﻿Select*, p. 70. — Petasites major, Jloribus pediculus long is insidentibus, Dill, 

 in Ray’s Syn. p. 179. Hortus Elthamensis, p. 309. t. 230. 



Localities. — In moist meadows, and copses, and on the banks of rivers and 

 wet ditches. Not uncommon. Variety 3 occurs in the same places, but is more 

 rare. — Cheshire; Near Stockport : Mr. G. Holme. — Cheshire side of the Tame 

 below Staley Bridge: Mr. Bradbuky. — Durham ; On the banks of the Der- 

 went, at Derwent-haugh : N. J. Winch, Esq. Near Darlington: Mr. E. 

 Robson. — Lancash. Very common about Manchester; the banks of the Irwell 

 are crowded with it: Mr. Caley.— Leicestersh. Dishley-Mill, near Lough- 

 borough : Dr. Arnold. About Leicester, nearly as common as variety a : Dr. 

 Pulteney. Woolsthorpe: Rev. G. Crabbe. — Lincolnsh. Grantham : Rev. 

 G. Crabbe. Horncastle, and Hemingby : Rev. R. Rei.han. — Northumber- 

 land ; Banks of the Tyne at the foot of Scott’s Wood Dene ; in Walbottle Dene, 

 and near Haltwhistle : N. J. Winch, Esq. — Notts; Plentiful in the Mill-yard 

 at Lenton in the road to Woollaton Hall: Dr. Deerino. — Warwicksh. On a 

 willow bed at Hoo-mill; and on the side of the Avon at Bidford Grange: T. 

 Purton, Esq. — Yorksh. Near the river Wherf between Ilkley and Skipton : 

 Teesdale. Near Leeds, plentifully: Rev. W. Wood. Banks of Ure, &c. 

 Ripon : Mr. Brunton. Near Sleningford ; also Magdalene Banks near Tan - 

 field: Rev. J. Dalton. 



Perennial. — Flowers in April. 



Root thick and fleshy, creeping extensively, and sending down 

 numerous long fibres, which are thickest towards the extremity. 

 The leaves come after the flowers, and are the largest of any British 

 plant, being, when full grown, nearly a yard in diameter ; they are 

 all radicle, and stand on thick, upright foot-stalhs ; they are of a 

 rounded heart-shaped figure, cut away at the base close to the la- 

 teral ribs, doubly or unequally toothed along the margin ; yellowish- 

 green above ; downy, not very white, beneath. Flower-stalk 

 f scape J stout, hollow, clothed with concave tumid foot-stalks , 

 bearing rudiments of leaves in their lower half, which gradually 

 become spear-shaped bracteas above. Flowers pinkish, in a dense 

 egg-shaped, or oblong, panicle, constituting a true thyrsus, (which 

 in variety /3 becomes very much elongated after flowering, and, 

 when in seed, making a very elegant appearance). Some plants 

 have all the florets with perfect germens, in which case the stigma 

 is deeply cleft and strap-shaped, and the anthers are imperfect and 

 not united ; others have imperfect germens, when the stigma is 

 very much incrassated and egg-shaped, tuberculated, and very 

 slightly notched, whilst at the same time the anthers are perfect, 

 united or syngenesious, purple, with white pollen. The former, 

 with the perfect germens, producing no seed, have almost univer- 

 sally gone by the name of Tussilago hybrida (see fig. 2.) ; and the 

 latter by that of T. Petasites (see fig. 1.). As these plants fre- 

 quently grow separate, the fruit is rare ; but nature has made 

 ample amends, and by the long creeping roots this species is mul- 

 tiplied, and proves very destructive to pasture lands. 



The roots abound with a resinous matter. They have a strong smell, and a 

 bitterish acrid taste, and were formerly used as a remedy in pestilential fevers, 

 but are neglected in modern practice. Horses, cows, goats, and sheep, eat this 

 plant ; and its large leaves afford shelter from showers to poultry and other small 

 animals. The early flowering of this plant induces the Swedish farmers to plant 

 it near their bee-hives ; bat as it encreases very fast by its large horizontal roots, 

 which run deep into the ground, it is very difficult to extirpate, and, on that ac- 

 count, is one of the worst of plants to introduce into a garden. Mr. Curtis 

 informs us, that a piece of Butter-bur root only two inches long, and the thick- 

 ness of the little finger, after having been planted 18 months, was dug up, when 

 it appeared that many shoots had extended six feet, and penetrated two feet in 

 depth ; the whole, washed from the surrounding dirt, weighed eight pounds. 

 See Sm. Eng. FI. ; With. But. Am; and Hook. Brit. Ft. 



