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AGRICULTURE HANDBOOK NO.172

AGRICULTURAL RESEARCH SERVICE^

US. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE '
The use of ¡lortions of the text of the United

States Pharmacopeia, Fifteenth Kevision, official

December 15, 1955, is by permission received from

the Board of Trustees of the United States Pharmacopeial Convention. The said board is not responsible for any inaccuracies of the text thus

used.

Permission to use for comment parts of the text

of Tlie National Formulary, Tenth Edition, in

this vohmie has been granted by the Council of

the American Pharmaceutical Association. The

American Pliai'maceutical Association is not responsible for any inaccuracy of quotation nor for

any errors in tlie statement of Quantities or Percentage strengths.
CONTENTS

Page

Introduction 1

Drugs from plants 1

Condiments from plants 2

Production of drugs and condiments 2

Markets 2

Descriptions 2

Glossary of drug terms 33

References 33

Index to common and scientific names 34

Washington, D.C. Issued April 1960

The U.S. Department of Agriculture does not This AgricuUure Handbook contains informarecommend that tlie drug plants discussed in this tion of the type formerly presented in Farmers'

handbook be used in liome remedies. Most are Bulletins 1977, Savory Herbs: C^ulture and Use,

not harmful, but some have constituents that may , ^„„^ T^ , ^- j- i^ in j- tcause seriou¿ effects or even death if they are im- «'«1 1999, Production of Drug and Condiment

properly used. Plants.

Ill

/•.'s'

-** *-#

DRUG AND CONDIMENT PLANTS

By Ix)Uis O. WILLIAMS, economic botanist, Crops Research Division, Agricultural Research Service

INTRODUCTION

Drug and condiment plants that may be grown

in the United States are crops that can supplement the standard crops on a farm or can provide

a small cash income. These crops should be grown

on a trial basis to find out if tliey will provide a

reasonable and additional income. Some of these

crops, especially the condiments, may be grown

for use on the farm. Some crops that have been

specialty crops have now become regular crops.

Castorbeans, sesame, guar, and safflower are examples of crops that have made the transition recently or are in the process of making that transition.

Several hundred, perhaps thousands, of plants

are used as drugs or condiments by man. Relatively few are cultivated for the world market.

Fewer still have great importance economically.

Many drugs and condiments are gathered from

wild plants or plants that have become naturalized.

The kinds of plants that are available on the

drug or botanical drug market and the number of

them used in "home remedies" but not usually

available on the drug market are not known. One

large firm offers about 600 botanical drugs for

which botanical names are supplied. This must

be few in comparison to the kinds actually used

around the world.

Plants used as condiments are few compared to

the number used as drugs. Perhaps not more than

100 are in common use ; of these, possibly 25 may

be of potential interest or importance to American

specialty crop producers.

Some specialty crops come to the market from

regions of the world where cost of production is

low. Because the planting, cultivation, or harvesting of some of these crops require a relatively

large investment in human labor, growing them in

the United States often is not economically

feasible.

There is a market for most of the plants discussed in this handbook. However, only a few

would cause real concern to our national economy

if the drug or condiment were not available. The

cultivation of the esssential ones can be increased

in case of national need. The acreage required to

supply the demand for most drugs and condiments

is relatively small. If production of certain drug

and condiment plants becomes feasible, the acreage

can usually be expanded quickly. For example,

during World War II cultivation of belladonna

and digitalis was expanded when imports to the

United States were restricted.

DRUGS FROM PLANTS

The use of certain plants to relieve distress or

illness is older than civilization. Primitive as

well as civilized men, living in all parts of the

world, have or have had a materia medica based

on the plants available to them. Many plants today are used as specific remedies when they apparently have no real value. Many "herbs" used

as remedies, in fact, have little or no medicinal

value. A few drugs used in folk medicine have

been of great value. Quinine is one.

An "official drug," as used in this handbook, is

one recognized in the Pharmacopeia of the

united States (28)^ or the National Formulat-y

of the American Pharmaceutical Association {£).

' Italic numbers In parentheses refer to References, p.

33.

The medical profession usually recognizes the

drugs listed as possessing therapeutic value and

good pharmacies may have these drugs in stock.

The National Formulary describes the crude drugs

and establishes official standards for them. Methods of determining the drug usually are given in

detail. The Pharmacopeia is a therapeutic guide

for doctors and pharmacists of a select list of medicines and for the most efficient ways in which

the drugs may be used.

The Dispensatory of the United States of

America (19) is an encyclopedic volume that presents information concerning "official" and many

"nonofficial" drugs, as well as those used in veterinary medicine. The Dispensatory is an excellent source of information on drug plants.
AGRICULTURE HANDBOOK 17 2, U.S. DEPT. OF AGRICULTURE

CONDIMENTS FROM PLANTS

Condiments usually are not considered foods,

except in a few instances, such as the capsicum

peppers; for condiments add little to the nutritive

value of the foods with which they are used. Condiments do, however, add to tlie flavor and increase the attractiveness of a great many kinds of

foods. In countries where refrigeration is not

available, condiments may sometimes be used to

mask undesirable flavors or odors in foods.

PRODUCTION OF DRUGS AND CONDIMENTS

Specialty crops may require, in addition to their

cultural requirements, special processing, special

machinery for harvesting or equipment for drying, distilling apparatus, or the equipment for

some other process in their preparation as a drug

or a condiment. Certain of these crops are grown

year after year by a small group of farmers in

a certain region, because the climate and soil

there are favorable for the crop and the farmers

have the equipment to handle it. These same conditions and requirements also may limit production by other growers.

Certain condiment plants, generally called herbs,

are often grown in a kitchen garden or in an herb

garden, either for profit or pleasure.

Drug and condiment ¡slants are subject to the

law of supply and demand, just as most other farm

products. Few drug or condiment crops are in

great enough demand to make their cultivation

general. A relatively small increase in the supply

of any one of tliem may cause a corresponding decrease in the market value.

Growing specialty crops offers little encouragement to inexperienced growers who are looking

for large, quick returns from a small investment

of time and money. Drug and condiment crops

must be well grown and well prepared to be attractive to dealers and manufacturer's. Some

crops require 2 or more years of care before a crop

may be harvested.

Diseases and pests that affect drug and condiment crops are as diverse as those that affect

other crops. Viruses, wilts, leaf spots, root diseases, and others, as well as insect pests, are

common among the drug and condiment plants.

Diseases and pests must be recognized and methods

of control worked out, if these crops are to be

acceptable for the market.

MARKETS

Before growers consider the production of drug

or condiment plants, they should find a satisfactory market. There are usually local buyers for a

special crop that is produced regularly in a certain

area. However, if there are no local buyers, lists

are available of dealers that handle almost any

speciality crop and who have lists of those drugs

or condiments they buy.- The growere should

request instructions from the dealers before they

ship their product. Contracts are sometimes made

by manufacturers or dealers with farmers to grow

or supply certain speciality crops.

DESCRIPTIONS

It is impossible to describe in this handbook all

the drug and condiment plants that are or that

might be grown in the United States. The cultivation of many drug plants is not given, because

the market requirements are satisfied by the harvesting of wild plants. Potential drug or condiment crops in process of development but for

which there is no sure market now are not included. Some condiment plants generally grown

as vegetable crops—garlic and onions, for instance—are not included, whereas capsicum peppers and parsley, often grown as vegetables, are

discussed. Two plants producing narcotics—the

opium poppy and hemp—have been excluded, as

their cultivation is prohibited in the United

States.

'^ A list of dealers in botanical drugs will be supplied, if

requested, from the New Crops Research Branch, USDA,

Plant Industry Station, Beltsville, Md. Also, sources of

supply for most botanical drugs and condiments can be

given by the above Branch.

The descriptions that follow give first an appropriate common name for the plant. Synonymous common names by which the plant may be

known are listed. The accepted botanical name

follows. Other botanical names commonly in

literature, if any, are given, as is the name of the

family to which the plant belongs. A brief description of the plant follows and if the plant is

an "official" drug, the official description, or a part

of it, is quoted. History and constituents of the

plant may be given. Propagation, cultivation,

harvesting, and preparation of the crop for market

are given when pertinent.

Aconite

(Monkshood, aconite roof, wolfbane, friars cap, bluerocket)

Aconitum napeUus L. Ranunculaceae

Aconite ( fig. 1 ) is a perennial plant 2 to 4 feet

tall, usually erect and strict; the leaves are 2 to 5
DRUG AND CONDIMENT PLANTS

Figure 1.—Aconite.

inches broad, divided to near the base and again

divided into lanceohite or linear segments; the

flowers are bluish or purple, borne in spikelike

terminal racemes; the roots, which are the source

of the official drug, are cone-shaped and tuberlike

and may be up to 4 inches long and I14

inches thick; they are brownish in color. The

plant is variable in all respects. There are a number of described subspecies, varieties, forms, and

clones.

The drug is official {£), "Aconite is the dried

tuberous root of Aconituw. Napelhis Linné."

Aconite is a relatively unimportant drug in the

United States, as it is used now much less than

formerly. Aconite liniment is used externally for

rheumatism and neuralgia or as a counterirritant.

The principal alkaloid, aconitine, stimulates and

then depresses the central and peripheral nervous

system. It has been used as a cardia« depressant

in high blood pressure of cardiac origin. The root

is poisonous, and aconite or aconite root should

not be used except on advice of a physician.

Aconitum napellus occurs in the mountains of

Europe and Asia. There are several varieties, at

least one of which extends into North America,

from Alaska southward to British Columbia.

Mountain regions in the Temperate Zone where

the clima/te is cool and where shade and welldrained sandy loam are available are a satisfactory place to grow aconite. It is unlikely that cultivation of the plant would be profitable in

America. No plantations are known here. Propagation is preferably done with root divisions.

