70 



EANUNCULACE^. 



Actaea alba Bigelow. — White Baneherry. 



Description. — Calyx : sepals 4, oblong, white. Corolla : petals 4 to 8, as 

 long as the stamens, slender, mostly truncate at the ends, stamen-like, 

 ■white ; filaments shorter than in the preceding species. Ovary and stigma 

 like those of the preceding. Berries white, tipped with red, about 8-seed- 

 ed, on thickened, red pedicels the size of the common peduncle. Stem and 

 leaves larger and rather smoother than the preceding. Khizome similar. 



Fig. 99.— Actfea alba. 



Kacemes oblong, the flowers appearing a week or two later than those of 

 the other species. 



Habitat. — Eich woods from Canada to Georgia and westward to the 

 Mississippi. 



Parts Used. — The rhizome and roots — not official. 



Constituents. — Nothing definite is known as to the composition of these 

 plants, though they are supposed to possess properties similar to those of 

 cimicifuga. 



Preparations. — There are no commercial preparations of the American 



