GRASS FAMILY. 91 



GRASS FAMILY Gramineae. 

 DARNEL Lolium temulentum L. 



Other Common Names : Poison, White or Bearded 

 Darnel, Tares. 



The history of Darnel is interesting. The plant has 

 been known and its ill effects noticed for hundreds of 

 years. It is believed to be identical with the tares of 

 Scripture. The seed, being of approximately the same size 

 as the grain, had to be separated by hand, the women 

 performing this tedious task on the flat housetops. 



There are many cases where people have been badly 

 poisoned by eating Darnel in bread or meal, but few if 



. any deaths are recorded. This is not true 

 Conditions of 



Poisoning * the lower animals, many of which have 

 been killed by eating it in ground feeds. 

 Pigs, horses and sheep have suffered most. At the Lyons 

 Veterinary School a horse was fed 4.4 Ibs. of the seed 

 and died as a result Cornevin states that Darnel in the 

 proportion of 0.7% of the weight of a horse will pro- 

 duce death, while 1.5 to 1.8% is required to produce the 

 same result in ruminants and poultry. 



The seeds only are poisonous, their effect being due to 

 the presence of the alkaloid temulin, of which they con- 

 tain, according to reputable analysts, 0.6% 



The Poison fo we i g ht. In the fruits of some 70% to 80% 

 Substance * , ' 



of the plants is a fungus which lives sym- 



biotically with the plant, and is supposed by many to 

 cause the trouble- This fungus forms a layer of hyphae 

 just outside the aleurone layer of the grain. It has never 

 been observed to produce fruiting bodies or spores, and 



