638 



BOTANY 



PART II 



Delphinium, and Paeonia are favourite ornamental plants with showy flowers. 

 In Actaea and Hydrastis the fruit is a berry. 



OFFICIAL. ACONITI RADIX is obtained from Aconitum napellus. STAPHIS- 

 AGRIAE HEM INA from Delphinium staphisagria. HYD RASTIS RHIZOM A from the North 



American Hydrastis Canaden- 

 sis (Fig. 645), a perennial herb 

 which sends its subaerial 

 shoots up from the subter- 

 ranean rhizome ; the base of 

 the shoot has keeled scale- 

 leaves in two ranks. The 

 flowers are solitary and ter- 

 minate the shoots, each of 

 which bears two foliage leaves. 

 The simple white perianth 

 falls when the flower opens. 

 The androecium and the apo- 

 carpous gynaeceum consist of 

 numerous members. The fruit 

 consists of numerous, small 

 berries, each of which in- 

 cludes 1-2 seeds. The alka- 

 loid HYDKASTINE is obtained 

 from the rhizome. 



The further families of the 

 Polycarpicae show a limita- 

 tion to three in the whorls of 

 the simple, or more usually 

 double, perianth and of the 

 stamens. 



Family 7. Berberidaceae 

 has only one carpel, while there 

 are three carpels in Family 8, 

 Menispermaceae. In Berberis 

 vulgaris the leaves on the 

 shoots of unlimited growth 

 are transformed into spines. 



OFFICIAL. TODOPHYLLI 

 RHIZOMA obtained from the 

 N. American Berberidaceous 

 plant, Podophyllum pelta- 

 tum (Fig. 646), P. emodi, 

 Berberis Aristata, CALUMBAE 

 RADIX from the twining 

 Menispermaceous plant Jateorhiza columba. 



Family 9. Lauraceae. Flower also composed of trimerous whorls ; perianth 

 3 + 3; stamens 3 + 3. The three stigmas of the single, one-seeded pistil indicate 

 its origin from three coherent carpels. Fruit, a berry or drupe. Anthers valvate. 

 Aromatic trees or shrubs with entire leathery leaves, which usually persist for 

 several seasons. Only Sassafras (Fig. 647), which has three-lobed leaves as well 

 as simple ones, sheds its foliage annually. Laurus nobilis, the Laurel, is a 



FIG. 045. Hydraslis canadensis (^ nat. size). The apocarpous 

 fruit to the left. OFFICIAL. 