Plants may not come true from seed, owing to

possibility of hybridization with undesirable species. Several species of Aconitum contain the

alkaloid aconitine, but Aconitum napellus is the

only one that may be used in official preparations.

Yields are estimated as 400 to 500 pounds of dried

root per acre. It requires 2 years or more to

mature a crop if grown from seed.

Tlie roots are collected in the fall, preferably

after the stems have died down. Tubers are

cleaned and the small fibrous roots removed, then

carefully dried. It should not be broken up to

facilitate drying.

No figures are available on the amount of aconite root imported, but the annual average is not

much more than 1 ton.

Agar

(Agar-agar, vegetable gelatine, gelosa, Chinese or Japanese

gelatin, Japanese isinglass)

Gelidium cartilagineum (L.) Gaillon (Gelidaceae) ; Gracilaria confervoides (L.) Grev.

(Sphaerococcaceae), and related red algae

(Khodophyceae).

The plants from which agar is produced are the

red algae given above, as well as a number of other

species that are important in the United States.

Agar U.S.P. may be made from these species and

is also from Gelidium amansii Lamouroux, Ahnfeltia plicata (Huds.) Fries, Endocladia niuricata

(P. & B.) J. G. Ag., Rypnea muciformis (Wulfen) Lamouroux, and perhaps a number of

others. There are other red algae that produce

agarlike substances called agaroids. These do

not meet U.S.P. specifications for agar. A colloidal polysaccharide, algin, is obtained from

brown algae.

Agar is a dried hydrophilous colloidal substance extracted from the red algae mentioned.

Agar is used medicinally as a laxative and quite

commonly used in chronic constipation. It is

often combined with cascara sagrada or other

vegetable cathartics. Agar is used for a number

of other purposes. It is important as a culture

medium in bacteriological and mycological work ;

it is used to provide bidk and consistency in candies, jellies, ice cream, and other foods. It has

several industrial uses: In clarifying liquids, in

sizing, and in cosmetics.

Most agar used in the United States prior to

World War II was imported from Japan. Since

that time American sources have been developed

and a large part of the agar is produced here. In

1958 about 284 tons of agar were imported ; Japan,

Morocco, and Spain were the largest suppliers.

The use of seaweeds as food probably goes back

beyond historic time. The Japanese and other

Oriental people have used extractives of seaweeds

as food and medicine and in industry for more
AGRICULTURE HANDBOOK 172, U.S. DEPT. OF AGRICULTURE

than 300 years. That agar could be dehydrated

and purified by a process of freezing and thawing was discovered in Japan by accident. An agar

industry developed in Japan as a result of the discovery, and the use of agar increased rapidly.

The useful constituent of agar is gélose, a complex polysaccharide that has outstanding gelforming capacity.

Red algae occur around the shores of most of

the world. Many species have been used in the

preparation of agar and agaroids. The algae have

been "farmed" by the Japanese.

Agar is prepared by various methods. In

America the usual process is to wash thoroughly

the dried seaweed and then to cook it for 2 to 6

hours. The seaweed residue is then strained out

and the remaining solution run into a high-temperature tank and filtered and bleached. Bleaching may be done before filtering. The agar solution is cooled and gelled, then frozen, and then

crushed and melted. The agar is then separated

from the water and dried. It is usually marketed

as flakes or granules.

See references 16 and 16.

Aloes

(Curajao aloe, West Indian aloe)

Aloe harhadensis Miller. Liliaceae

{A. vulgaris Lam., A. vera of authors.)

There are many kinds of aloes.' The Netherlands Antilles are large producers. The aloes

come from the species mentioned above or a similar one sometimes determined as "J.?oe vera.''''

The rest of the aloes imported come principally

from Union of South Africa, but they may come

from other regions as well. Several spe^-ies of

Aloe are involved in the African aloes. Perhaps

the most hardy Aloe is Aloe harl>adensis, which

may be grown in Florida and the warmer gulf

coast.

Aloes {28., f. 29) is the dried juice from the

leaves of Aloe harhadenMs and of several other

species of Aloe. It should yield not less than 50

percent of a water-soluble extractive. The composition of aloes from different species varies.

Curaçao aloes began to appear in the early part

of the last century and is now the principal aloes

on the market.

Aloes is used medicinally as a cathartic.

"Aloin" is the name applied to the mixture of active principles, mostly bitter pentosides. Curaçao

aloes contains isobarbaloin in addition.

Aloe grows wild in many parts of Africa, especially in semiarid regions. Aloes is made from

wild plants or from cultivated ones. In the Netherlands Antilles all the aloes and aloin are derived

' The crude drug is known either as aloes or aloe. The

form with "s" may be preferable. It is syntactically

singular.

from cultivated plants. The aloin is precipitated

from the fresh juice there, and then purified to

U.S.P. by crystallization. This method is more

efficient than the old empirical method of concentration of the juice by evaporation to aloes, in

which form it was usually shipped.

Propagation of aloes is usually by offsets. The

plants are set 6 to 12 inches apart in rows that are

18 to 24 inches apart, with adequate drainage ditch

between. Plants may be productive for 10 years

or more but produce well only for 5 to 6 years.

The lower leaves of the plant are cut off when

mature and the juice is drained out. The aloin is

precipitated out of the juice or the juice is concentrated and solidified by evaporation.

The production of aloes in this country will

probably not be profitable.

See reference 13.

Althea

IMarshmallow, marshmallow root, white mallow)

Althaea o-ßcinalis L. Malvaceae

Althea (fig. 2) consists of the dried roots of the

plants from which the small roots and brown

Figure 2.—Althea.

PN-6M
DRUG AND CONDIMENT PLANTS

corky covering have been removed. Itis official in

the National Formulary.

Althea is used as a demulcent. It is a relatively

unimportant drug plant. The dried root contains

up to 35 percent of mucilage.

The plant is native to Europe, but it has been

naturalized along the New England coast and in

tidal rivers south to Pennsylvania. All the drug

in the American market comes from Europe. The

roots are collected in the fall, washed, peeled, and

dried. It has not been cultivated in this country.

The small demand and low price perhaps would

not make cultivation profitable.

Angelica

(Angelica roof, angelica seed)

Angelica arcliangelica L. and A. atropurpúrea L.

Umbelliferae

Both seeds and roots of angelica (fig. 3) are

used. The root is dug, preferably from plants 1

year old or in the fall of the second year. The

roots are large and fleshy with many rootlets; the

stem is usually hollow and purplish and grows to

4 to 6 feet or even more. The flowers are greenish white and in the usual umbel. The seeds are

oval, usually yellow or yellowish brown, and are

pungent and sweet. Both the roots and seeds, and

the essential oil distilled from them, are used as

flavoring, stimulant, and carminative. The leaves

and stems are used as a condiment. The medicinal value of angelica is relatively little. The belief that it had medicinal properties was perhaps

based on the thought that aromatic herbs were

medicinal. The American Angelica atropurpúrea

is said to be much inferior to the European A.

avchangelica.

Angelica is cultivated in Europe, mainly in Belgium, France, and Germany. It grows best on

rich soil in a temperate to cool climate. It is

grown in kitchen and herb gardens in the United

States, but probably is nowhere commercially cultivated. Most root and seed is perhaps distilled

for its essential oil. The oil is more easily controlled as a flavoring material than are roots or

seeds.

World production of both seed and root perhaps

does not exceed 100 tons. It is doubtful if the

crop could be economically produced in the United

States.

Anise

(Anise seed, anise oil)

Pimpinella anisum L. Umbelliferae

Anise (fig. 4) is an annual herb widely cultivated and often spontaneous, in much of the temperate and tropical regions of the world. It is

about a foot or two tall, the leaves are opposite

below, alternate above, pinnatifid or ternate, with

cut, cunéate, or entire segments. The fruit consists of two puberulent mericarps or "seeds."

Anise oil is a volatile oil distilled with steam from

dried, ripe fruits.

Anise is widely used as a flavoring agent, stimulant, and carminative; it finds use in flavoring

bakery goods, confectioneries, liqueurs, and other

526989 OF¡3ure 3.—Anselica.

-60 2

Figure 4.—Anise.
6 AGRICULTURE HANDBOOK 172, U.S. DEPT. OF AGRICULTURE

products. The oil has replaced the seed in flavoring many products. The principal constitutent

of the oil is anithol.

Anise has been in cultivation in the Mediterranean basin for many centuries and is cultivated

in a few areas in the United States. Spain supplies most of the seed imported to the United

States, and is followed by Mexico, Turkey, and

India.

Anise requires a rather long season, about 120

to 130 days from date of sowing. It may be sown

in rows 18 to 30 inches apart, and about one half

inch deep; the plants are thinned 6 to 8 inches

apart in rows. Uniform rainfall or irrigation is

required. Temperatures that do not go too high

and are quite even are best.

The plants may be harvested by pulling the

plants or by cutting off the fruiting inflorescences.

It is usually done while the seeds are still green.

The plants are tied in bundles and stacked with

the heads in. The seed should ripen and dry in

about a week and is then ready for threshing. In

Europe threshing is usually done by hand.

Arnica

(Wolfs-bane, arnica flowers, American arnica, European arnica)

Arnica montana L., European arnica, and three

American species—A. fulgens Pursh, A. sorona Greene, and A. cordífolia Hook—are all

official. Compositae

Arnica (^, p. 62) officially consists of the dried

flower heads of the species mentioned above. The

powdered drug is yellowish brown. The flowers

contain arnicin, a small amount of volatile oil,

resin, tannin, etc.

Arnica, or arnica tincture, is a very old remedy,

used as a counterirritant in sprains and bruises,

but now rarely prescribed by physicians. The use

of arnica in recent years has dwindled, owing to

the use of more potent or efficacious synthetic

painkillers.

