FOOD 181 



from the centre of the corolla. The fruits are clusters of 

 bright scarlet berries. Another species, S. nigrum, is found 

 upon waste ground ; its fruits are black. 



The Henbane, Hyoscyamus niger (Fig. 46), is another 

 member of the same group. It is often found on waste 

 ground or rubbish heaps, and is occasionally met with by 

 the sea-shore. It is a densely leafy plant with a very 

 sticky surface, due to exudation of resinous matter from the 

 hairs which cover it; it has a peculiar aromatic odour. 

 The stem grows to a height of about one to two feet. The 

 flowers are borne all on one side of the floral axis and are 

 yellowish-gray, marked by a network of purple streaks. 

 The fruit is dry, and is enclosed in a persistent calyx which 

 grows somewhat after the corolla falls. 



Other members of the family are Stramonium (Datura 

 stramonium) and Tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum). Even 

 potatoes have been suspected at times of producing poison- 

 ing ; but the alkaloid is mainly contained in the leaves and 

 flowering heads, which are poisonous and should never be 

 used for stock. 



The Natural Order Raivuucidacecs includes several plants 

 which are poisonous. Among them the most conspicuous 

 is the Aconite, Aconitum napellus (Fig. 47). It grows to 

 a height of about three feet, the stem springing from an 

 underground rhizome or root- stock which is fleshy and 

 much resembles the root of the horse-radish. The leaves 

 are much divided, and the flowers, which grow in long 

 upright racemes, are pale-blue in colour. They are very 

 irregular in construction, the calyx being the showy part, 

 while the corolla is represented by two long -stalked 

 glandular structures hidden below the largest of the 

 sepals. 



The Hellebore, Helleborus niger, is another poisonous 

 member of the family. Four species of Ranunculus, R. 

 sceleratus, R. acris, R. flammula, and R. lingua, are described 

 as irritating to the digestive canal, producing tympany, 

 colic, inflammation, and, in certain cases, death. The 

 Upright Buttercup, Ranunculus acris, if in abundance in a 



Digitized by Microsoft® 



