ClASS VIII. ORDER III.] PARIS. 579 



scaly stipules, heart-shaped, with an acuminated point, the lobes at 

 the base being rounded, the upper ones arrow-shaped, (the lobes being 

 pointed). Inflorescence in axillary racemes of numerous flowers, and 

 the stem terminated with the racemes, disposed in a somewhat corym- 

 bose manner, the perianth half-cleft into five oblong acute segments, 

 greenish white, tipped with pink. Stamens eight, five, on awl-shaped 

 filaments, nearly as long as the perianth, and three with very short 

 filaments, having round yellow fleshy glands between them at the base. 

 Anthers of two roundish separate lobes. Styles three, spreading, the 

 stigmas thickened into a capitate or club-shaped form. Fruit a rather 

 large triangular brown nut, with even angles. 



Habitat. Plantations, dunghills, waste and other places, introduced 

 by cultivation. 



Annual; flowering from July to August. 



The Buck-wheat perhaps ought not to be introduced into our Flora; 

 but as by cultivation it has become naturalized, and is commonly 

 enough found as a wild plant, we have given it a place. 



Buck-wheat, for the purposes of cultivation, is valuable with us only 

 as a plant that will grow in the poorest soil, and which on coming to 

 perfection produces an abundance of seeds ; but they do not contain 

 so great a quantity of nutritive matter as to be worth cultivating as a 

 bread corn. It is, however, excellent food for game and poultry, and 

 for this purpose it is sown in game preserves, waste places, plantations, 

 &c. ; but in China and various countries of the East, it is cultivated as 

 a bread corn, and is used in France, Germany, and Poland, for various 

 domestic purposes ; but in England it is now scarcely ever used. The 

 green plant is a good food for sheep and cattle, and the flowers a 

 favourite resort of bees. Besides this, many other allied species are 

 used as food in various parts of the Eastern countries, such as P. 

 Tartaricum, P. marginatum, &c. 



ORDER III. 



TETRAGYN'IA. 4 PISTILS. 



GENUS XI. PA'RIS. LINN. Herb Paris. 

 Nat. Ord. SMILA'CEJE. BROWN. 



GEN. CHAR. Calyx of four pieces. Petals four. Stamens with the 

 anthers of two cells, one on each side of the filament. Styles 

 four, with simple stigmas. Fruit a berry, of four cells, each cell 

 from four to eight seeded. Name thought to be derived from 

 par, paris, equal ; in allusion to the regularity in the divisions of 

 the various parts of the plant. 



