286 ERYNGO. 



Description. — The root is perennial, long, creeping, cylin- 

 drical, whitish internally, and covered with a brown epidermis. 

 The stem is cylindrical, thick, striated, branched, leafy, smooth, 

 glaucous, and attains the height of twelve inches or more. The 

 radical leaves are roundish-cordate, stalked, plaited ; the upper 

 ones are sessile, lobed, palmated, amplexicaul ; the whole 

 smooth, glaucous, ribbed, veiny, and toothed with sharp spines. 

 The flowers are disposed in dense terminal, roundish heads 

 (resembling at first sight a syngenesious plant). The involucre 

 consists of five to seven rigid leaves, longer than the heads. A 

 single bractea or scale, which is three-cleft, spinous, and rather 

 longer than the calyx, accompanies each floret. The calyx has 

 a rough, scaly tube, and a leafy, five-lobed limb. The corollas 

 are of a light purplish-blue colour, and composed of five erect, 

 oblong petals, inflexed at the points. The five stamens are 

 furnished with capillary filaments tipped with roundish, oblong 

 anthers. The germen is inferior, oblong, clothed with erect 

 bristles, and terminated by two filiform, nearly erect styles, 

 with simple stigmas. The fruit is obovate, subterete, separable 

 into two carpels, which are covered with chaffy scales, and 

 destitute both of ridges and vittee ; each carpel containing an 

 oblong, nearly cylindrical seed. Plate 17, fig. 2, (a) floret 

 magnified, showing the three-cleft bractea, calyx, petals, and 

 stamens ; (b) a single petal ; (c) the styles. 



This plant is very frequent on sandy sea-shores throughout 

 Europe, flowering in July and August. 



The term Eryngium was given to this genus because it was 

 svipposed to include the spvyyiov * of Dioscorides and the 

 Erynge or Eryng'wn of Pliny ■\ ; and hence the English name. 

 This species has also been designated Sea Hulver, Sea Holm, 

 and Sea Holly, on account of its spiny leaves. 



There is one other British species, the Field Eryngo, {Eryn- 

 gium campestre,) distinguished by its pinnatifid leaves, and 

 the undivided scales or bracteae of the receptacle. It is far 

 less common than the Sea Eryngo, but its properties are 

 similar. 



Qualities and general Uses. — The root is candied and 



* From i^uyyau, to eructate. 

 t Hist. lib. xxii. c. 7, p. 569. 



