NAT. ORDER 



PapaveracecE. 



P^ONIA PEREGRINA. PEONY OF THE ALPS. 



Class XIIT. PoLYANDRiA. Older II. Digynia. 



Gen. Char. Calyx five-leaved. Petals five. Styles none. Cap- 

 sules many-seeded. 



Spe. Char. Leaves double, pinnate, sub-lobed. Leaflets oblong, 

 veined underneath. 



The male peony is furnished with long thick roots, which are 

 fleshy and of a bright yellow color; the stalks are uj^right, single, 

 streaked with red, and rises from two to four feet in height; the 

 leaves are of a dark green, veined, and stand in pairs upon short 

 ' footstalks ; thejlowers are single and of a beautiful red color. The 

 female frequently rises to the height of six feet ; the leaves of which 

 are pale and narrow ; tYieflotoeis are double and of a deep red ; the 

 roots are very irregular, composed of several tuberous pieces, hang- 

 ing by rough filaments from one head. It is a native of the Alps, 

 where it is found growing in its wild state, in large quantities, pro- 

 ducing flowers from June till October. 



This species of peony was verj- anciently considered as a 

 prominent article in the Materia Medica. Galen mentions many 

 very remarkable cures made by the use of this plant, but from the 

 accounts given by modern physicians of distinction, we are led to 

 believe it possesses little, if any, medicinal properties, that would 

 entitle it to a place in the Materia Medica, excepting its narcotic 

 power. Galen is probably the author of the anodine necklace, which 

 was composed of this plant, and so long famous for its remarkable 



Vol. ii— 13- 



