GRASS FAMILY. 91 
GRASS FAMILY—Gramineae. 
DARNEL—Lolium temulentum L. 
Other Common Names: Poison, White or Bearded 
Darnel, Tares. 
The history of Darnel is interesting. The plant has 
been known and its ill effects noticed for hundreds of 
years. It is believed to be identical with the tares of 
Scripture. The seed, being of approximately the same size 
as the grain, had to be separated by hand, the women 
performing this tedious task on the flat housetops. 
There are many cases where people have been badly 
poisoned by eating Darnel in bread or meal, but few if 
any deaths are recorded. This is not true 
of the lower animals, many of which have 
been killed by eating it in ground feeds. 
Pigs, horses and sheep have suffered most. At the Lyons 
Veterinary School a horse was fed 4.4 lbs. of the seed 
and died as a result. Cornevin states that Darnel in the 
proportion of 0.7% of the weight of a horse will pro- 
duce death, while 1.5 to 1.8% is required to produce the 
same result in ruminants and poultry. 
-The seeds only are poisonous, their effect being due to 
the presence of the alkaloid temulin, of which they con- 
: tain, according to reputable analysts, 0.6% 
The: Poison by weight. In the fruits of some 70% to 80% 
Substance . . 
of the plants is a fungus which lives sym- 
biotically with the plant, and is supposed by many to 
cause the trouble. This fungus forms a layer of hyphae 
just outside the aleurone layer of the grain. It has never 
been observed to produce fruiting bodies or spores, and 
Conditions of 
Poisoning 