Arnica montana grows wild in Europe, the Alps

being the principal source of the flowers. A. fulgen-H^ A. liororia., and ^4. cordifolia occur in meadows and woods along tlie slopes of the Rocky

Mountains from British Columbia and Alberta

south to New Mexico. The American arnicas are

often considered sujierior to that of Europe because of cleanliness and lack of infestation by insects. Arnica has rarely been cviltivated in the

United States, and is harvested usually from wild

plants. The flower heads when dried are ready

for market.

See reference 12.

Basil

(Sweet basil, garden basill

Ocimt(7ii haMÜcum L. Labiatae

Basil (fig. 5) is a glabrous or slightly pubescent

Figure 5.—Basil.

are petiolate, ovate, 1 to 2 inches long, entire or

dentate; flowers are white or slightly purplish, in

racemes.

Basil is grown in kitchen or herb gardens as a

condiment to flavor meat, poultry, soups, stews,

and other foods. The essential oil, which is distilled from the herb, is used also in flavoring and

in perfumes. Basil has been used sine« ancient

times as a condiment and as a medicinal herb. It

is not now used in medicine.

Many varieties of basil are cultivated, but they

are difficult to distinguish one from another. One

variety, grown in France under the name grand

basilic, and a crisped-leaf variety are said to be

the two best for distillation of oil. Most basil

oil is distilled in the south of France. Basil can

bs grown in most parts of the United States where

conditions for vegetable crops are favorable.

There are several varieties of oil of basil. That

known as oil of sweet basil, distilled from the

plants mentioned above, is most desirable. The

l>rincipal constituent of this oil is i-linaloöl.

The plant is a native of Africa and perhaps also

India, but basil is now widely distributed in temperate and some tropical parts of the world.

Soil for basil should be plowed in the fall and

smoothed in spring before planting. The seeds are

drilled about 12 to the foot and covered not more

than one-half inch. Rows are 2 to 3 feet apart.

annual herb that grows 1 to 2 feet tall ; the leaves Seed should be sown as soon as danger of first
DRUG AND CONDIMENT PLANTS

frost is passed. The first cutting is made about

2V2 to 3 months after planting and a second crop

may be had in another 8 weeks.

The oil is prepared by distillation of the herb.

The requirement of the American market for oil

of basil is relatively little.

Belladonna

(Belladonna leaf, belladonna root, deadly nightshade)

Atrofa belladonna L. and A. hellúdonna var.

acuminata Royle Solanaceae

Belladonna (fig. 6) is a leafy, much-branched

perennial herb 2 to 3 feet tall ; leaves are entire,

ovate or oblong-ovate; corolla is bell- or funnelshaped; fruit is a shining black and poisonous

berry.

The drug is obtained ft-om either leaves or roots;

both are official {28, p. 79; 2, p. 80). The dried

leaves and flowering or fruiting tops should yield

not less than 0.35 percent of alkaloid (U.S.P.).

The roots should yield not less than 0.45 percent of

alkaloid.

The principal alkaloids contained in both leaves

and roots are hyoscyamine, atropine, belladonnine,

and scopolamine.

The uses of belladonna are many ; it is one of

the most useful of plant drugs. Principal uses

are as a sedative, antiasthmatic, mydriatic, and to

check secretion.

Belladonna is native to Europe and Asia and

has been known and used for about 500 years. The

leaves became an official drug in United States in

1820; the roots in 1860. Most belladonna was imported into the United States until the two World

Wars, when supplies from the Old World were

restricted.

Cultivation of belladonna is not difficult, and

it has been successfully grown in many regions of

the United States, especially in Pennsylvania, New

Jersey, Minnesota, Michigan, Indiana, California,

and Washington. Well-drained loamy soils suitable for vegetable culture are suitable for belladonna. Propagation is from seeds, which may be

started late in the winter in a greenhouse or a coldfi'ame, or in a seedbed outdoors in early spring.

Seed is often slow in germinating. An ounce of

seed will provide plants for an acre of land.

Plants are set out, as soon as danger of frost is over,

20 inches apart in rows 30 or more inches apart.

Field sowing of seed is usually not satisfactory.

Tlie crop requires some hand weeding. Insect

pests must be controlled by spraying. If large

plants are set out, more than one crop can be

obtained in the season.

The leaves and flowering tops may be harvested

as soon as the plant blooms. Tliey should be carefully dried in the sliade to retain their green color.

Artificial heat may be required to dry large lots of

the herb. The roots may be harvested in the fall,

cleaned, cut into sections, and dried in the sun or

in a drier. A yield of 600 pounds of dried herb

and about 150 to 300 pounds of root per acre may

be expected in favorable localities.

See reference 31.

Blessed Thistle

(Holy thistle, bitter thistle, Our ladys thistle, cursed thistle,

bitterweed)

Cni-cus ben.edi€fu.s L. Compositae

Blessed thistle (fig. 7) is a branching annual

plant up to 2 feet tall, stems pubescent. Flower

Figure 6.—Belladonna. Figure 7.—Blessed thistle.
8 AGRICULTURE HANDBOOK 17 2^ U.S. DEPT. OF AGRICULTURE

heads are sessile, without rays, yellow. Leaves

are oblong, 2 to 6 inches long, sinuate to nearly

pinnatifid, spinescent, exceedingly bitter to the

taste.

Blessed thistle is used in home remedies and perhaps in patent medicines as a bitter tonic. Quite

probably it enters into the manufacture of the

"bitters" used in certain alcoholic concoctions and

miglit find use wherever bitters are required.

Blessed thistle is a native of Europe; adventive

as a weed in the United States and elsewhere. Occasionally it is planted as a crop. This plant may

be a serious weed in grainñelds, and this fact

should l>e considered before planting.

Blessed thistle may be sown one-half inch deep

in rows about 3 feet apart, or to suit available cultivating machinery. The seedlings should be

thinned to about 18 inches apart in the rows. Tlie

plants may be harvested as soon as they begin to

bloom. The herb is cut just above ground level

and it should be dried in the shade in well-ventilated sheds or tobacco barns. It is usually baled

for market.

Burdock

(Lappa, burdock roof, beggars buttons)

Arctium lappa L. and A. minus (Hill) Bemh.

Compositae

The two species of burdock given above are

sometimes used in domestic medicine. The root is

the part generally used, although the "seeds,"

often the fruits, are used. First-year roots are

preferred. Burdocks are usually coarse biennial

herbs (fig. 8). The first year's growth is a rosette

of rough, cordate-ovate leaves.

Burdock is used as an alterative, diaphoretic,

and diuretic, and as a "blood purifier." John

Parkinson in 1640 wrote, "The juice of leaves

given to drink with old wine doth wonderfully

help the biting of any serpents, as also of a mad

dogge." Burdock leaves and roots were at one

time official. Neither are now.

Burdock is native of Europe and has become

naturalized as a weed along ditchbanks and in

fields in the eastern half of the United States.

Tlie roots are collected from wild or cultivated

plants in their first autumn. Some are imported

from Europe.

In Japan, and where there are Japanese people,

the roots of burdock are an important food. The

roots may be boiled in salted water and eaten with

butter or sauce, like salsify.

Calendula

(Marigold, garden marigold)

Calendula offtcinalis L. Compositae

Calendulas (fig. 9) are annuals that are commonly cultivated in flower gardens and grow 1 to

2 feet tall. Leaves are oblong, dentate; flowers

about 2 inches in diameter, with many yellow to

orange ray flowers ("petals"). Tincture of the

Figure 8.—Burdock.

x^- r.:

Figure 9.—Calendula.

PN-«»«
DRUG AND CONDIMENT PLANTS

petals is used in healiiif^ of wounds. The petals

have also been used as a butter dye. It is little

used for either purpose now.

The ligidate, or ray, flowers are taken from the

heads and dried. Orange or deep yellow ones are

preferred. Most of the di'ug is imported from

Euro^îe; a small amount is produced in the United

States. The hand labor required in han^esting

probably would make the crop unattractive here.

Camomile (Hungarian, German)

(Sweet false-camomile, chamomile, wild camomile)

Matricaria chamomiUa L. Compositae

Hungarian, or German, camomile (fig. 10) is a

much branched annual that grows to "2 feet tall ;

leaves are 2 to 3 tijnes pinnately divided into short

linear segments ; and flowei-s nearly an inch across,

with about 10 to 20 white ray flowers. It has the

fragrance of pineapple.

Medical use of camomile in the United States is

little. It has been used as an aromatic bitter and

a mild tonic ; it is emetic in large doses. It contains an essential oil and a bitter principle (anthemic acid).

Camomile is a European plant and has been

naturalized in America. Most all camomile used

in the United States is imported from Europe, although some is produced in Argentina and

Colombia.

Seeds may be drilled or sown broadcast and

barely covered. A moderately rich moist soil is

preferred. About 8 weeks is required from seed

for harvest, so sometimes 2 crops a year may be obtained. The heads are harvested when the plants

are in full bloom. Harvesting is usually done by

hand in Europe but some kind of stripper would

be useful. The amount of hand labor required

probably would make the crop unprofitable in the

United States.

Camomile (Roman, English)

(Camomile flowers, garden-camomile)

Anthenva nohili>< L. Compositae

Tlie Roman, or English, camomile (fig. 11) is

a perennial lierh with creejung basal shoots, much

branclied, d to 12 inches tall, downy pubescent,

aromatic; the Hower is an inch or less across, ray

flowers white; leaves l)ipinnate, the segments

linear to filiform.

Medical use is almost nonexistent, except as a

home remedy. It is an aromatic bitter, emetic if

taken in large quantities. Flowers contain an essential oil.

