sturtevant's notes on edible plants 361 



ward, and occasionally cultivated in gardens for the leaves, which are used in flavoring. 

 The Indians of Maine eat mint roasted before the fire and salted and think it nourishing. 



M. piperita Linn, peppermint. 



Europe, Asia and northern Africa. Peppermint is grown on a large scale for the sake 

 of its oil, which is obtained by distillation, and which finds extensive use for flavoring 

 candies and cordials and in medicine. There are large centers of its culture in the United 

 States, Europe and Asia. It is grown to a limited extent for the leaves which are used for 

 seasoning. Mint is spoken of as if not a garden plant by Ray,' 1724, who describes two 

 varieties, the broad and the narrow leaved. In 1778, it is included by Mawe,^ among 

 garden herbs; in 1806, it is noticed among American garden plants' and is now. an escape 

 from cultivation. There is no notice of peppermint preceding 1700, when it is mentioned 

 by Plukenet * and Toumefort ' as a wild plant only. 



M. pulegium Linn, pennyroyal. 



Exirope and neighboring Asia. The leaves of pennyroyal are sometimes used as 

 a condiment. Mawe,' in England, in 1778, calls it a fine aromatic; it was among 

 American potherbs in 1806.' It was in high repute among the ancients and had numerous 

 virtues ascribed to it by both Dioscorides and Pliny. From the frequent references to 

 it in Anglo-Saxon and Welsh works on medicine, we may infer that it was much esteemed 

 in northern Europe.' It has now fallen into disuse. 



M. viridis Linn, spearmint. 



Europe, Asia and north Africa; naturalized in America. This garden herb was well 

 known to the ancients and is mentioned in aU early mediaeval lists of plants. Amatus 

 Lusitanus,' 1554, says it is always in gardens and later botanists confirm this statement 

 for Europe. It was in American gardens in 1806 '" and probably far earlier, for it was 

 collected by Clayton in Virginia about 1 739 ". as a naturalized plant. 



Mentzelia albicaulis Dougl. Loaseae. prairie lily. 



Western North America. The oily seeds are pounded and used by the Indians in 

 California as an ingredient of their pinole mantica, a kind of cake.'^ 



Menyanthes trifoliata Linn. Gentianeae. buckbean. marsh trefoil. 



Northern Europe, Asia and America. The intense bitter of the leaves of the buck- 



' Ray, J. Synop. Method. 234. 1724. 



' Ma we and Abercrombie Univ. Card. Bot. 1778. 



* McMahon Amer. Card. Col. 583. 1806 



* Pluc'netius Almag. Bot. 129. 1700 

 ' Toumefort Inst. 1719. 



Mawe and Abercrombie Univ. Card. Bot. 1778. 

 ' McMahon, B. Amer. Card. Cat. 583. 1806. 



' Fluckiger and Hanbury Pharm. 486. 1879. 



Dioscorides Amatus Lusitanus Ed. 319. 1554. 

 "> McMahon Amer. Card. Cat. 583. 1806. 



" Gronovius Fl. Virg. 89. 1762. 



"Torrey, J. Bot. U. S. Mex. Bound. Surv. 2:67. 1859. 



