VEGETABLE KINGDOM. 171 



F. 



FAGOPYRUM ESCULENTUM.— ^ ^(Ch'iao-mai), 87. 

 Other names are '^ ^ (Cli'iao-mai), ,|^ ^ (VVu-mai), and :j^ ^ 

 (Hua-ch'iao). It is sometimes called vulgarly ^^ ^ (T'ien- 

 ch'iao), "sweet buckwheat," to distinguish it from ^ ^ (K'u- 

 ch'iao), "bitter buckwheat," spoken of in the next article. 

 Buckivheat is an important crop in the central provinces of 

 China, being much depended upon as food. It is therefore 

 classed by the Chinese among the cereals, although it is a 

 polygonaceous plant.- The small, triangular, uut-like fruits of 

 this plant are very sweet and oily. When ground they make 

 a very nourishing and digestible food. Pastry made from the 

 dark colored dough of this flour is commonly sold in the streets. 

 The crop must be cut before the frost, as the plant is very 

 susceptible to cold. The use of buckv/heat as food is considered 

 to be highly beneficial to all of the viscera, giving spirit and 

 strength to the body. It is recommended as a diet in colic, 

 choleraic diarrhoea, fluxes of all kinds, and abdominal obstruc- 

 tions. Gravel, gonorrhoea, and eruptions in children are also 

 thought to be benefited by its use. It is supposed to affect the 

 growth of the hair, and a poultice of the meal is very effica- 

 cious as an application to abscesses, carbuncles, and the like. 

 The leaves and the stalks are also used in medicine ; the former 

 being considered to be carminative, but, if taken in excess, to 

 produce an eruption. The ashes of the latter are used in combi- 

 nation with lime as an application to virulent sores, unhealthy 

 granulations, and to the relief of centipede bites. 



FAGOPYRUM TARTARICUM.— ^ ^ ^ (K'u-ch'iao- 

 mai). This "bitter buckwheat" is similar to Fagopyrian escu- 

 leniujUy but is considered by the Chinese to be slightly poisonous, 

 injuring the stomach and producing jaundice, if taken in 

 excess. Its only use is found in the scraped bark being taken 

 in combination with beau hulls, the seeds of Cassia tora^ and 

 orange peel for making a pillow. This pillow, being habit- 

 ually used on the bed, is considered to have a beneficial action 

 on the eyes. 