The plant has often been cultivated in England,

Belgium, France, and (xermany. High labor costs

may make it unprofitable, as a crop, in tlie United

Sta"tes.

Propagation is from seed or cuttings. The seed

is sown in the field about 10 inches apart, in rows

that permit access. Flowers are handpicked when

mature, in dry weather. They must be quickly

dried to maintain natural color.

Figure 10.—Camomile (Hungarian, German).

PS-698

Figure 11.—Camomile (Roman, English).

Capsicum Peppers

Capsicum annuum L. and its varieties frutescent

(L.) Kuntze; var. fascicvlafmn (Sturt.)

Irish ; var. grossum Sendt. ; and var. longum

Sendt. Solanaceae
10 AGRICULTURE HANDBOOK 17 2, U.S. DEPT. OF AGRICULTURE

The varieties of peppers cultivated for condiment and medicine correspond approximately to

the following :

Variety fnitc.'tcciix.—The bird peppers, wild, spontaneous or cultivated in the tropics and subtropics ; much

used iu Latin America.

Variety fascirulatiiiii.—The very pungent red cluster

peppers.

Variety prossiim.—Sweet or bell peppers; to this variety belong most of the commercial sweet peppers and

the mild paprika peppers commonly grown in Europe and

America.

Variety Uiiif/iini.—The long pepiiers, which include most

of the chile i>eppers, cayenne peppers, the long reds, and

the long yellows; to this variety belong many of the

pungent peppers used by Latin American peoples as condiments in cooked foods. Literally hundreds of local

names exist in Latin America for variations, local or

otherwise, of these pepjiers. A recipe may call for two

to six kinds by their local names.

The peppers, which might be called capsicums

or capsicum peppers (fig. 12) to distinguish them

from the unrelated true peppers, are America's

most important contribution to the world's condiments. The classification of the cultivated economic peppers still requires much study, but the

one given above is perhaps as good as any, based

on present knowledge of them.

Figure 12.—Capsicum pepper.

Peppers are native to America. Cultivated

kinds were widely distributed in America before

the time of its discovery.

Certain of the pungent peppers are official drugs

{'28, p. 132) used in medicine, where they are

called Capúcum. They are used as stimulants,

counterirritants, and stomachics.

Farmers' Bulletin 2051, "Pepper Production,

Disease and Insect Control," describes the more

connnon varieties of peppers, methods of culture,

and control of diseases and insects. It may be

requested from Office of Information, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Washington 25, D.C.

See reference 2"2.

Caraway

(Caraway seed, caraway fruit)

Carum carvi L. Umbelliferae

Caraway (fig. 13) is an annual or biennial plant,

with leaves pinnately decompounded into narrow

linear segments; the fruits (seeds), about oneeighth inch long, are strongly ribbed, laterally

compressed. The portion used is the seed.

Caraway is used as a condiment. The seeds, or

the oil distilled from them, may be used. In medicine, both seeds and oil are used as a carminative

or flavoring.

The principal constitutent of caraway oil is

carvone, about 50 to 60 percent. Seed is sold.

Figure 13.—Caraway.
DRUG AND CONDIMENT PLANTS 11

with the price based on oil content. This may

vary in Dutch seed from 3 to 6 percent (average,

4 percent). Caraway has probably been in cultivation for 1,000 years and has been in medicine for

perhaps 600 or more.

Caraway is of Old World origin and is now

distributed and naturalized around the world in

temperate zones. It is cultivated in north and

central Europe, England, Morocco, and at one

time it was grown in the United States.

The plant is grown either as an annual or as

a biennial. The seed may be sown directly in the

field, about 15 inches apart in rows. Space must

be left for weeding. As soon as the first seeds are

ripe, the plants are cut and partially dried in

wmdrows, weather permitting. They are then

moved into a shed or barn or placed over large

canvases for complete drying. Shattering is likely

to be excessive unless care is taken in handling.

Complete separation of the seed may be done with

a flail or threshing machine. Where weather permits, the caraway may be left until the seeds are

mature, then harvested with a combine with a

special attachment that elevates the material into

the combine without too much seed loss. Limited

experience in the United States indicates caraway

will produce 700 to 1,200 pounds of seed per acre

for the biennial crop and about 700 pounds for

the annual crop. The crop may not be profitable

in the United States on commercial scale.

Cascara Sagrada

(Chitlem bark, sacred bark, bearwood, cascara buckthorn,

coffeeberry, bearberry, wahoo)

Rhamnus purshiana DC. Rhamnaceae

Cascara sagrada is the dried bark of Rhainnus

purshiana. It should be aged for at least 1 year

before it is used. The tree grows to 25 feet tall,

the leaves (fig. 14) are elliptic to oblong-ovate,

acute to obtuse, dentate to nearly entire, 2 to 6

inches long. The bark, which is the part of the

plant used as an official drug {18, p. 132)., is from

%o to 14 inch thick; when fresli the inner surface

is bright yellow, but it darkens with exposure to

light ; it is bitter.

The principal use of cascara sagrada is as a

tonic laxative or cathartic ; it contains anthraquinone derivatives, resins, tannin, glucose, starch,

and other compounds. It is one of the best vegetable laxatives and appears to restore tone to the

relaxed bowel and thus to produce a lasting beneficial effect.

The drug is collected from wild trees in Washington, Oregon, and California. However, small

plantations have been started in the Pacific Northwest and in Kenya, but mostly the plantings have

been unsuccessful. The bark from the trees in

Kenya was an inferior grade.

Bark harvest lasts from mid-April until the end

of August. The bark is often collected from trees

Figure 14.—Cascara sagrada.

in the mountains and packed out by men or animals to the drying area. Considerable labor is involved. The bark is removed from the trees with

a spud, and is taken from both the bole and

branches. A bark-covered stump about 6 to 8

inches high should be left ; the stump is cut at an

angle so that it sheds rain. Such stumps will produce suckers and in due time another crop of bark.

It requires 4 to 5 days for the bark to dry. It

must be protected from rain or loss of the drug

occurs. The bark is broken into small pieces, after

drying, and is ready for shipment.

Good peelers are said to be able to peel 100 to

250 pounds of bark a day under favorable

conditions.

See reference 2I^.

Costorbean

(Castor oilseed, castor oil plant, castor oil, Palme Christi)

RicinuH commwm L. Euphorbiaceae

Ricinus is a tree growing to 40 feet tall, with

stems occasionally a foot in diameter. In cultivation in temperate regions it is often grown as

an annual. Some large-leaved forms are grown as

ornamentals.

Castorbean (fig. 15) is now a commercial crop

in the United States. Medicinally, castor oil is

used as a purgative and lubricant. The oil used
12 AGRICULTURE HANDBOOK 172, U.S. DEPT. OF AGRICULTURE

Figure 15.—Castorbean.

in medicine is obtained by cold expression and has

a mild odor and, usually, a nauseating taste. The

use of the oil in medicine, as an official drug {28,

p. 133), is a minor usage.

See reference 29.

Celery

(Celery seeds, celery fruit, oil of celery)

Apiu7n grnveolena L. and var. dulce (Mill.) DC.

Umbelliferae

Celery (fig. 16) is a biennial plant, occasionally

grown as an annual. The stems ai-e erect,

branched, 2 to 3 feet tall; or in kinds grown for

seed, to 7 feet tall. Leaves are odd-i)innate, ovate

to oblong, petiole long and fleshy and usually solid,

leaflets 5 to 7, ternately compounded and petiolulate ; the comjiound umbels are among the leaves.

Celery is used as a green vegetable or condiment,

either raw or cooked. The vegetable is the leafstalks of tlie plant, which are usually blanched.

Oil of celery, whicli is distilled from the seeds, is

used as a condiment in flavoring food products—

soups, meats, sauces, and celery salt—to which it

imparts a pleasing aromatic odor and flavor. The

oil has been used in medicine as a stimulant and

carminative, as well as flavoring. An oleoresin is

also made from tlie seeds. This is used as a food

flavoring and in some applications is easier to use

than the oil.

Celery is native to Europe, North Africa, and

parts of Asia. Tlie wild plant is bitter and said

to be poisonous. The modifications in cultivation

are many and tlie cultivated species actually have

been given a distinctive scientific name. Celery

as a vegetable is grown over the temperate and

subtropical regions of the world and occasionally

Figure 16.—Celery.

in the tropics. The plant grown for seed may be

cultivated in temperate or semitropical regions.

India is now the principal source of seed for distillation of the essential oil. Celery as a vegetable

can be grown successfully in many parts of the

United States.

Celery may be grown for a seed crop in several

ways, depending on climatic conditions. In the

Sacramento and Santa Clara Valleys, Calif.,

where most of the seed required for planting is

produced, tlie usual practice is to start the seedlings in summer and transplant them to the field

in fall in checkrows about 3 feet apart. The freezing temperatures that sometimes occur in this

region apparently do not damage the plants. In

spring the plants grow rapidly and by midsummer

they pi'oduce many flower heads, which mature in

August. In tlie Eastern States, the plants are

often grown as annuals by chilling the seedlings

in the seedbed early in spring, which causes the

jilants to produce seedstalks that season. Another

jiractice is to cari-y the plants through the winter

by protecting tliem with a heavy mulch against

severe freezing. These cultural methods are used

in growing celeiy seed for the vegetable-seed

trade, for which higher prices are obtained than

could be expected under normal conditions for

seed to be used as condiments.
DRUG AND CONDIMENT PLANTS 13

Current use of inipoited celeiy seed for distillation amounts to approximately 1,000 tons a year.

Chondrus

(Irish noss, carrageen, salf rock moss)

Chondrm cri.s/nts (L.) Stackli. or Gigdrtina

mamUlosa (Gooden. & Woodw.) J. Ag.

