1104 Wisconsin Academy of Sciences, Arts, and Letters. 
History. 
The oleoresin of parsley appears to have come into existence 
through the attempts which were made to discover a simple 
method for the preparation of the so-called “apiol” of Homolle 
and Joret, 1 which was first brought to the attention of the phar¬ 
macist in 1855. The first mention of the oleoresin, insofar as 
could be determined with the information at hand, is to be 
found in Parrish’s Treatise on Pharmacy published in 1867. 
Since that time, the preparation, or one of a similar nature, has 
been on the market under the name of “green apiol” or “liquid 
apiol,” but was never given official recognition until the ap¬ 
pearance of the present edition of the United States Phar¬ 
macopoeia. 
Drug Used, Its Collection, Preservation, Etc. 
In the present edition of the United States Pharmacopoeia, 
parsley fruit is defined as follows: “The dried ripe fruit of 
Petroselinum sativum Hoffman (Fam. Umbelliferae), without 
the presence or admixture of more than 5 per cent, of foreign 
seeds or other matter. Preserve Parsley Fruit carefully in 
tightly-closed containers protected from light. ” The plant 
from which the fruit is obtained has also been known under the 
following botanical synonyms: Carum Petroselinum Benth. 
and Hook., and Apium Petroselinum Linne. 
Parsley is an annual herb commonly cultivated in the gar¬ 
dens of Europe and America. The fruit ripens in the fall, 
when it is gathered, dried and preserved for domestic use or 
shipped to market. The fruit as found in the market shows 
no marked difference in appearance regardless of its source. 
However, it is known to differ in its chemical composition. Thus, 
the fruits grown in Germany contain apiol as the principal 
constituent of therapeutic importance, whereas, those grown 
in France contain myristicin. 2 The volatile oil content also 
appears to vary with the source as Flueckiger 3 states that the 
1 The "apiol” of Homolle and Joret is stated to be the product which re¬ 
mains unsaponifled when the ether or chloroform soluble portion of the alco¬ 
holic extract of parsley fruit is heated with litharge. Journ. de Fharm. et 
de Chim. (1855), 28, p. 212. 
2 See under "Chemistry of parsley fruit”. 
3 PharmaJcognosie des Pflanzenreichs (1891), p. 938. 
