JULV 2, 1888.] 
TH T TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 
IPECACUANHA. 
Royal Gardens, Kew. 
{From the Buletin of Miscellaneous Information.) 
(Cephaelis Ipecacuanha, Rich.; 
The ipecacuanh 1 plant is a half-shrubby perennial 
not more than IS ioehes high, which grows in abun- 
dance under the shade of trees in the hot, moist for- 
ests of many part^ of Brazil. It was cultivated in this 
country at Edinburgh at least as early as 1832, and 
flowered at Glasgow in 1843. 
The part used in medicine is the dried roots. 
These are e .Heeled more or less all the year round, 
but less during the rainy season from the difficulty of 
drying them properly. As stated by Bentley and 
Trimen (Medicinal Plants, vol. ii., 145), "From its 
stimulant action on the alimentary canal, ipecacuanha 
has always been in lepute as a remedy in chronic 
dysentery aud diarrhoea, and in large does of 30 grains 
and upwards it is regarded in India as almost a 
specific in acute dysenttry.'' 
For the last quarter of a century a persistent at- 
tempt has been m;ide to introduce the ip^ca uanha 
plant into India. This has met with the most varied 
fortune, and has at last been crowned with success 
in the Straits Settlements. It is evident that the 
problem presented was one of no ordinary difficulty. 
The ipecacuanha plant presents very little elasticity 
of constitution, and refusi s to flourish, except under 
a very limited range of physical conditions. The 
result of experiment has however been to show that 
it oan be propagaled by extraordiuary facility, whether 
by ordinary cuttings, by cut' ings of the roots, or even 
by merely p gg'ng a leaf to the earth. 
The history of t e inir duction of the ipecacuanha 
plant into India, may be commenced with the following 
extracts from a letter addressed by Dr. Anderson, 
Superintendent of the Botanical Gardens, Oalcultta, 
to the Under Secretary to the Government of Bengal, 
dated December 8th, 1868:— 
" My attention had been directed to the introduction 
of the ipecacuanha plant into thi Botanical Gardens of 
Calcutta for some years, but I was unable to procure 
any plants until April 18(>fi, when one plant was seut 
to me by the overland route by Dr. Hooker, Director 
of the Royal Gardens, Kew.* I am indebted to the 
care bestowed on the pUnt by Dr. George King, 
Assistant Surgeon of the Bengal Medical Service, dur- 
ing the voyage to Indi 1 for its having arrived in 
Calcutta in good health." * * * 
"The plant of ipecacuanha originally introduced 
into the Botanical Carders in 1806 is dead; but I now 
possi ss nine plants iu this garden, which have been 
artificially propagated from the original one, besides 
five growing at tin cinchona plantations at Darjeeling, 
to which place I sent one last year. I have thus 14 
plants of ipecacuanha.'' 
On March 23rd, Lsii'.i, the India Office wrote to Kew 
requesting that some plants of ipicacuinha may be 
procured an I pent with can- to Bombay. 
Sn Jos iph I looker replied, March 10th : " I can place 
two healthy plants at the disposal of his Excellency 
the Governor in Council at Bombay, and I hope soon 
to be able to supply more, but the plant of which 
but ono has been imported alive, is still excossively 
rare and propagated but slowly." 
These two plants weie taken out by Mr. Honry 
Gayen From Southampton on May loth. The India 
Ollice wrote to Kew, December 9th following, stating 
that " the two plants had perished after their arrival 
to India." 
On March 2sth, 1H7I), Dr. Anderson, who had in the 
meantime come to Kngland, reported to the India 
Ollice.: "The plants have thriveu at Calcutta and 
at tho lowest levels of the cinchona plantations iu 
Sikkim, and al-o at Ootacamund. There were 20 
plants at Calcutta and Darjeeling last November, all 
the produce ol one plant I received iu 18(>6*, au I 18 
at Ootacamund on the Dili of November last : the pro- 
duce of threo plants obtained by Mr. Mclvor from 
• It in impossible now to ascertain tho exact history 
of thik plant, but it is believed that it was part of a 
direct importation from Brazil. 
