yESCULUS — IIOUSE-CIIESTNUT, BUCKEYE. 127 



the claw. Stamens shorter than the petals, declined. Capsule roundish, 

 prickly, 3-valved, 1- to 3-celledj coutaiuiuy 1 to 3 large, oblong, chestnut- 

 brown seeds. 



A medium-sized tree. Leaflets 7, obovate-lanceolate, acuminate, irreg- 

 ularly serrate. Flowers beautiful and showy, on jointed pedicels, appear- 

 ing in June. 



Habitat. — Introduced from the East and commonly cultivated for orna- 

 ment ; scarcely naturalized. 



/Esculus glabra Willdenow. — Ohio Buckeye. 



Description. — Corolla : petals l, unequal, spreading, with claAvs as long 

 as the calyx, pale yellow. Stsunens 7, curved, nuich longer than the jietals. 

 Fruit nearly 1 inch in diameter, prickly. 



A small, ill-scented tree. Leailets 5, oval or oblong, acuminate, serrate. 

 Flowers small, in loose thyrsoid panicles, appearing in May and June. 



Habitat. — River banks in Western Peimsylvania, Virginia, Ohio, and 

 Kentucky. 



/Esculus Pavia Lhnu'. — Red Jhui-ci/e. 



Description. — Calyx tuljular. Corolla : petals 4, very unequal, coimiveut, 

 red. Stamens G to 8, about as long as the petals. Fruit smooth. 



A shrub or small tree. Leaflets 5 to 7, oblong-lanceolate, cuneate at 

 the base, slightly acuminate. Flowers large, in loose thyr.soid racemes, 

 ai)poaring in April and May. 



Hiihitnt. — Mountains of Virginia to Georgia and westward. ^Nlost com- 

 monly' a shrub, 3 to 10 feet high, but near the mountains a small tree. 



I'a7'ts Used. — Tiie bark and the seeds — not official. 



Constituents. — The most important constituent thus far disoovei'ed in 

 any plant of tliis genus is a priiKtiple termed <i:\^culin, which was obtained 

 fronx the bark of the horso-chestnut. The rind of the seeds also contains 

 some ;i;sculin. The seeds of all the species abomid in starch, mixed, liow- 

 ever, with a Intter and acrid substance, which can only bo removed by long 

 washing. In the case of the red buckeye this has been shown to be a 

 glucoside, possessed of poisonous properties. 



Preparations. — None are official. The virtues of the liark are impart- 

 ed to both alcohol and water. A commercial article erroneously termed 

 (csculin is prepared liy precipitating the alcoholic tincture witli water. It 

 is said to be an efficient preparation. 



Medical Properties and Uses. — Horse-chestnut bark is tonic and astrin- 

 gent, and formerly had some reputation in Europe as an antiperiodic. It 

 has been used successfully in some cases of intcrmittents wliich had jire- 

 viousl}' resisted quinine, but in general it is far less efficacious than the 

 latter. It is probable that the bark of all species of the genus possesses 

 similar properties, difiering only in degree. The poisonous glucoside 

 found in the seeds of the red buckeye is also likely to be present in those 

 of other species. It is of a narcotic character and said to be about one- 



