BOOK XXV. Lix. 107-LXIV. III 



this plant has been soaked the entertainment be- 

 comes merrier. As a remedy for snake bites it is 

 crushed in wine. 



LX. There is a plant Hke verbascum which is Biatiana. 

 often taken for it in error, but the leaves are less pale, 

 the stems are more numerous, and the blossom is 

 vellow. When thrown away it attracts moths to itself, 

 and for this reason at Rome it is called blattaria, or 

 moth verbascum. 



LXI. Molemonium exudes a milky juice which Moiemon- 

 thickens hke gum. It grows in moist locaHties, the 

 dose being one denarius given in wine. 



LXII. Cinquefoil is known to everyone, being cinquejoU. 

 popular for its actually producing strawberries. The 

 Greeks call it pentapetes, pentaphyllon, or chamaeze- 

 lon. When it is dug up it has a red root, which as it , 



dries becomes black and angular. The name is 

 derived from the number of the leaves. The plant 

 itself buds and sheds its leaves with the vine. It is 

 also used in purifying houses. 



LXIII. For snake bite is also given in white wine spargamon. 

 the root of the plant that is called sparganion." 



LXIV. Four kinds of daucus ^ were distinguished Dauais: four 

 by Petronius Diodotus. There is no point in giving 

 the details of these, as there are but two species. The 

 most highly valued grows in Crete, the next in | 



Achaia and everywhere in dry districts ; it resembles 

 fennel, but has paler, smaller and hairy leaves, a 

 straight stem a foot high, and a root with a very 

 pleasant taste and smelL This kind grows on 

 rocky soils that face the south. The other kinds 

 grow everywhere on earthy hills and cross-paths, but 



* See Index oj Plants. 



217 



