2 BULLETITir 365^ U. S. DEPARTMEN'T OF AGEICULTTJEE. 



Pliny speaks of the use of the powdered seeds to destroy parasitic 

 insects on the head and other parts of the body, and this has been its 

 principal use up to the present time, although it has been recom- 

 mended as a remedy for various ills. As an insecticide the seeds of 

 Delphinium stafhysagria or " stavesacre " have been much used, but 

 other species have served the same purpose. The leaves, stems, and 

 roots have had little medicinal use, and very little has been published 

 in regard to their poisonous properties besides the investigations on 

 American species. Pliny states that the flowers when ground up 

 serve as a remedy for snake bite. Dioscorides says that the herb 

 paralyzes scorpions when put upon them. Watt, 1890, page 65, says 

 that the root is applied to kill maggots in the wounds of goats. 

 Froggatt, 1900, page 181, recommends larkspur as an insect barrier 

 in gardens. He says that locusts readily eat the leaves and flowers 

 and are killed by them. 



Outside of America very little has been published in regard to the 

 poisonous effect of larkspur on the higher animals. Delafond, 1843, 

 page 173, makes the statement that DelpMnium consolida L. is poi- 

 sonous to sheep. His evidence does not seem to be extensive, and 

 apparently is based upon the fact that he found sheep dead and, on 

 examination, discovered that they had been eating Delphiniwm- con<- 

 solidd. Gerlach, 1845, page 125, says that Delphirdumfh consolida has 

 been considered poisonous, but incorrectly^, and states that he has fed 

 sheep for several days with the plant and that they ate it readily 

 but received no harm. Dammann, 1886, page 840, quotes Delafond, 

 saying that sheep eat DelpMnium, coThsolida freely and that when 

 they eat much are poisoned, and states the results of Gerlach. He 

 also quotes Beier, 1845, who tells of horses poisoned by an extract 

 of seeds of Delphinium staphysagria in beer. Watt, 1890, page 64, 

 says that the dew from the leaves of Delphinium hrunonianum, E,oyl 

 falling on grass is said to poison cattle and horses. He also says, 

 1890, page 69, that the leaves of Delphiniujn vestitum are poisonous 

 to goats. Macgregor, 1908, page 502, gives details of the poisoning 

 of a horse by Delphinium. 



From this brief review of the subject it appears that there is little 

 definite evidence that domestic animals in Europe and Asia have 

 been poisoned by larkspurs. Most of the statements are of a general 

 character, no specific instances being given, and they are not based 

 upon personal experiences of the authors. Statements to the effect 

 that animals are poisoned by dew falling from the plants, as in the 

 case of Delphinium hrunonianum., must be dismissed as purely imagi- 

 native. It would seem, therefore, that in Europe and x^sia not only 

 is there no loss of domestic animals by larkspur, but also that there 

 are hardly any reliable records of individual cases of poisoning. 