Gigartinaceae

Irish moss occurs along the coast of Xew England, and from Norway to Gibraltar, growing submerged on rocks below the level of low tide. The

plants involved are red algae.

Chondi-us is used as a demulcent and nutrient ;

as an emulsifying agent ; and as a vehicle for certain cosmetics. The main constituent is a mucilaginous principle, carragenin.

The "moss" is collected in America, mainly

along the coast of IMassachusetts, much of it near

Scituate, and northward to Nova Scotia. The collectors, in small boats, harvest the moss from the

rocks with long-handled rakes or they pick it up

from the beach after storms. It is spread on the

beach or on floors to dry and bleach in the sun and

dew. It is then soaked in sea water and again

dried and bleached until the "moss" is a pale

yellow. When completely dry and sufficiently

bleached, it is stored in barrels or marketed.

See reference 26.

Colchicum

(Meadow saffron, autumn crocus, colchicum-root, meadow

saffron corm)

Colchicum mitumnale L. Liliaceae

Both the corm and the seeds of colchicum (fig.

17) have been used in medicine. Rarely is the

crude drug (^, p. 174) prescribed any more;

rather the alkaloid colchicine {28, p. 170) is used,

because it has proved to be more reliable and

otherwise satisfactory.

The principal meclicinal use of colchicine, derived from either the corm or the seeds of colchicum, is in the treatment of gouty arthritis. The

use of colchicum, as a treatment for gout, has been

known for centuries, but how it acts is still not

known. Colchicine and the bulbs and seeds of

colchicum are extremely toxic. They must not be

experimented with as home remedies. Care should

be taken in handling them.

Colchicine is an important tool in plant genetic

studies. It arrests cellular mitosis in tiie metaphase and is utilized l\y biologists to produce

changes in genetic behavior.

Colchicum is native to England, to central and

southern Europe, and to northern Africa.

Colchicum has been cultivated in the T^nited

States, but as a crop it has not been economically

feasible. The plant grows best in moist rich sandy

loam, either in partial shade or sun. In cold areas

it may require some protection in winter. Propagation may be by seed or corms. Seeds are

526989 O—60 3

Figure 17.—Colchicum.

planted as soon as mature, in June or July, but

seedlings do not emerge until the following spring

and will not flower until 3 to 5 years old. Corms

may be used for projiagation, new corms are

formed from old ones much as in tulips. Seeds

may be harvested (and dried) when ripe. Corms

are usually harvested as soon as the leaves die.

They may be dried with the aid of heat. Year-old

corms contain most alkaloid. The leaves are reported to contain more alkaloid than either corms

or seeds but have not been much used.

Most of the crude drug, both seeds and corm, is

imported from Europe.

See reference 4-

Colocynth

(Colocynth apples, bitter apples, colocynth pulp)

CitruUus colocynthis (LI.) Schrad. Cucurbitaceae

Colocynth is a monocious, annual or perennial vine; the flowers are yellow and axillary;

the fruit is a globose, three-celled berry with a

hard shell-like epicarp. The drug is the dried

pulp of the mature but unripe fruits. Most of

the material that gets into the drug market comes

from the Sudan. The plant is native to semidesert regions of Africa and Asia. It has become

naturalized or is cultivated in many parts of the

world. In India it is abundant as an esca^^e. It
14 AGRICULTURE HANDBOOK 172, U.S. DEPT. OF AGRICULTURE

has been grown in New Mexico and possibly elsewhere in the United States.

Colocynth is used as a hydragogne cathartic.

It is powerful, and when improperly used may

cause death. The official drug (2, p. 177) "is the

dried pulp of the unripe but full-grown fruit."

The action of the drug is caused by two active

principles, an amorphous alkaloid and a resin,

both of which are violent purgatives.

Cultivation in semidesert regions with 10 to 15

inches of rain annually is feasible. Grown as an

annual, it could be planted in early spring and

harvested in fall. Sandy loam soils are preferable, and little cultivation is needed after sowing.

A single plant may have several stems, 20 to 30

feet long, that often root at nodes. The potential

of the plant as a cultivated crop would not seem

to be great.

Coriander

(Coriander seed, coriander fruit, coriander oil)

Coriandrum sativum L. Umbelliferae

Coriander is the dried ripe fruits of the plant

{2, p. 179). The plants are annual, rather ranksmelling, branched herbs, up to 2 or 3 feet tall.

The upper leaves are bi- or tripinnate, with segments linear or nearly so. Coriander seeds should

yield not less than 0.25 cubic centimeter of volatile

coriander oil from each 100 grams of the drug.

Coriander is used mainly as a flavoring agent in

medicine as a carminative or to mask the flavor

of other ingredients ; it also is used to correct griping qualities of some cathartics, as senna and rhubarb. The essential oil is the part used as an official drug (^«, p. i74).

Coriander has been cultivated, or used, since

ancient times. The plant is native to Europe and

Asia and is widely naturalized in temperate and

subtropical parts of the world. It is or has been

cultivated in most of the same regions. In the

United States, Kentucky produces more than

elsewhere. Most all seed and oil needed in the

United States is now imported.

Coriander may be grown under many conditions, but does best in sunny locations on welldrained loams of limestone regions. About 75 to

80 days are required for maturity for early varieties in the east, whereas 215 to 220 days are needed

for a California location for late varieties. The

early varieties are best for condiment or spice purposes, but the late varieties are higher in oil content. Rains and winds during harvest periods

may cause discoloration of seed.

Coriander is sown in rows 15 to 30 inches apart,

the seeds planted about 1 inch deep, at the rate of

10 to 15 pounds to the acre. Cultivation to control weeds is recommended, and some hand weeding may be required. Planting may be made in

May for maturity in August. In the Southwest

seeds are usually sown in November, to mature in

May.

Harvest is by hand on small plots or by mower

or binder in held plantings. Seed does not mature

all at one time and care must be taken to avoid

shattering and to get as complete seed maturity as

possible.

See reference 18.

Cumin

(Cumin seed, cumin fruits)

Ciimimim cyminum L. Umbelliferae

A slender annual that is much branched above ;

leaves dissected, the segments filiform; flowers

white or pink. Cumin is native to the Mediterranean regions and much of the crop is cultivated

there now. It is spontaneous in many parts of the

world. Cumin is the seeds or fruit of the plant.

Cumin is a condiment or spice that is used to

flavor foods of various kinds, bread, cheeses, sausages, and as a flavoring in such dishes as chile con

carne and other similar dishes.

The plant grows best on well-drained rich

sandy loams where a mild and equitable growing

season is 3 to 4 months long. The plants are

grown from seed and should be planted in rows to

permit easy cultivation. In the areas of cultivation in the Old World where hand labor is not too

costly, the ci-op is sown broadcast but the crop

must then be hand weeded. The crop is ready to

harvest when the plant withers and the seed loses

its dark green color. IMuch of the crop in the

Mediterranean region is hand harvested and

threshed. A more economical method would be

required were the crop grown in the United

States. Yields are about 500 pounds of seed to the

acre under reasonably good conditions.

Dandelion

(Taraxacum, blowballs, lions tooth)

Taraxacum offidnale "Weber and T. erythrospermum Andrz. Compositae

Dandelions (fig. 18) are perennial herbs; with

leaves basal, pinnatifid, runcinate, lacerate to

nearly entire. Flowers are ligulate, yellow, borne

in heads on a hollow scape that elongates with

age. The heads of seeds are easily recognized because of the parachute-like pappus on each seed.

The part of the common dandelions used as a

drug is the "dried rhizome and root.'' * Although

taraxacum has long been used in medicine and

home remedies, there is, according to the Dispensatory of the United States, "no convincing reason

for believing it possesses any therapeutic virtues."

Both dandelions mentioned above are naturalized from Europe. Taraxacuvi o-fficinale is a

nearly ubiquitous weed in lawns and meadows

throughout the United States. T. erythrosper-

■■ The description of the oflScial drug (2) specifies "rhizome and root . . . ." It may be questioned that a rhizome is present in dandelions.
DRUG AND CONDIMENT PLANTS 15

Figure 1 8.—Dandelion.

mum, the redseeded dandelion, is less widely distributed and less common.

Dandelions may be cultivated, although it is

probably not profitable nor desirable to do so.

Eoots are collected from naturalized plants for the

drug market ; however, most of our requirements

for the drug are supplied from Europe. The

roots are dug in the fall and dried or sliced and

dried for the market.

Digitalis

(Foxglove, digitalis leaf, fairy cap, ladys glove, purple foxglove)

Digitalis purpurea L. Scrophulariaceae

Digitalis (fig. 19) is a pubescent biennial, or

sometimes perennial, plant, usually 2 to 4 feet tall.

The leaves are pubescent, rugose, ovate to ovatelanceolate, the basal ones petiolate and usually

relatively large; those of the stem reduced in size

upward, usually short petiolate or sessile. Flowers large, pendulous, 2 to 3 inches long, borne in

a simple, usually unilateral raceme, purple to

white, usually spotted. There are several cultural

forms of the species. The official drug "Digitalis

is the dried leaf of Digitalis purpurea .. ." {S8, p.

Digitalis purpurea is native to western Europe

and is widely naturalized. In America it is commonly found in the coast range of Washington

and Oregon in cutover areas; in eastern Canada

(Newfoundland and Cape Breton) ; and in the

Andes in South America and south to Chiloé Island at sea level. It is also in Brazil. It has been

Figure 19.—Digitalis.

cultivated successfully in the Eastern States and

as far west as Minnesota and Michigan, and in

many other places.

