STURTEV ant's NOTES ON EDIBLE PLANTS 265 



E. lathsrris Linn, caper spurge. 



Southern Europe. The seeds are used as a substitute for capers 1 but, says Johnson,^ 

 they are extremely acrid and require long steeping in salt and water and afterwards in 

 vinegar. 



Euphoria informis Poir. Sapindaceae. 



Cochin China. Its fruit is eaten in China.' 



Euiyale ferox Salisb. Nymphaeceae. gorgon. prickly water-lily. 



East India and China. This aquatic plant is frequently cultivated in India and 

 China for its floury seeds. In China, it is said to have been in cultivation for upwards 

 of 3000 years.^ The fruit is round, soft, pulpy and the size of a small orange; it contains 

 from 8 to 15 round, black seeds as large as peas, which are eaten roasted. The pulp is 

 also eaten. Smith * says, in China, it is much cultivated for the stems, rhizomes and 

 seeds, all of which contain much starch and are eaten. 



Euterpe edulis Mart. Palmae. assai palm. 



Tropical America. The long, terminal bud of this Brazilian palm is pronounced by 

 Gardner * equal to asparagus in flavor when cooked. 



E. montana R. Grab. 



Islands of New Spain. The terminal leaf-bud is used as a cabbage.^ 



E. oleracea Mart, assai palm. 



Brazil. Bates ' says the fruit forms a universal article of diet in all parts of Brazil. 

 It is the size of a cherry, round and contains but a small portion of pulp, which is made, 

 with the addition of water, into a thick, violet-colored beverage. Mrs. Agassiz ^ pro- 

 noimces this diet drink as very good, eaten with sugar and farina of the mandioc. The 

 terminal leaf-bud is used as a cabbage.^" 



Eutrema wasabi Maxim. Cruciferae. Japanese horseradish. 



Japan. This is Japanese horseradish, which grows wild on the coast and is culti- 

 vated in small quantities, rasped and eaten with fish. The best roots are cultivated only 

 in clear spring water running down the moimtain valleys. 



Evemia prunastri Linn. Lichenes. ach. 



Northern Europe, America and Asia. This lichen was observed by Sibthorp and 



Loudon, J. C. Hort.eSg. i860. 



2 Johnson, C. P. Useful Ph. Ct. Brit. 226. 1862. 



' Don, G. Hist. Dichl. Pis. 1 :6yo. 1831. {Nephelium informe) 



< Hooker, J. D. Himal. Journ. 2:25s. 1854. 



'Smith, P.P. Contrib. Mat. Med. China 75. 1871. 



Gardner, G. Trav. Braz. 396. 1846. 



'Seemann, B. Pop. Hist. Palms 206. 1856. 



Bates, H. W. Nat. Amaz. 647. Humboldt Z,t6r. Set. 1879. 



' Agassiz Journ. Braz. 140. 1868. 



"Seemann, B. Pop. Hist. Palms 206. 1856. 



