A^nuaryPi906rm'}  London  Botanic  Gardens.  5 
vulgaris ',  L.,  groundsel,  which  still  figures  among  the  drugs  of  the  French 
Codex  ;  Tanacetum  vulgare,  L.,  the  tansy  of  herbalists  ;  Taraxacum  officinale, 
Weber,  dandelion  ;  and  Tussilago  Farfara,  L.,  or  coltsfoot. 
Solanace^. — The  most  important  plants  of  this  collection  are  those  which 
yield  the  mydriatic  alkaloids,  viz.:  A tro pa  Belladonna,  h. ;  Datura  fastuosa, 
L.,  aud  /).  Metel,  L,.,  official  in  the  Colonial  and  Indian  Addendum  of  the 
British  Pharmacopoeia,  and  D.  Stramonium,  ;  Hyoscyamus  albus,  L,.,  H. 
muticus,  L.,  and  H.  niger,  L.;  and  Scopolia  Carniolica,  Jacq.  Four  other 
plants  of  this  order  that  are  represented,  are  of  comparatively  little  importance 
in  medicine — they  are  :  Mandragora  officinarum,  L,.,  mandrake,  formerly  of 
great  repute  with  the  disciples  of  the  doctrine  of  signatures,  because  of  the 
similarity  to  the  human  form  which  some  of  its  roots  assume  ;  Nicotiana 
Tabacum,  L.;  Solanum  nigrum,  L.,  and  S.  tuberosum,  Iy.,  the  potato,  both 
still  re'ained  in  the  French  Codex,  the  former  for  the  preparation  of  a  medicinal 
oil,  and  the  latter  as  the  source  of  potato  starch,  used  in  enemata,  poultices, 
and  for  making  a  nutrient  broth. 
LiUACE^. — Although  the  drug-producing  plants  of  this  order  are  not 
numerous,  a  few  of  them  are  of  the  greatest  importance.  The  following  are 
grown  out  of  doors  in  the  Herbaceous  collection  at  Kew  :  Colchicum  autum- 
nale,L,.',  Convallaria  majalis,h.;  Polygonatum  officinale,  All.,  and  the  closely 
related  North  American  species,  P.  biflorum,  Ell.,  whose  rhizomes,  formerly 
held  in  great  esteem  by  the  adherents  of  the  doctrine  of  signatures,  are  now 
seldom  used;  Urginea  Scilla,  L,.,  the  Squill  of  the  Pharmacopoeias  ;  Trillium 
erectum,  I,.,  with  acrid  rhizomes  now  never  used  in  medicine ;  Veratrum  album, 
L.,  white  hellebore,  and  the  North  American  species,  Veratrum  viride,  Ait., 
both  yielding  rhizomes  possessing  similar  properties  to  each  other. 
THE  PLANT  HOUSES. 
With  the  exception  of  the  Temperate  House,  which  is  situated  in 
the  Arboretum,  facing  the  Pinetum,  all  the  plant  houses  are  located 
in  the  Botanic  Gardens  (see  Plate  X).  Five  of  them,  viz.,  the  Suc- 
culent House,  the  Temperate  and  the  Tropical  Economic  Houses, 
the  Palm  House,  and  the  Temperate  House,  are  devoted,  at  least  in 
part,  to  the  culture  of  medicinal  plants. 
The  Succulent  House  (see  Plate  XII)  was  completed  in  1855,  in 
Sir  William  Hooker's  term  of  office,  and  took  the  place  of  two  old 
lean-to  houses  of  about  a  third  the  area.  It  was  newly  roofed  last 
year  (1904).  The  collection  of  succulents,  already  considerable  as 
early  as  1768,  was  much  increased  by  the  labors  of  Francis  Masson, 
already  mentioned  as  the  first  botanical  collector  sent  out  from  Kew, 
and  by  another  Kew  collector,  James  Bowie,  who  was  sent  to  the 
Cape  of  Good  Hope  in  1817,  and  remained  there  five  years;  the 
collection  was  also  much  enriched  in  1887  by  purchases  from  the 
Peacock  collection. 
/ 
