A SYNOPSIS l)F THE PLANT KINGDOM 



Pliuus usoil for mcxiicino: Acncin Soitfinl (kuiii mch- 

 cial; A. Calrchu (oatirhu), astringent, tonic; Sirartzid 

 tonientosa, siuiorific; Copniba Laitgdorfii (lialsani of 

 Copaiba\ of Brazil, for catarrh; Ctissia sps., Orient, 

 Inuia, etc., leaves piirgalive; TnmnriiHliis itidica 

 (tiunarinil), pulpy pods uscil; ^opluiro lomenlosn, 

 India, seeils arrest choleric vomiting; Toluijcni Hnlm- 

 mum (balsiun of Tolu), Sotith America, bronchial; 

 Andira si>s., tropical America, emetic, l>iuge, narcotic, 

 vermifuge; Ptcrocarpus Draco (dragon's blood), West 

 Indies, !\stringent; P. Marsuintiiii l,guni kino); liiited 

 froiidosa (eastern kino), Asia; Mkciuki itniririis (cow- 

 itch or cowage), India, stinging hairs on pod, anthel- 

 mintic; Astragalus giimniiftr (gum tragacanlli), of the 

 t)rient; Colutca arborescens (bladder senna), purgative, 

 emetic; Glycyrrhiza glabra, (licorice), Europe, emol- 

 lient; Genista tinrtjria, purgative; Cylisiis scoparius, 

 diuretic; Trigonelta Fa-num-grncuDi (fenugreek), Old 

 World, food, condiment, horse-remedy, and so on; 

 Aiiagijris fwtida (stinking wood), purgative and poi- 

 .■onous; Physnstignia vcnosum (calabar bean), sedative, 

 contracts the pupil, poisonous; Astragalus sps., and 

 Crotalaria sps. are loco-weeds, and poisonous to cattle; 

 arrow-poisons are furnished by Erythrophla>um, 

 Afzelia, and Pithecolobiiun. Fifteen genera furnish 

 fish-poison. 



Dyc-stufis: Csesalj/inia echinata yields braziline; 

 Suphora japonicn yields yellow dye; Indigofcra linc- 

 loria yields indigo; Genista tinctorin, yields a dye; 

 Hsmatoxylon campeckiantim yields logwood and ha;ma- 

 toxylin. Pterocarpus santalinum yields red sandal- 

 wood, a brown dye. 



(Jther purposes: Copal varnish from Hymenaea sps., 

 Trachylobium sps., and Copaiba sps. Many species are 

 valuable timber trees. A snufT-perfume is obtained 

 from seeds of Coumarouna (tonka bean). Rosewood 

 is from Dalbergia nigra, and other species. African 

 rosewood is from Pterocarpus erinaceus. Red seeds of 

 Abrus precalorius (jequirity) are used for necklaces, as 

 are also those of Adenanthera Pavonina (Circassian 

 seeds). Branches of Cytisus scoparius (broom) are used 

 for ba.sket-work. Vlex europaus (furze) is used as fire- 

 wood in France. Many species furnish fibers for spin- 

 ning. Oil is obtained from seeds of peanut and others. 

 Many are ornamental. 



About Io(J genera are cultivated in America, or are 

 important to American agriculture. Many of the spe- 

 cies are among our most valuable ornamental and 

 food-plants. Some of the.sc genera are: Abrus (Crab's- 

 eye Vine, Weather Plant); Acacia (Wattle, Kangaroo 

 Thorn, Weeping Myall, Australian Blackwood, Mulga, 

 Popinac, Opopanax, Cassie, Huisache, Espino, Cavan, 

 Gum Arabic Tree); Adenanthera (Red Sandalwood); 

 Albizzia; Alhagi (Camel's Thorn); Amphicarpa;a (Hog 

 Peanut); Amorjjha (Lead Plant, Bastard Indigo); An- 

 thyllis (Kidney Vetch, Sand Clover, Woundwort, Jupi- 

 ter's Beard); Apios (CJroundnut, Wild Bean); Arachis 

 (Peanut, Goober); Astragalus (Jvlilk Vetch); Baptisia 

 (Wild Indigo); Bauhinia (Mountain Ebony); Ca'sal- 

 pinia (Brasilleto, Barbadoes Pride, Barbadoes Flower- 

 fence, Dwarf Poinciana); Canavalia (Jack Bean, 

 Chicka.saw Lima); Caragana (Pea Tree); Cassia (Wild 

 Senna, Partridge Pea, Pudding Pipe Tree) ; Centrosema 

 (Butterfly Pea); Cercis (Judas Tree, Red Bud); Chori- 

 z«ma; Cicer (Chick Pea); Cladrastis (Yellow-wood); 

 Clianthus (Glory Pea, Glory Vine, Parrot's Bill); Cli- 

 toria (Butterfly Pea) ; Cfjlutea (Bladder Senna) ; Coro- 

 nilla (Crown Vetch, Scorpion Senna); Crotalaria (Rat- 

 tle-Box); Cytisus (Broom, GenLsta); De.smodium (Tick 

 Trefoil, Telegraph Plant); Dolichos (Hyacinth Bean, 

 Taukok, Black Bean), the .species still much con- 

 fined; Erythrina (Coral Tree); Galega (Goat's Rue); 

