DRUG PLANTS 381 



ginseng has been much in demand for a number of years. These 

 are both herbaceous plants with tuberous roots which are 

 especially valuable, from the Oriental standpoint, if they bear 

 any resemblance to the human body. So great have been the 

 demands for American ginseng that the plant has been almost 

 exterminated in its rich woodland habitats in the Eastern United 

 States. Most of the ginseng exported now is cultivated, either 

 under artificial shade, or in natural open woodlands. Ginseng 

 is used to a limited extent in the United States as a mild stimu- 

 lant and as stomach tonic. 



The MONKSHOOD is widely cultivated as a garden plant and 

 as a source of the plant drug aconite in this country, though 

 native in the Alps and Pyrenees mountains of Europe. Aconite 

 is extracted from the roots, which are collected and dried in the 

 fall. Although it has long been known as a poison, aconite has 

 only in recent years been used as a drug, externally for rheu- 

 matism and neuralgia, and internally to relieve pain and fever. 



The roots and rhizomes of goldenseal, a perennial herba- 

 ceous plant formerly common in rich woods of the eastern states, 

 contain several alkaloid substances which are valuable in the 

 treatment of catarrh and other mucous membrane inflammations, 

 and as a tonic. Goldenseal has always been a favorite remedy of 

 inhabitants of eastern North America, from the times of Indians 

 and early white settlers down to the present. It is no wonder, 

 then, that it is practically exterminated from the native vegeta- 

 tion and must be cultivated extensively as a drug plant. 



Southern Europe and Western Asia are the native homes of 

 the LICORICE plant. Within this area it is widely cultivated, 

 |especially in Spain, Russia, and Turkey. Licorice roots are dug 

 id dried for several months before being shipped. Large amounts 

 [are imported by the United States each year, its medical use 

 dng mainly as a soothing preparation, to induce mucus dis- 

 charges from lungs and throat, and to cover up the distasteful 

 flavor of other medicinal preparations. Most of the United States 

 licorice imports are used as flavoring in tobacco and candy 

 manufacture, and in the manufacture of shoe polishes. Numerous 

 other industrial uses are being devised for licorice and its 

 by-products. 



