A S C 



OR, BOTANICAL DICTIONARY. 



A S C 



131 



Ascium ; a genus of the class Polyandria, order Monogy- 

 n ia. GENERIC CHARACTER. Calix: perianth five-leaved; 

 leaflets roundish, concave, coriaceous, coloured on the 

 margin. Corolla: petals five, ovate, acute, larger than the 

 calix, inserted into the receptacle. Stamina : filamenta very 

 many, short, three-sided, inserted into the receptacle ; an- 

 therae oblong. Pistil: gennen ovate; style very short; 

 stigma headed. Pericarp: berry? one-celled. Seeds: very 

 many. ESSENTIAL CHARACTER. Calix: five-leaved, cori- 

 aceous. Corolla: five-petalled. Berry ? one-celled, with 



very many seeds. Only one species is yet known. 



1. Ascium Norantea. This tree is a native of Guiana. 

 Asclepias ; a genus of the class Pentandria, order Digynia. 

 GENERIC CHARACTER. Calix: perianth five-cleft, sharp, 

 very small, permanent. Corolla : monopetalous, flat or 

 reflex, five-parted; divisions ovate, acuminate, slightly 

 bending with the sun ; nectaries five, growing to the tube of 

 the filamenta below the anthera, fleshy or cowled, a sharp 

 horn protruding from the bottom, bending inwards. Stamina : 

 filamenta five, collected into a tube, swelling at the base ; 

 antherae oblong, upright, two-celled, terminated by an inflex 

 membrane lying on the stigma, having a reversed wing on 

 each side, growing broader downwards, with its edge conti- 

 guous to the next. The pollen is collected into ten corpus- 

 cles, inversely lanceolate, flat, hanging down into the cells of 

 the anthera by short threads, frequently flexuose ; which are 

 annexed by pairs to five cartilaginous twin tubercles, each 

 placed on the tip of the wings of the anthera, adhering to the 

 angles of the stigma between them. Pistil : germina two, 

 oblong, acuminate; styles two, subulate ; stigma common to 

 ooth, large, thick, five-cornered, covered at the top by the 

 apices of the antherse, umbilicate in the middle. Pericarp . 

 follicles two, large, oblong, acuminate, swelling, one-celled, 

 one-valved. Seeds: numerous, imbricate, crowned with 

 down ; receptacle membranaceous, free. ESSENTIAL CHA- 

 RACTER. Contorted ; nectaries five, ovate, concave, putting 

 out a little horn. The North American and European species 

 of this genus are hardy enough to bear the open air ; and 

 therefore are proper for large borders in pleasure-grounds, 

 and to mix with shrubs. The other species require the pro- 

 tection of the green-house or stove ; all of them are tall 

 perennials, flowering from June to August or September, 

 mostly dying down to the root in autumn. They should 

 have little water, especially in winter, for as they abound 

 with a milky juice, much wet will rot them. They may 

 be propagated by seeds, where these can be obtained, or 

 by cuttings : the hardy sorts may be increased by parting 



the roots. The species are, 



* Leaves opposite, flat. 



1. Asclepias Undulata; Waved-leaved Swallowwort. Leaves 

 sessile, oblong, lanceolate, waved, smooth ; petals ciliate. 

 Native of the Cape ; and flowers here in July. 



2. Asclepias Crispa ; Curled-leaved Swallowwort. Leaves 

 cordate, lanceolate, waved, scabrous, opposite ; umbel ter- 

 minal. Native of the Cape of Good Hope. 



3. Asclepias Pubescens ; Pubescent Swallowwort, Leaves 

 ovate, veined, naked ; stem shrubby ; peduncles villose ; 

 flowers purple. Native of the Cape of Good Hope. 



4. Asclepias Volubilis ; Twining Swallowwort. Leaves 

 ovate, quite entire, acuminate ; stem arboreous, twining ; um- 

 bels erect ; flowers greenish. Native of Malabar and Ceylon. 



5. Asclepias Asthmatica ; Asthmatic Swallowwort. Leaves 

 petiolate, cordate-ovate, above smooth, quite entire ; stem 

 shrubby, twining, hirsute ; umbels few-flowered. Found 

 in Ceylon ; where the root is esteemed a good medicine in 

 asthmatic disorders. 