Digitalis IS one of the drugs most commonly

used as a cardiac stimulant. It is also used as a

tonic and as a diuretic. Digitalis contains several

glycosides, of which perhaps the most important

is digitoxin; in addition there are present saponins, volatile oil, tannin, and a coloring substance.

Digitalis grows well on ordinary well-drained

soils of reasonable fertility. Seeds are usually

germinated in flats in a greenhouse or in a hotbed.

When danger of frost has passed the seedlings

may be hardened off and planted out about a foot

apart in rows conveniently spaced for cultivation.

Leaves are gathered from both first- and secondyear plants. Those collected the second year, before the inflorescence opens, are considered to be

best. Leaves must be dried in the shade or dried

artifically.

A total of 73 acres of digitalis was in cultivation

in 1954 in the United States {17, p. 578). The

average yield for that year was reported as 1,608

pounds per acre. It is possible that the leaves from

naturalized plants in Washington and Oregon

would nearly supply the demands for the drug in

the United States if it were economically feasible

to collect them. Most digitalis is now imported.
16 AGRICULTURE HANDBOOK 172, U.S. DEPT. OF AGRICULTURE

A second species of dij^italis, Digitalifi Janata

Ehrh., has occasionally been in cultivation, and

is now being grown commercially in Africa. This

species is not official for Digitalis U.S.P., but it

may be used for Digitoxin U.S.P. {28, p. 217).

See reference 19, pages iJi4-Ii-60.

Dill

(Dill seed, garden dill, dill weed, dill seed oil or dill oil, dill weed

oil or oil of dill)

Anethum graveolens L. Umbelliferae

Dill (fig. 20) is an annual, or occasionally biennial, herb to about 3 feet tall; leaves finely dissected, the segments filiform; umbels large and

compound, lacking involucres; flowers yellowish;

fruits elliptic, dorsally flattened. The lateral ribs

are narrow winged.

Dill is a native of southern Europe. It is grown

in temperate or subtropical regions. It has become naturalized, or escaped from cultivation, in

many places in the XTnited States and around the

world.

Dill is used primarily as a condiment. Both

the seeds and the herbage, and the oils from them,

are used. Perhaps the best known food product

in which dill is used is dill pickles. Many other

processed foods contain dill as a flavoring. In

medicine dill may be used as a stimulant, aromatic,

or carminative, but it is not official.

Two types of oil are made from dill, one from

Figure 20.—Dill.

the seeds and one from the herbage. Both oils

are extracted by steam distillation, but they are

of different composition, odor, and flavor. The

dill seed oil is usually preferred as a flavoring material. The seed yields 2.5 to 3.5 percent or more

of oil. Yields of 32 to 52 pounds of oil per acre

have been reported.

The yield of dill herb oil may be as little as

one-fourth of 1 percent of the weight of the herb

distilled. Oil yields of 20 to 30 pounds per acre

have been reported.

Dill is not difficult to grow and does well in the

North Central States and the Pacific Northwest,

where most dill is now grown. Seed is drilled in

rows 1 to 3 feet apart, depending on method of

cultivation to follow. It is planted in early spring,

or in late fall for germination in early spring.

Plants are thinned when about 3 inches tall and

the plants left 6 to 15 inches apart in the rows.

Harvesting depends on use to which plants are to

be put. If distillation for dill herb oil is contemplated, then harvest should be immediately

after the blooming stage when best quality and

flavor of oil is obtained. Distilling equipment, or

access to such equipment, is essential for production of the essential oil. Distillation should take

place while the herbage is still rather fresh. If

a sizable crop is to be grown, then plantings

should be staggered so that a large crop will not

mature at one time and overtax distilling

facilities.

When dill seed or the seed oil is to be the crop,

it is harvested as soon as the first seeds are ripe.

The harvest is left in the field to dry and mature ;

or dried in a shed if weather makes it advisable

to do this. Shattering is a problem with this

crop, so it must be carefully handled to reduce

loss. The seed should be carefully dried after

threshing to avoid spoilage.

The Census of Agriculture (1954) reported

2,130 acres of dill being grown commercially on

69 farms in the United States. The average yield

is given as 32 pounds of oil per acre.

See reference 9, v. 4, pages 619-634-

Ergot

(Mother of rye, spurred rye, ergot of rye, horn seed)

Claviceps purpurea (Fr.) Tulasne

Hypocreaceae

Ergot (fig. 21) is the dried fruiting body of a

parasitic fungus that develops in the inflorescence

of rye and other cultivated or wild grasses. The

fungus attacks the immature seed and eventually

replaces it. The ripe fruiting body is called a

sclerotium. The sclerotium is normally longer

than the seed that it replaces, usually is curved,

and is purple or blackish in color. One or more

sclerotia may develop in an inflorescence. The official drug {2, p. 216) "is the dried sclerotium . . .

developed on plants of rye...."
DRUG AND CONDIMENT PLANTS 17

Fennel

Figure 21,—Ergot on rye. (Courtesy National Fungus

Collection.)

Ergot is used medicinally as a emmenagogue ;

as an hemostatic; principally as a parturient in

childbirth. An ergot derivative, lysergic acid

diethylamide, has hallucinogenic effects on man

and may prove to be most important in the study

of schizophrenia.

The active components of ergot are six pairs of

sterioisomeric alkaloids. For use in obstetrics

these alkaloids are usually not separated.

Ergot occurs on rye in most countries where the

crop is cultivated. It also occurs commonly on

other grains, especially wheat and barley. Ergot

is separated from the grain crop and is itself not

specially cultivated as a crop.

Ergot must be well dried and preferably stored

in sealed containers to delay the deterioration that

is caused by excess moisture. It must also be protected from insect infestation.

Most of the ergot used in the United States until about 1940 was imported. Portugal was the

principal source of supply. Since World War IT

most supplies have come from within the country,

much of it from Minnesota. Canada is at present

the principal foreign source of ergot.

Ergot in the United States is obtained mostly

from the screenings of lye (or wheat). In some

parts of Europe whefe labor is less costly, the

ergot is separated from the grain by hand.

See references 3,6,32.

(Fennel seed or fruit, oil of fennel)

Foenicuhim vulgäre Miller Umbelliferae

Fennel (fig. 22) is a short-lived perennial herb,

sometimes cultivated as an annual or Ijiennial, 3

to 6 feet tall, branching; leaves pinnately decompounded, the segments filifonn and about li/^

inches long, the petioles broad and clasping, sometimes fleshy ; lunbel of 15 to 20 rays, involucre and

involucel lacking; carpels dorsally flattened and

with prominent ribs. There ai-e several cultural

varieties of fennel. Foenicuhim vulgäre var. vulgäre yields bitter fennel oil ; F. vulgäre var. dulce

(Miller) Fiori yields sweet or Roman fennel oil;

F. vulgäre var. panmorium DC. yields Indian

fennel oil. Fennel is a native of Europe and the

Mediterranean region, naturalized widely. The

drug is the dry ripe fruit of the above varieties.

Fennel is used as a savory seed, or the oils are

used as condiments. In medicine the seeds are

used as carminatives, stimulants, or galactagogues.

The oil is mildly carminative.

Fennel grows well in mild temperate climates

and may be drilled in rows 18 to 36 inches apart

in almost any good soil. Planting may be done in

early spring or in late fall. When 3 to -1 inches

high, plants may be thinned to 8 to 12 inches

apart m the rows. Plants also may be started in

a seedbed and planted out when 3 to 4 inches tall.

Cultivation is the same as for most garden crops.

There may be relatively little seed on the crop the

first year.

Harvesting may require much hand labor.

Fruits in an umbel mature at about the same

time, but the umbels on a plant do not all mature

at the same time. Machine harvesting, drying,

and threshing may be possible, but some immature seeds will be included in the seed harvested ;

Figure 22.—Fennel.
18 AGRICULTURE HANDBOOK 17 2, U.S. DEPT. OF AGRICULTURE

probably there Avill also be a considerable loss cine

to shattering. Aphids cause severe damage in

fennel, and its culture may be difficult where

aphids cause damage to other'plants.

There were cultivated in the Ignited States in

1954 {27, p. 578) 21 acres of fennel. The average

yield per acre is 289 pounds.

Ginger

(Ginger root, ginger rhiiome)

Zingiher oßcinaJe Roscoe Zingiberaceae

Ginger (fig. 23) is obtained from perennial

plants with aromatic underground stems or rhizomes; stems 2 to 4 feet tall; leaves linear to

lanceolate, sessile, 6 to 12 inches long; inflorescence lateral, arising from the rhizome. Possibly

it is a native of the Pacific Islands, but now it is

distributed over the tropical world; nearly everywhere in the Tropics ginger is collected from

spontaneous or semicultivated plants for local use.

It is used principally as a condiment.

Ginger can be grown in Florida ; in fact, it can

be grown where tliere are light frosts so long

as the rhizome remains frost free.

The crop probably cannot be profitably grown

in the United States, owing to the large amount of

liand labor required in preparing it for market.

Almost, if not all, the ginger used in the American

market is imported. The finest ginger comes from

Trinidad. India is the largest exporter. U.S.

imports in 1958 were 1,991 tons.

<>ee reference 1.

Figure 23.—Ginger.

Ginseng

Araliaceae

is about a foot

(Sang, ginseng root)

Panax quimgnefoliufi L.

The ginseng plant (fig. 24, B)

tall; tlie leaves usually have five leaflets; the

mature roots (fig. 24, ^4) are large and spindle

shaped, often forked; the fruits are borne in

clusters, and when ripe are bright red. The plant

was formerly abundant in the United States, but

is now scarce, owing to collection of the wild material for many years. The above species is cultivated in America and occasionally elsewhere. It

is native to rich, cool woods from Quebec and

Manitoba south to northern Florida, Alabama,

Louisiami, and Arkansas. It has been cultivated

in its natural range and in the Pacific Northwest.

