8 



Another important matter to be considered in collecting drugs for 

 market is freedom from foreign substances. All drugs should be clean 

 and wholesome looking and contain no admixture of fragments of 

 other plants, stones, dirt, or other impurities. A bright natural color 

 is extremely desirable in leaves, herbs, and flowers, and adds much to 

 the salabilit}- of the product. This can be readily brought about by 

 giving careful attention to proper drying in the shade (not in direct 

 sunlight), and by protection from dew or rain by placing the drugs 

 under cover at nightfall or whenever necessary. Roots may be 

 cleaned by washing, but leaves, herbs, and flowers should never be 

 washed. 



It is important also to collect drugs in proper season only. Neglect 

 in this respect will bring nothing but disappointment to the gatherer, 

 as drugs collected out of season not only are not acceptable to the 

 dealer on account of inferior medicinal qualities, but there will also be, 

 in the case of roots, a greater amount of shrinkage in a root dug dur- 

 ing the growing season than will take place when it is collected after 

 growth has ceased. 



The collector should be sure that the plant he is collecting is the 

 right one. There are many plants that closely resemble one another, 

 yet one may possess medicinal properties and the other be absolutely 

 useless. Again, a plant may contain very poisonous principles, and if 

 represented to be something else, it might of course do untold injury. 

 It would therefore be best, where any doubt exists, to send a specimen 

 of the entire plant, including leaves, flowers, and fruits, to a drug 

 dealer or to the nearest State experiment station for identification. 



ROOTS. 



Roots should never be collected during the growing season, as at 

 that time they are deficient in medicinal properties, and they also 

 shrink more in drying and weigh less than when gathered at full 

 maturity. 



The roots of annual plants should be dug just before the flowering 

 period, and those of biennial or perennial plants after the tops have 

 dried, the former in the autumn of the first year and the latter in the 

 fall of the second or third year. 



After the roots have been dug the adherent soil should be well 

 shaken from them, and all foreign particles, such as stones, dirt, roots 

 and parts of other plants, should be removed. If the roots can not be 

 sufficiently cleared of soil b} T shaking, they should be thoroughly 

 washed in clean water. It does not pay to be careless in this matter. 

 The presence of soil increases the weight of the roots, but the intend- 

 ing purchaser is not willing to pay for the weight of the dirt, and 

 grades the uncleaned drug accordingly. It is the clean, bright-looking 

 root that will bring a good price. 



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