182 



DE CANDOLLES SYSTEM. 



base. Perianth inferior, in 6 pieces, or tubular. Stamens 

 6 ; anthers opening outwards. Ovary 3-celled, many-seeded ; 

 style trifid or 3-parted. Capsule divisible into 3 pieces. Al- 

 bumen dense, fleshy. 



USES. Poisonous plants. Meadow Saffron (Colchicum au- 

 tumnale) is an acrid narcotic and cathartic. White Helle- 

 bore the root of Veratrum album, Cebadilla produced by 

 Asagrsea officinalis, and the roots of various kinds of Trillium 

 and Helonias, possess similar properties. 



TYPICAL GENERA. Veratrum, Colchicum. 



coa^s tZr ,T ' L V^ in flower ' 2 " The "" stri PPd of its outer 

 ctfon of t r mg t . heova x nes v a ft er the floral envelopes are cut away 3. A transverse 



SonenLl T 6S ; ' A "F *****. 5. A section of a seed. 6. The flower 

 t open to show the stamens and the 3-parted style. 



l ? l '~ uncacea; ' Herbaceous plants, with fascicled or fibrous 



Mowers generally brown or green, hermaphrodite 



r unisexual. Calyx and corolla more or less glumaceous. 