(xinseng root has been used as a medicinal in

the treatment of most of the ills to which the flesh

is heir. It has been used as a stimulant and aromatic bitter. The Chinese, who use most of that

grown, employ it as an aphrodisiac and heart

tonic, but without any scientific justification.

Planting material may be either seeds or small

plants. Seeds ripen in the fall but usually do not

germinate until the following- fall and must be

"stratified" until used. Stratification consists of

storing the seeds in a cool, moist place, using forest

soil, sand, loam, or sawdust as a storage medium.

Seeds sown into tlie permanent beds may be set

about 8 inches apart each way. If sown in a seedbed for subsequent transplanting, 2 by 6 inches is

sufficient space. The seedlings are transplanted

after 2 or 3 years and set at 8-inch intervals.

Seedlings purchased from a supplier may be put

directly into permanent beds.

The beds should have the centers high enough

for good drainage. Good rich forest soil is suitable. The beds should be about 4 feet broad to

provide easy access and drainage in the walkways.

Ginseng requires enough shade to cut out about

tliree-quarters of the sunlight. This may be accomplished by planting in woods or building lath

sheds. Free circulation of air is desirable. Fertilizing with good forest soil or loam is also desirable; most growers advise against the use of

chemical fertilizers or barnyard manure. Mulching is needed in most plantations in winter or during dry periods.

Cultivated ginseng probably should not be harvested until 6 years old to obtain the best returns.

The roots when mature are usually dug after the

growing season is passed. The roots should be

carefully dug, cleaned, and dried. Drying is perhaps best carried out in a shed where conditions

may be controlled. Ginseng is subject to a number

of diseases, some serious.

American ginseng has been in international

trade since the early I700's. About 100,000

pounds are exported annually. The source is from

both wild and cultivated plants. Root from wild

plants is more valuable than that from cultivated

plants. The fluctuation in market value of the

root may be rather great from year to year.

See reference 30.

Goldenseal

(Hydrastis, orange root, yellow root, yellow puccoon, ground

raspberry, Indian paint)

Hydrastis canadensis L. Ranunculaceae

Goldenseal is an erect perennial herb that sends

up a single radical leaf and a hairy stem, which is
DRUG AND CONDIMENT PLANTS 19

Figure 24.—Ginseng.

2-leaved near the summit. A single wliitish flower

is borne at the summit of the stem.

The drug consists of tlie dried rhizomes and

roots, which should contain not less than 2.5 percent of anhydrous ether-soluble alkaloids of

hydrastis.

Goldenseal is native to the eastern half of the

united States, to rich woods from Vermont to

Minnesota and Nebraska south to Georgia, Alabama, and Arkansas. The plant has been exterminated in some areas and is now rare in most

places, owing to its collection as a drug. The

drug was known and used by the Indians before

the discovery of America. The plant has been

cultivated in the east and also in the Pacific

Northwest.

Goldenseal is used as an alterative to the mucous membranes and as a bitter tonic. The evidence on the value of the drug is conflicting.

The culture of goldenseal is not unlike that of

ginseng. It may be grown in woodlands or under

lath shade. It requires about 75 percent shade in

summer. Soil should be well fertilized, and bonemeal or cottonseed meal may be used. The seeds

may be sown in a seedbed during October, either

broadcast or a half inch apart in rows separated

6 inches. The seed sliould be covered about 1

inch deep with rich leaf mold or other vegetative

material. The seedbeds should be protected

by a leaf mulch or burlap during winter.

Tlie seedlings when large enough (usually at end

of second year) can be transplanted to permanent

beds, 6 to 8 inches apart each way, and about 2

inches deep. Sufficient water should be provided

and the weeds controlled. Plants may be propagated from divisions of tlie rhizome, which may

be put directly into the beds. It requires about

5 years to mature a crop from seed and a year or

two less from divisions. The roots are dug in the

fall, after the leaves have withered, cleaned, and

then dried in a well-ventilated place in shade or

partial sun. They may also be dried in a shed.

Roots should be protected from rain and dew.

The dried leaves and stems, usually called seal

herb, are marketable.

There is perhaps less than 5 acres of goldenseal

presently in cultivation. Cost of hand labor and

relatively restricted demand have combined to

make the crop unpopular.

Henbane

(Hyoscyamus, hyoscyamus herb, hyoscyamus leaves, black henbane, hogs bean, stinking nightshade, poison tobacco)

Hyoscyamus niger L. Solanáceas

Henbane (fig. 25) is a coarse annual, or usually

biennial, herb up to 6 feet tall when in flower;
20 AGRICULTURE HANDBOOK 17 2, U.S. DEPT. OF AGRICULTURE

Figure 25.—Henbane.

root fusiform; leaves sinuate-toothed to pinnatifid,

oblong, 3 to 8 inches long, petiolate or sessile and

decurrent ; flower 1 to 2 inches across, greenish

yellow with purple veins. The official drug (^,

p. 289), called Hyoscyamus, is the dried leaves of

this plant, with or without the stems and flowering or fruiting tops. It yields not less than 0.040

percent of the alkaloids of Hyoscyamus. Henbane

is native to Europe and Asia. It is now widely

naturalized in temperate regions of the world. It

is abundantly naturalized and has been harvested

from wild plants in the United States, especially

in Montana.

The principal active ingredient of henbane is the

alkaloid hyoscyamine. It is used as a sedative to

the central nervous system, and its most important

use is to control certain spasmodic conditions. It

is also used in treatment of the alcohol and morphine habits and used in motion sickness, and as

a mydriatic.

Field sowing of henbane usually has not been

successful. Seed may be best sown in flats in a

greenhouse in midwinter, transplanted to pots in

March, and to the field in May. Plants may be

set out 15 inches apart in rows spaced at least .30

inches apart. Weed control will be necessary to

protect the slow-growing plants. Insect pests

must be controlled if they appear. The plants are

susceptible to a virus, for which no control is

known.

The plant thrives in well-drained soils suitable

for vegetable crops. It was grown during both

World Wars in several States.

The annual type is harvested as soon as the

plants are in full bloom. Leaves of the biennial

type may be harvested the first year, or the plants

may not be disturbed and a full harvest made at

flowering time the second year. In harvesting,

care should be taken to prevent the soil from adhering to tlie leaves, which are somewhat sticky.

Drying facilities for the harvest must be provided.

Yields may reach 500 to 700 pounds of dry herb

per acre.

Most henbane used in tlie country is imported.

The culture of tlie crop is not attractive here under

normal conditions, owing to the large amount of

hand labor required in its production.

Horehound

(Hoarhound, marrubium)

Marruhium vulgäre L. Labiatae

Horehound is a perennial aromatic herb up to

3 feet tall, the stems quadrangular, white tomentose ; leaves ovate or ovate-orbicular, % to 2 inches

long, tomentose, becoming glabrous above; flowers small, white. It is a native of Europe, and

naturalized widely.

Horehound is used in domestic medicine as a

bitter tonic. The principal use of the herb, however, is as a flavoring in candy and lozenges for

coughs.

Horehound grows well in almost any soil. It

grows readily from seed, which may be sown early

in spring and covered with about an inch of soil.

Seeds or cuttings may also be started in a coldframe and transplanted to the field, or divisions

of old plants may be used. Plants may be set

6 to 18 inches apart in rows, and close stands produce finer herbs.

Harvesting is done just before full flowering

and the herb should be cured in the shade, to preserve the green color. Coarse stems are not desirable. Yields to 2,000 pounds of dry herb per

acre have been obtained.

Horehound is a common plant in herb gardens.

Most commercial supplies are imported from

Europe.

Licorice

(Licorice root, liquorice, Spanish licorice lor liquorice) root,

glycyrrhizal

Glycyrrhiza glabra L. and var. glandulifera Waldstein & Kitaibel. Leguminosae

Licorice (fig. 26) is a perennial herb 2 to 4 feet

tall, with alternate, odd-pinnate leaves having 9

to 13 ovate leaflets. Flowers are pale blue, in

spikes shorter than the leaves. The drug, which

is known as Glycyrrhiza, is described officially

(28, p. 312) (and perhaps incorrectly) as "The

dried rhizome and roots . . ." of the plants mentioned above.

Licorice is native to Europe and Asia and

widely naturalized around the world. It is often

a weed difficult to eradicate. The plant has been

known and used since remote times.

The principal use of licorice is as a flavoring

and conditioning agent in manufactured tobaccos.

It is also the basis of a confectionery. In medicine it is used as a flavoring agent, as a demulcent,

and as an expectorant.

Little or no licorice is produced in the United

States and that used is imported. In 1958 16,036

tons of licorice root were imported. The three

large suppliers were the Soviet Union, Greece,

and Iraq. Extract is also imported—167 tons in

1957, mostly from Spain and Turkey.

Licorice grows best in warm regions and usually

where there is abundant soil moisture. It requires
DRUG AND CONDIMENT PLANTS 21

Figure 26.—Licorice.

deep sandy soil of orood fertility. Plantings are

usually made in spring from crown divisions that

are set out about 18 inches apart in rows spaced

to permit cultivation. The plant grows slowly

and requires 3 to 4 years to produce marketable

roots. Harvesting is arduous and requires much

hand labor, for the roots are deep ; the crowns may

be saved and divided for replanting. The roots

are dried to approximately half their weight at

harvesttime. Drying requires considerable time

and must be carefully done. Poorly dried or

musty material is rejected by manufacturers.

Cultivation of licorice has not been financially

successful in the United States.

See reference IJf.

