532 
Belladonna  and  Hyoscyamus. 
{Am.  Jour.  Pharm. 
December,  1914. 
variations  of  but  a  fraction  of  a  unit  character  from  the  type.  Then 
again  the  name  H.  agrestis  Kit.  has  been  applied  to  the  specific 
annual  form  of  H.  niger  L.  Many  of  these  early  specific  names  are 
still  more  or  less  in  use,  and,  while  one  may  secure  seeds  from  a 
number,  the  resulting  plants  conform  to  type  specimens  of  H.  niger 
L.,  H.  albus  L.,  or  to  hybrids.  Furthermore,  it  appears  to  be  quite 
impossible  at  the  present  time  to  secure  seeds  of  Hyoscyamus  which 
represent  pure  races  from  any  of  the  various  seed  dealers. 
Culture  and  Wintering. 
The  seeds  of  H.  niger  L.  biennial  germinate  in  about  the  same 
length  of  time  after  being  planted  as  do  the  seeds  of  Atropa  Bella- 
donna, most  of  the  seeds  requiring  from  four  to  six  weeks  to  come 
up,  while  a  few  may  require  much  longer.  The  seeds  of  H.  niger 
L.  annual  and  H.  albus  L.  germinate  quite  evenly  in  from  eight  to 
ten  days.  With  proper  care  the  plants  make  a  very  rapid  growth. 
No  particular  difficulty  was  experienced  in  the  cultivation  of  several 
hundred  of  each  species.-  Hyoscyamus,  however,  requires  rather 
more  attention  than  most  plants  in  connection  with  transplanting, 
spraying,  watering,  hoeing,  etc. 
The  biennial  plants  forming  the  basis  of  the  work  reported  in 
this  paper  were  protected  during  the  winters  by  the  following 
methods :  After  the  first  hard  freeze  coarse  straw  manure  about  a 
foot  deep  was  placed  over  the  garden  plots  of  Atropa  Belladonna 
and  H.  niger,  the  roots  of  a  second  lot  dug  up  and  buried  in  a  pro- 
tected location,  while  a  third  lot  of  each  were  potted  and  stored  in  a 
cold-house.  The  Belladonna  plants  all  survived  the  first  winter  ex- 
cept those  left  out  in  the  garden  plots.  During  the  second  winter 
(1912-13)  all  Belladonna  plants  survived.  The  potted  plants  of 
Hyoscyamus  were  the  only  Hyoscyamus  plants  that  survived  both 
winters.  The  lowest  outside  temperature  during  the  first  winter 
(1911-12),  as  determined  by  an  accurately  recording  thermometer 
placed  in  the  garden,  was  -33°  F.,  and  for  the  second  winter 
-22°  F. 
I  have  subjected  the  various  species  and  varieties  of  Hyoscyamus 
plants  and  Belladonna  plants  that  I  have  grown  during  the  past  three 
summers  to  varying  conditions  in  order  to  learn  more  concerning 
their  exact  nature  and  habits.  The  increased  use  of  drugs  from 
cultivated  plants  makes  such  studies  of  prime  importance,  and,  while 
