IPOMCEA. 215 



LEONURUS. MOTHERWORT. 



Leonurus Cardiaca Linne. Motherwort. . 



Description. Calyx 5-nerved, 5-toothed, the teeth when old stiff and 

 prickly. Corolla 2-lipped ; the upper lip erect, concave, entire ; the lower 

 3-lobed, spreading. Stamens 4, ascending under the upper lip of the co- 

 rolla. 



A perennial herb. Stem erect, slightly hairy, 2 to 4 feet high. Leaves 

 long-petioled ; the lower rounded, palmately lobed ; the upper cuneate at 

 the base, 3-cleft, the lobes lanceolate. Flowers pale purple, in close axil- 

 lary whorls, appearing in summer. 



Part Used. The herb not official. 



Constituents. Volatile oil, a bitter principle, and common vegetable 

 constituents. 



Preparations. Commonly administered in infusion. 



Medical Properties and Uses. Motherwort is stimulant and slightly 

 tonic. In warm infusion it is occasionally used to promote diaphoresis. 



CONVOLVULACE/E. 



Character of the Order. Chiefly twining or trailing herbs, rarely 

 shrubby, with alternate leaves or scales. Calyx of 5 imbricated sepals. 

 Corolla monopetalous, 5-plaited or 5-lobed, convolute in the bud. Sta- 

 mens 5, inserted in the tube of the corolla. Ovary free, 2-, rarely 3-celled 

 or sometimes 4-celled by a false partition. Fruit a 2- to 6-seeded capsule. 



A large order of mostly tropical plants, many of which are cultivated 

 for ornament, and several, as jalap and scammony, possess important me- 

 dicinal properties. 



IPOMCEA. 



Ipomcea pandurata Meyer Wild Potato-Vine, Man-of-the-Earth. 



Description. Calyx : sepals ovate-oblong, obtuse, smooth. Corolla 

 open funnel-form, 3 inches long, white, the tube tinged with purple. Sta- 

 mens included. Capsule 2-celled, 4-seeded. 



An herbaceous perennial with a very large thick root. Stems long and 

 stout, trailing or twining. Leaves cordate, entire, somewhat acuminate, on 

 long petioles. Peduncles longer than the petioles, 1- to 5-flowered. The 

 flowers are produced during summer. 



Habitat. In sandy fields from Connecticut to Illinois and southward. 



Part Used. The root not official. 



Constituents. The fresh root, when wounded, emits a milky, resinous 

 juice which probably contains its active principle. 



Preparations. It has been administered in powder and in infusion. 



Medical Properties and Uses. This plant, generically allied with jalap 