Kew in 186G-C7. These four original plants are the 
only ones from which cuttings have been made in India, 
all others having perished on the voyage, or soon after 
reaching the country." 
Acting on instructions from the Government of India, 
Dr. Anderson stated that he "determined to obtain 
as many plants of Cephaelis Ipecacuanha as possible 
from hotau'eal and private gardens in Britain and 
Europe." He continues: " I communicated first with 
Dr. Balfour, Professor of Hotany in the University of 
Edinburgh, aud both he and Mr. McNab, the Curator 
of the Botanical Gardens there, promised to propagate 
as many cuttings of ipecacuanha for transmission to 
India as could be safely taken from the two old plauts 
in the Edinburgh garden. It was when examining 
these old plants, in order that the best method of 
propagating might be dertermined on, that it occurred 
to Mr. McNab that the numerous root-like tubers 
might he tiken advantage of as a means of rapidly in- 
crease g the plants. I saw the first crop of these 
rhizomes taken off without causing the slightest in jury 
to the plant, and before I left Edinburgh I had the 
satisfaction of seeing that many of these rhizomes 
had struck root, and sent up a strong Bhoot. I heard 
lately that a considerable number of young plants had 
been obtained in the Edinburgh Botanical Gardens 
by mians of this root division, and that many more 
would be procured as the roots are reproduced, all of 
which are intended for India. I may mention that the 
two o'd plants of Cephaelis Ipecacuanha have been 
many years in Edinburgh, and they ate by far the 
Drgest and finest I have seen. In addition to these 
young plants promised by Dr. Balfour from the 
Edinburgh Botanical Gardens, I procured from Messrs. 
Lawson and Sons, of Edinburgh, four large plants of 
Cephaelis Ipecacuanha, which I have left iu their 
charge for propagation. * * * There are seven 
joung plants of Cephaelis Ipecacuanha in the Royal 
Gardens, Kew, and the greater proportion of these 
and all the cuttings that cau be obtained from them 
will be available for transmission to India, along with 
the stock I may obtain from other sources. I have 
also procured another large plant of Ipecacuanha in 
London, from which cuttiugs will be made, both 
of the roots and stems, duriug the remaiuder of 
my leave in England. I have heard of a few more 
large plants in nujrseriei au I private gardens, 
some of which I shall be able to purchase or obtain 
in exchange for s-els or plaits from the Calcutta 
Botmic Gardens. Cuttings will be got from these iu 
private gordens and will be rooted and grown in 
Kew. 
" I estimate that I shall be able to take out in 
January, 1371. not less than 50 plauts of the true 
ipecacuanha, all of which will have Leeu obtained in 
Europe, priucipilly in exchange for rare p'ants and 
seed from the Botanical Gardens, Calcutta." 
Dr. Anderson was. unfortunately, never able to 
carry out his plans. He suffered from severe illness 
and died before his return to India He was suc- 
ceeded iu the charge of the Royal Botanic Garden, 
Calcutta, by Dr. King, the present superintendent, 
who reported May 14, 1872, to the Government of 
Bengal : — 
'• At the beginning of the year (1871) the total stook 
of ipecacuanha amounted to live plants in Sikkim aud 
seven iu this gardeu. These represented the only 
surviving otfspring of a single plant received from 
Dr. Hooker in lSSti. The five plants in Sikkim were 
early in tho present year submitted by Messrs. Gammie, 
Biermann, and Jatfrey, of the cinchona plantation, to 
a most successful experiment in artificial propaga- 
tion, by which about 101) cuttings were obtained, the 
grea'er proportion of which have forme 1 good roots, 
and are now tine healthy little plants. * * * Five 
VVardl'an eases containing about IOO plants were re- 
ceived from Dr. Balfour, of the Bora] Botanical 
Garden, anil three cases from Afevr*. Lawson. Iu 
accorduneo with the orders of the Government of 
India, based ou the results of tho experience of the 
late Dr. Anderson, the»e plants were forwarded to 
Sikkim as soon as practicable aftor their arriviil Inn . 
The Calcutta climate having prove.! totally un-uiublr 
to this plant, all attempt* U> propagate it iu this 