 Genista (Dyer's Greenwood); Gleditsia (Honey Lo- 

 cust, Sweet Ixjcust, Three-thomed Acacia); Glycine 

 (Soy Bean): Glycyrrhiza (Licorice); Gymnocladus 

 (Kentucky Coffee Tree); Ilalimodendron (Salt Tree); 



Hedysarum (French Honeysuckle); Hosackia; Indigo- 

 fcra (Indigo); Kciuicdya; Laburnum (Golileii Chain, 

 Bean Tree, Scotch Laburnum); Lathyrus (Sweet Pea, 

 Tangier Scarlet P., Pride of California, Everlasting P., 

 Two-flowered P., Flat P., Perennial P., Lord Anson's 

 P., Marsh P., Sea P., Beach P., Prairie Vetchling, Black 

 P., Black Bitter Vetch, Spring Bitter Vetch); Lens 

 (Lentil); Lespcdeza (Bush Clovei, Japan Clover, Hoop- 

 koop); Leuca'ua (White Popina(0; Lotus (Bird's-foot 

 Trefoil, Babies' Slippers, Winged Pea) ; Lupinius (Lu- 

 pine, Simdial, Deer Cabbage); Millettia (Ironwood); 

 Medicago (Alfalfa, Lucerne, Black or Hop Medick, 

 Nonesuch, Snails, Tree Alfalfa, Moon Trefoil); Meli- 

 lotus (Sweet Clover); Mimosa (Sensitive Plant, Hum- 

 ble Plant); Mucuna (Cowitch, Cowage, Velvet Bean, 

 Banana Bean); Onobrychis (Sainfoin, Holy Clover); 

 Ononis (Rest-Harrow, Goat Root); Parkinsonia (Jeru- 

 salem Thorn); Parochetus (Shamrock Pea, Blue Oxa- 

 lis); Petalostemon (Prairie Clover); Phaseolus (Bean, 

 Caracol, Snail-flower, Corkscrew Flower, Scarlet-run- 

 ner, Dutch (^aseknife B., Metcalfe B., Moth B., Gram, 

 Silva B., Civet B., Lima B., Kidney B., Bush B.); Pis- 

 cidia (Fish-poison Tree, Jamaica Dogwood); Pisum 

 (Garden Pea, Field P.); Pithecolobium ; Prosopis (Mes- 

 quite, Screw Bean, Tornillo) ; Poinciana (Royal Poin- 

 ciana, Peacock Flower, Flomboyant); Psoralea (Scurfy 

 Pea, Pomme Blanche); Pueraria (Kudzu Vine); Robi- 

 nia( Locust, False Acacia, Black Locust, Rose Acacia, 

 Clammy Locust); Schrankia (Sensitive Brier); Sophora 

 (Japan Pagoda Tree); Spartium (Spanish Broom); 

 Sutherlandia (Bladder Senna); Swainsona (Winter 

 Sweet Pea); Tamarindus (Tamarind); Templetonia 

 (Coral Bush); Tephrosia (Goat's Rue, Catgut^ Wild 

 Sweet Pea, Hoary P.); Thermopsis; Trifolium (CJlover, 

 Alsike, (jowgrass); Trigonella (Fenugreek); Ulex 

 (Gorse, Whin, Furze) ; Vicia (Vetch, Tare, Broad Bean, 

 Windsor B., English Dwarf B.); Vigna (Cowpea, Black 

 Pea, China Bean); Wistaria (Chinese Wistaria, Kid- 

 ney-bean Tree). 



Order 38. Geraniales 



104. Geraniaceae (from the genus Geranium, Crane's- 

 bill, from gcranos, a crane, in allusion to the cranelike 

 beak of the fruit). Geranium Family. Fig. 29. Herbs 

 and shrubs, sometimes fleshy: leaves opposite or alter- 

 nate, very diverse: flowers bisexual, regular or shghtly 

 irregular; sepals 5, imbricated, persistent; petals .5, 

 rarely fewer, imbricated or convolute; stamens usually 

 10, rarely more, hypogynous or pc^rigynous, the outer 

 set opposite the petals, some fre(|uently antherless, 

 somewhat monadelphous below, often glandular at the 

 base; carpels 5; ovary 5-celled, rarely 2-3-celled, 5- 

 lobed, ijrolonged into a beak tcrminatd by the 5 styles; 

 ovules 1 to many in each cell: fruit rarely a capsule, 

 more commonly splitting into 5 beaked sections; seeds 

 with endosperm, straight or curved. 



The family has 10 genera and 360 species, widely 

 distributed over the whole globe. The largest genera are 

 Pelargonium (South Africa) with 171} species, and Ge- 

 ranium with 160 species. Some fossil fruits of Gerani- 

 acea? are known. The Geraniacea; are related to the 

 Oxalidaceie, Tropa;olacea; and Balsaminacea;; also to the 

 Linaceaj and Rutaceic. The 5 sepals and petals, the 

 10 stamens, the 5 carpels, and the more or less beaked 

 or lobed fruit with its peculiar dehiscence, are together 

 distinctive. 



The flower of Pelargonium is slightly irregular, with 

 a dorsal reccptacular spur at the base of the calyx. The 

 fruits of all but 40 Geraniace;e dehisce elastically, 

 throwing the seeds to a distance. The 5 carpels 

 split away at base, coil up violently, and remain 

 attached to the summit of a column which projects 

 from the receptacle. This method of dehiscence, when 

 present, is characteristic of the Geraniacea;. 



The Geraniacea; are astringent; several contain 

 resin, and others contain free acids. Several species of 



