UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 



BULLETIN No. 795 



Contribution from the Bureau of Chemistry 

 CARL L. ALSBERG. Chief 



jfCftf^1?-f(. 



Washington, D. C. 



PROFESSIONAL PAPER 



July 28, 1919 



THE ADULTERATION OF INSECT POWDER WITH 

 POWDERED DAISY FLOWERS (CHRYS- 

 ANTHEMUM LEUCANTHEMUM L.). 



By R. C. RoAEK, Assistant Chemist for the Insecticide and Fungicide Board, 

 Insecticide and Fungicide Laboratory, Miscellaneous Division, and G. L. 

 Keenan, Microanalyst for the Insecticide and Fungicide Board, Micro- 

 chemical Laboratory. 



CONTENTS. 



Adulteration of insect powder 1 



Uses for Chrysanthemum Leucantheviuin 2 

 Insecticidal action of Chrysanthemum. Lell~ 

 canthemum 3 



Page. 

 Chemistry of Chrysanthemum. Leucan- 



themuin 3 



Morphology of Chrysanthemum Leucan- 



themum 6 



Summary 8 



ADULTERATION OF INSECT POWDER. 



Almost from the time that it first appeared as an article of com- 

 merce, insect powder has been subjected to adulteration with a great 

 variety of substances. Flowers of other plants of the family Com- 

 positse naturally suggested themselves for this purpose, particularly 

 those of the genus Chrysanthemum, to which the three species of genu- 

 ine insect flowers^ belc-ng. Of all the species of Chrysanthemum, G. 

 Leucanthemum probably has been one of those most often utilized for 

 the sophistication of insect powder, a'nd in the course of the ex- 

 amination of commercial insect powders for the Insecticide and Fungi- 

 cide Board, its presence has been frequently detected. This plant, 

 popularly known as "ox-eye daisy," "field daisy," "white weed," and 



1 "Insect powder" consists of the powdered flower heads of any of the following species of 

 Chrysanthemum: (1) Chrysanthemuvi (Pyrethrum) cinerariwfolium (Trev.) Bocc. ; (2) Chrys- 

 anthemum (Pyrethrum) roseum Web and Mohr. ; (3) Chrysanthemum Marshallii Asohera 

 (synonym, Pyrethrum carneum M. B.) (Insecticide Decision 1, Insecticide and Fungicide Board, 

 U. S. Department of Agriculture, AugTist 26, 1911). At the present time all of the insect 

 powder obtained in the United States is of the first named species. 



