140 
Journal of Agricultural Research 
VoL I, No. a 
this same stage, the average was 0.568 per cent of alkaloids, which is 
0.065 P er cent higher than the average at the flowering stage, although 
lower in this case than at the early stage. There appears to be but 
a slight difference so far as the alkaloidal content is concerned between 
the flowering stage and the early fruiting stage. At the last, or fifth, 
picking, the plants had acquired much new growth and, judging from 
the average results, the percentage of alkaloids present in the leaves at 
that stage was not much different from the second and third stages. 
Although the experiments show that the leaves are richest in alkaloids 
at the late fruiting stage of the plant, collection at that time for commer¬ 
cial purposes is practically out of the question because the leaves are of 
very small size. After the flowering period is over and the berries are 
ripening many of the large leaves fall off and numerous small, bractlike 
leaves develop. These, while apparently rich in alkaloids, could not be 
picked to advantage in large quantities. 
RELATION OF SIZE AND APPEARANCE OF PLANTS TO ALKALOIDAL CONTENT 
OF LEAVES 
When this investigation was first undertaken it was hoped that some 
relationship might be found to exist between the physical appearance 
of the plants and the alkaloidal content of their leaves, for should such 
relationship exist the process of distinguishing between the good and the 
poor plants with regard to their active constitutents would become a 
much simpler matter than by use of the assay method, since the latter 
is necessarily tedious. 
The variations in the physical appearance of belladonna plants 
depend largely on the height and the number of stalks or stems. When 
height is referred to here, the actual length of the stems from the ground 
to the tips is meant rather than the vertical distance of the topmost 
branches from the ground. This distinction is necessary because many 
of the branches droop or grow at an angle. The spread of the plant, 
that is, the distance around, is largely dependent upon the angles at 
which the branches are growing and on the number of stems of the 
plant. The height of the plant and the number of stems, therefore, are 
the two distinguishing features as regards size. These indicate also 
the relative health and vigor of the plant. An attempt was made 
to differentiate between various types of leaves, with reference to size 
and color and between different types as regards blooming and fruit¬ 
ing tendencies. It was found difficult, however, to find individuals 
which conformed definitely to any particular type. Where certain 
characteristics existed they were not as a rule general over the entire 
plant, but were usually found on only one side or on only certain stems. 
Thus, in some cases, one or two stems of a plant bore what appeared to 
be leaves of a larger size than usual and of a different shade of green, 
