption of the name Centaury. 



Euon'ymus, Theophrastus. G. name for the plant ; from 

 Eiionyme, mother of the Furies, the berries being 

 poisonous. 



Eupato'rium, Dioscorides. See earlier, under Agrimonia, 

 which was Eupatorium of Matthiolus; this plant 

 (Hemp Agrimony) being his Eupatorium vulgare. 



Euphop/eia, Dioscorides. This word means, literally, plenty 

 of food, and seems a strange name to apply to a genus 

 of plants which are, for the most part, poisonous; 

 unless indeed on the principle that a little of it goes 

 a long way. The derivation, we are told, is from 

 Euphorbus, physician to Juba, king of Mauritania, 

 who is said to have brought the plant into use. 



