396 



MANUAL OF POISONOUS PLANTS 



d 



Fig. 177. Black Pepper Plant (Piper-nigrum). 

 fruit. 2. Tip of fruit spike. (After Wossidlo.) 



Part of shoot with young 



PIPERALES 



Herbs with exogenous stem, with neither petals nor sepals; flowers in 

 spikes, bracteolate. Largely tropical and includes the family Saururaceae or 

 Lizard's tail; the peppers, Piperaceae, including black pepper (Piper nigntm) 

 a well known condiment of the tropics containing the alkaloid piperin C 17 H 10 NO 3 

 and a volatile oil C 1() H 16 , cubebs (P. Cubeba} containing cubebin C 10 H 10 O 3 

 and the oil of cubebs, kava-kava (P. meihysticum') native to the Pacific Islands, 

 containing methysticin C 15 H 14 O 5 , which is used to make stimulating drinks, 

 P. longum of India, P. chaba of India and the Philippines, the Betel Pep- 

 per (P. Betle) of the Malay Islands, the berries of which are chewed with the 

 Betel Nut; and the Matico, or the Soldier's Herb (P. angiistifoliujn} of South 

 America, the hairy leaves of which are used as a styptic. The South American 

 Peperoniias are well known greenhouse plants. Other species of peppers are 

 used in medicine. The so-called "caisimon" (P. peltutum}, according to Mr. 

 Combs, is a powerful diuretic. "Matico de Peru" (P. angustifolium) is an acrid, 

 bitter plant containing a green volatile oil. 



SALICALES 



Trees or shrubs with simple flowers, imperfect catkins; perianth wanting; 

 fruit a many-seeded capsule ; seeds with a tuft of hair at one end. This series 

 contains only one family the Salicaceae. 



Salicaceae. Willow Family 



Dioecious trees or shrubs, alternate stipulate leaves, the stipules often 

 minute and soon falling; staminate and pistillate flowers borne in catkins, one 

 to each bract, without calyx or corolla; staminate flowers with 1 -numerous 



