2;iS • lauiiaceyE. 



wgccIh in cultivated ficldH, with small, homely, mostly greenish flowei-H iu 

 close pniiiclod rat'cmcs. 



Rumex crisp us Ijiune. — Curled Dock, Yellow Dock. 



Descripliun. — Flowers iu >vhorls, crowded iu loug, waud-like, leafless 

 rncemes. luuer scjjhIs cordate, obscurely deuiiculale or entire, and coiu- 

 ■-louly bearing a grain-like tubercle on tlie liack. 



A smooth perennial, with a deej^, spindle-shaped, yellow root. St(!m 

 erect, 2 to 4 feet high, ^vith lew conunonly ei-ect branches. Leaves curled 

 and wavy on the margins, lanceolate, acute, the lower truncate or obs<!urely 

 cordate at the base, the upper smaller, narrower, and gradually passing into 

 ni(>re bracts. 



Hid Hat. — Naturalized from Europe ; conunon in cultivated and waste 

 grounds. 



Rumex orbiculatus Gray (//. nqinilicini Pursh?) — (Ircal Witlcr-Dork. 



Dci<rrii)li()i}. — Flowers in whorls crowded in upright, almost leafless ra- 

 cemes, wliicli an; ai ranged in a large, compound piaiicle ; pedicels cajiillary, 

 nodding, about twice tlie length of tlie fruiting calyx; inner sepals orbicu- 

 lar or round-ovate, obtuse, obscurely cordat(> at tlie base, inend)ranaceous, 

 tineh' reticulated, entire or repand-denticulate, each of them bearing a 

 grain-Vlke tubercle on the back. 



A smooth perennial, wilh a deep, yellow root. Stem stout, erect, 5 to 

 (I feet high. Leaves smootli, not wavy on lh(! margins, oblong-lanceolate, 

 rather acute at both ends, the lowest, including the ])etiole, 1 to 2 feet 

 long. 



JiahitaL — In wet places ; common, espec/ally northwai'd. 



J'art iW'l. — The root of runjex crispus and (v' other species of rumev 

 — I'liited S/alcK Plninndfn^ni'iiK Several odier sj:ecies may be employed, 

 but those above described sufliciontly represent the medicinal properties 

 of the genus. 



I'reparaliou!^. — Extractmn rumicis fluidum ; f^uid extract of rumex. — 

 Viulcd Skill's IViurmacopirid. It is also employed in the foriri of decoction 

 and syrup. 



(\)ii^fl(n('vff>. — Yellow dock closely resembles rhul)arb in chemijal ccm- 

 position, but is more astringent. 



Medical Propcrfici^ and f'sY'.s. — Yellow dock is tonic, astringent, and 



slightlv laxative, ^'"l.ese properties rend • it useful iu a variety of chronic 



alTections, such as scrofula, ob'.«ina'a cutaneous diseases, dys])e2)sia, syi)h- 



•llis, etc., in ^^hich an alterawive and depurative effect may be desired for a 



long time. 



LAl'TACE/E. 



Clinracter of the Ora'-r. — Trees o" shrub,? with simple, alte.nata, exstip- 

 ulate, ino'tly pellucid-dotted leaves Flowers often di(ecious. Calyx of 

 4 or G sepals in t>vo rows, htameua 8 to 12, ir. two or more rows, the 



