LYCOPODIUM 



EQUISETACE^;. Horsetail Family 



17. EQUISETUM. SCOURING RUSH. 



Habitat: Northern United States. 

 15 to 60 njf (i to 4 mils). 



The herb of Equise'tum hyema'le Linnet 

 Diuretic and astringent. Dose of fl'ext. : 



LYCOPODIACEJE. Club-moss Family 



Low plants looking like very large mosses, more or less branching, and with 

 the I- to 3-celled sporangia (spore-cases) in the axils of the lanceolate, subulate, 

 or rounded, persistent leaves. Spores homogeneous. 



18. LYCOPODIUM. LYCOPODIUM 



VEGETABLE SULPHUR 



The spores of Lycopo'dium clava'tum Linne, and of other species of Lycopodium. 

 BOTANICAL CHARACTERISTICS. Stem creeping extensively, with ascending very 



leafy branches. Leaves linear-awl-shaped, aristate. Spikes i to 4 on a 



slender peduncle 4 to 6 inches long. 

 SOURCE AND COLLECTION. Europe, Asia, and North America; collected 



mostly in Russia, Germany, and Switzerland, in July and August, by 



cutting off tops of the moss, shaking out spores, and sifting. 

 DESCRIPTION OF DRUG. A fine, pale-yellowish powder, very mobile, 

 free from odor and taste. It floats in water without being wet by it 



FIG. ii. Spores of Lyco- 

 podium, as seen from the 

 top and from bottom of 

 the spore. 



FIG. 12. Lupulin; a gland 

 viewed in profile and 

 viewed obliquely. See 

 Lupulinum, in, p. 148. 



FIG. 13. Pollen of Pine: a 

 grain seen in profile; 

 another seen from the 

 front side. 



(due to the fixed oil), but sinks on being boiled. When slowly heated 

 it burns quietly and should not leave more than 5 per cent, of ash, 

 but when thrown into a flame it flashes up. Under the microscope 

 the granules are seen to be tetrahedral, the basal side convex and 

 the other three coming together to form a triangular pyramid. The 

 surfaces are traversed in all directions by ridges which form' regular, 

 five- or six-sided meshes; at the points of intersection are small ele- 

 vations, and along the edges short projections. Like lupulin, lyco- 

 podium is one of the interesting objects for microscopic study. Pollen 

 of pine, an illustration of which is shown above, is sometimes used 

 as an adulterant. 



ADULTERANTS. These may be easily detected by the microscope or simple 

 tests. Pine pollen consists of an elliptical cell with a globular cell 

 attached to each end. Starch is detected with iodine; turmeric, by 



