io  Podophyllum  peltatum  Linne.       { Alja£ary Pi9 1™' 
in  the  freshly  dug  rhizome  and  roots  is  of  interest  in  that  it  gives 
an  index  as  to  the  amount  of  water  present  during  the  greatest 
activity  of  the  plant.  The  amount  of  rainfall  exerts  some  influence 
on  the  amount  of  moisture  present  in  fresh  herbs  and  roots  and  in 
order  to  compare  the  percentage  of  moisture  present  with  the  pre- 
cipitation in  inches,  the  rainfall  by  months  at  Fond  du  Lac,  Wis- 
consin, is  tabulated  in  Table  II. 
Table  II. 
Rainfall  in  Inches  Each  Month  during  the  Growing  Season  of  Podophyllum 
peltatum  in  1916  at  Fond  du  Lac,  Wisconsin. 
Month. 
Precipitation 
in  inches. 
Moisture  in  rhizome. 
Lot. 
Per  cent. 
Moisture  in  roots. 
Lot. 
Per  cent. 
April   2.19 
May  I  3-58 
June   4-88 
July   0.43 
August  !  4.72 
September  |  4.45 
October  |  4.76 
78.58 
80.00 
80.38 
66.66 
66.66 
65.00 
la 
2a 
3d 
4a 
5« 
6a 
78.95 
80.27 
81.00 
76.93 
76.93 
70.05 
The  largest  amount  of  water  present  in  both  rhizome  and  roots 
occurs  in  the  month  of  greatest  rainfall  and  also  when  the  plants  are 
at  the  height  of  growth.  In  July  but  very  little  rain  fell  and  the 
lack  of  moisture  is  reflected  in  the  rhizome  and  to  a  less  degree  in 
the  roots.  In  addition  to  lack  of  moisture,  the  plant  had  at  this 
time  passed  its  greatest  growing  period  and  was  now  beginning  to 
become  dormant,  which  accounts  for  some  of  the  decrease  in 
moisture  content.  This  decrease  in  moisture  content  is  more  marked 
as  the  plant  becomes  more  and  more  dormant  even  though  the  rain- 
fall was  plentiful. 
Eight  months  after  the  last  lot  of  rhizomes  and  roots  was  col- 
lected all  the  samples  were  examined.  The  dry  material  was  ground 
to  a  No.  60  powder  and  the  following  determinations  made  on  the 
powdered  material:  moisture,  soluble  ash,  insoluble  ash,  total  ash, 
and  resin. 
Moisture. — The  moisture  was  determined  by  heating  a  weighed 
portion  of  the  ground  material  in  a  flat  milk  dish  at  a  temperature 
of  ioo°  C.  for  two-hour  periods  until  the  weight  was  constant. 
After  each  heating  the  sample  was  cooled  in  a  desiccator  over  cal- 
cium chloride.    The  loss  in  weight  is  taken  as  the  amount  of  mois- 