6. Asclepias Gigantea ; Curled -flowered Gigantic Swallow- 

 wort. Leaves obovate-oblong ; petioles very short ; seg- 

 ments of the corolla reflex, involute ; flowers white. Na- 

 tive of the East and West Indies. 



7. Asclepias Syriaca ; Syrian Swallowwort. Leaves oval, 

 tomentose underneath ; stem quite simple ; umbels nod- 

 ding, flowers of a dingy purple. It flowers in July, and is 

 a native of North America. 



8. Asclepias Amoena ; Oval-leaved Swallowwort. Leaves 

 ovate, rather hairy underneath ; stem simple ; umbels and 

 nectaries erect. The flowers, which appear in July, are of 

 a bright purple colour, but are not succeeded by pods in 

 England. It is a native of North America, 



9. Asclepias Purpurascens ; Purple Virginian Swallowwort. 

 Leaves ovate, villose underneath ; stems simple : umbels 

 erect ; nectaries resupinate. Native of North America. 



10. Asclepias Variegata ; Variegated Swallowwort, or 

 Wisank. Leaves ovate, wrinkled, naked ; stem simple ; 

 umbels subsessile ; pedicles tomentose. Flowers in July ;' 

 native of North America. 



11. Asclepias Curassavica ; Curassoa Swallowwort, Bastard 

 Ipecacuanha. Leaves lanceolate, smooth, shining; stem 

 simple ; umbels erect, solitary, lateral. Mr. Miller says, 

 that the roots of this plant have been sent to England for 

 ipecacuanha. The juice, made into syrup with sugar, has 

 been observed to kill and bring away worms wonderfully, 

 even when most other vermifuges have failed ; it is given to 

 children in the West Indies, from a tea-spoonful to a table- 

 spoonful. The juice and pounded plant are applied to stop 

 the blood in fresh wounds, and is said to be a powerful astrin- 



.gent in such cases. The root, dried and reduced to pow- 

 der, is frequently used by the negroes as a vomit ; and hence 

 its name of fVikt ui Dusiuni l/jwacuunhu. 



1<2. Asclepias Nivea ; White or Almond-leaved Swallowwort. 

 Leaves ovate-lanceolate, smoothish ; stem simple ; umbels 

 erect, lateral, solitary .-^-Native of North America. 



13. Asclepias Incarnata ; Flesh-coloured Swallowwort. 

 Leaves lanceolate ; stem divided at top ; umbels erect, 

 twin ; flowers purple. Native of North America. 



14. Asclepias Decumbens ; Decumbent Swallowwort. Leaves 

 villose ; stem decumbent. Native of North America. 



15. Asclepias Lactifera ; MiUcy Swallowwort. Leaves 

 ovate ; stem erect ; umbels proliferous, very short. Na- 

 tive of Ceylon. 



16. Asclepias Vincetoxicum ; Officinal Swallowwort, or 

 Tame-poison. Leaves ovate, bearded at the base ; stem erect ; 

 umbels proliferous ; corolla white. Native of most parts of 

 the continent of Europe. It was formerly imagined to be an 

 alexipharmic, and hence its name of Vincetoxicum, Tame- 

 poison, absurdly composed of a Latin and a Greek word. It 

 has been also recommended in dropsical cases, and disorders 

 peculiar to women, but is disused in the present practice, and 

 is too suspicious a plant to be internally taken, except with 

 great caution. The external application for foul ulcers, 

 abscesses of the breast, and scrofulous tumors, is more plau- 

 sible. The root is the part to be used ; an infusion of it, 

 fresh gathered, removes obstructions, increases the urinary 

 discharge, and is good in the jaundice ; dried, and given in 

 powder, it promotes perspiration, and is good against fe- 

 vers, the small-pox, measles, and other eruptive complaints. 

 No animal, except the goat, is said to eat it, though Linnreus 

 affirms that the horse will crop it after it is frost-bitten. 

 The down or cotton may be used for stuffing cushions, 

 pillows, &c. There are several varieties of this species. 



17. Asclepias Nigra; Black Swallotcwnrt. Leaves ovate, 

 bearded at the base ; stem twining a little at top ; flowers 