Lobelia

(Indian tobacco, asthma weed, emetic weed, wild tobacco)

Lohelia in-flata L. Campanulaceae

Lobelias (fig. 27) are paniculately muchbranched annual herbs, to about 3 feet tall, villous

or hirsute with long flat hairs. Cauline leaves are

obovate or ovate or ovate-lanceolate, mostly sessile, dentate or serrate, often pubescent below.

Racemes are terminal, the light-blue flowers rather

distant. Calyx is inflated in fruit. The official

drug (2, p. 334), called Lobelia, "consists of the

dried leaves and tops of Lobelia inflata Linné."

Lobelia is native to the eastern half of the LTnited

States and adjacent Canada in fields, open woods,

and waste places. It has been cultivated in several places.

Lobelia is said to have been used by the Indians

before the discovery of America. Its most important use in medicine is as a nauseating expectorant in treatment of bronchitis. It should not

be used as an emetic. Death has often resulted

from, improper use of this drug as a home remedy.

The principal active constituent of the drug is

•in alkaloid called lobeline; there are several

other constituents.

Lobelia may be sown either in fall or spring in

rows about 2 feet apart in well-prepared rich

•7 'V

>

Figure 27.—Lobelia.

loam. The seed, which is very small, may be sown

on the surface and then the rows firmed by any

practical means rather than covering and burying

the seed. Fall planting usually gives a better

stand and a heavier crop. Shallow cultivation

should be given until near harvesttime. Lobelia

may be planted in an outdoor bed, prepared as for

tobacco, in fall and the seedlings transplanted in

spring. Although this method is probably better,

it increases labor costs. The crop is har^'ested

when the plants are in full flower and some of the

seed pods are mature. Large thick stems should

not be harvested. The crop is dried in the shade

to preser\'e the green color. Yields of 1,000

pounds of dry drug per acre have been reported.

Marjoram

(Sweet mar¡oram, garden marjoram)

Majorana hortensis Moench. Labiatae

{Origanum majorana L.)

Marjoram (fig. 28), a perennial herb, i/^ to 2

feet tall, is usually cultivated as an annual.

Leaves are elliptic-oval, to 1 inch long, entire,

tomentose, glandular-punctate. Flowers, in short,

ovoid spikes, are white to pink or pale purple.

The dried leaves and flowering tops are sometimes

used in medicine. Marjoram is native of Europe.

It is to be found cultivated in most herb gardens

for use in flavoring meats, sausages, salads, various kinds of soups.
22 AGRICULTURE HANDBOOK 172, U.S. DEPT. OF AGRICULTURE

Figure 28.—Marjoram.

Marjoram grows well in good well-drained

garden soil. The plant is not hardy in the north,

unless heavily mulched, and consequently is

usually grown as an annual. It is suggested that

the seeds be started in a greenhouse and transplanted after danger of frost has passed. Cuttings may be used for propagation also. Herbage

may be cut as needed for home use or the plants

harvested by cutting when mature. The plants

should be dried in a well-ventilated shed and the

leaves separated from the stems by stripping or

flailing, when completely dry.

Most majoram used commercially is imported.

It is probable that 100 acres of marjoram would

supply the needs of the United States.

Mustard

(black mustard, brown mustard, white mustard)

Brmsica nigra (L.) Koch and Brassica hirta

Moench. {B.alba (L) Boiss.)

Crueiferae

Black mustard {Brassica nigra) is a muchbranched annual plant 2 to 10 or more feet tall.

The stem is usually hispid hairy ; leaves are variable, petiolate, basal leaves usually not well developed, pinnatifid or lobate, terminal lobe large,

margins dentate or coarsely so. Seeds are small,

usually black or brown, minutely pitted, onetwenty-fifth to one-twelfth inch long.

White mustard {Brassica hirta) is also a

sparsely hairy annual up to 4 feet tall, branching

above; leaves are oval or ovate to obovate, often

deeply lobed or divided into 1 to 3 pairs of lobes.

Seeds are mostly light yellow, one-twelfth inch

long or usually a bit more, usually quite smooth.

Only black mustard is recognized as official {2, :

f. 383) for medical use.

Both kinds of mustard mentioned above are

native to Europe and Asia and both are widely :

naturalized and cultivated around the world— i

they may become weeds difficult to eradicate. I

The principal use of mustard is as a condiment, I

although there is minor use of it in medicine. ' Many commercial products are made from or contain mustard. Both a fixed and an essential oil

may be obtained from the seed. The paste mustard commonly used as a condiment is usually a

combination of the two types of mustard; the

black mustard is to add aroma, whereas the white

mustard adds pungency.

Most cultivated mustard is grown in the Westem States. Montana is the principal producer, i

with Idaho, Washington, and Oregon also produc- j

ing some seed. The 1954 Census of Agriculture \

shows that there were 20,709 acres in the United [

States planted to mustard, which produced 4,165 j

tons of seed ( 401 pounds per acre). i

Land to be sown to mustard should be prepared

in the fall. Seed may be sown with a seeaer in

early spring and then the land harrowed. In j

Montana seeding is done as early as land permits .

preparation and until the first of June. In the

Pacific Coast States seeding is earlier, often as

early as January for black mustard and March

for white mustard. Seeding is at a rate of 3

pounds of black mustard seed or 4 pounds of white

mustard seed per acre. The crop is usually ready

to harvest in August or earlier. Shattering is a

problem, so harvesting is usually done while the

pods are still closed but mature. In Montana

most of the crop is harvested with combines.

Mustard is not a difficult crop to grow and

usually can be handled with ordmary farm machinery. Soil and climate influence seed quality,

so I small trial crop should be grown to see if seed

is of acceptable quality.

Mustard is available in the market from the cultivated acreage, from screenings from grain, and

from imports.

Parsley

Petroselinium crispum (Miller) Nyman !

Umbelliferae |

Parsley is a biennial or short-lived perennial, •I

often grown as an annual, with short muchbranched stems; leaves ternately decompounded, f

the leaflets small, ovate, divided or dentate, usually

crisped. The fruits (seeds) or the volatile oil

from them sometimes is used in medicine. Parsley is native of the rocky shores of the Mediterranean. It is cultivated in most parts of the world

and is escaped in many places. It is one of the

most commonly used of the condiment plants in

flavoring soups, meats, egg dishes, and as a garnish on salads and other dishes. The leaves are
DRUG AND CONDIMENT PLANTS 23

a good source of vitumiii C. Tlie roots are often

used as a vefietable in Europe.

A riclv moist soil is suitable for cultivation of

Ijarsley. The plants may be started early in a

greenhouse or coldframe then transplanted to the

field about 6 inches apart in rows about a foot

apart. "When the leaves are grown they may be

liarvested for market or for drying, heeds are

produced tlie second year and then each year as

long as the planting persists. Seed is harvested as

soon as ripe and carefully dried.

Peppermint

Mentha piperifaTj. Labiatae

Peppermint (ñg. 29) is thought by some

workers to be a hybrid between Mentha .^picata

and M. aquatica. The herbs are perennial, with

runners or rootstocks and a pungent pepperlike

odor; stems erect, branching; leaves petiolate,

lanceolate to ovate-lanceolate, sharply dentate,

acute, glabrous or sparsely pubescent on the veins

below, to about 3 inches long; inflorescences terminal on the stem and branches, spicate, 1 to 3

inches long. The official drug {28, p. Ö18) "Peppermint consists of the dried leaves and flowering

tops of Mentha piperita Linné."

Peppermint, and especially the essential oil distilled from it, is one of the most commonly used

flavoring materials for gum, candies, and many

pharmaceutical preparations. It is used in perfume and in perfuming soaps. Production of the

essential oil in the United States amounted to

about 1,283 tons in 1!)58.

The Agriculture Handbook cited (8) covers

culture and other phases of growing this and other

kinds of mints. The bulletin may be had from

the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Washington

25, D.C. ^

See references 5, 8.

Podophyllum

(Podophyllum root, mandrake, moy-opple, wild jalap)

Podophyllum peltatum L. Berberidaceae

The flowerless stems of podophyllum (ñg. 30)

are terminated by large, round, lobed leaves which

are peltate in the middle; flowering stems usually

have a pair of terminal leaves deeply 3- to 7-lobed

and a solitary flower 2 to 3 inches across in the

fork of the leaves; fruit is 1 to 2 inches long, sometimes eaten.

The official drug {28, p. 560) "Podophyllum

consists of the dried rhizomes and roots of Podophyllum peltatum Linné. It yields not less than 5

percent of resin." (The average yield is perhaps

twice as much.) The rhizome is bitter and acrid

to taste.

Podophyllum is used as a cathartic and as a

caustic for treatment of certain types of papilyp%^ pi

Figure 29.—Peppermint. Figure 30.—Podophlylum.
24 AGRICULTURE HANDBOOK 172, U.S. DEPT. OF AGRICULTURE

lomas (superficial tumors). The portion used is a

resin extracted from the rhizome. It is known as

podophyllum resin or as podophyllin. Methods

of extraction are priven in U.S.P. {28). In overdoses it acts as an irritant poison. It forms the

basis of several proprietary "liver pills."'

Podophyllum rliizome was used empirically by

the American Indians as a vermifuge and emetic.

The young slioots are said to have been used by

Indians for suicidal purposes. The Cherokees,

according to Rafinesque, used the fresh juice of

the rhizome for deafness, placing a few drops in

the ear. The drug became official for the first time

in 1864.

Podophyllum is found native in rich, moist

woods, thickets, and pastiires over much of the

eastern lialf of tlie United States and of adjacent

Canada. It has escaped from cultivation in other

plaxjes. It is often introduced witli intention of

exploiting it. It quickly becomes established in

appropriate ¡places. More formal cultivation for

use as drug is probably rare.

The roots and rhizomes may be harvested at

any time when the soil is not frozen. It may best

be collected in spring or fall. The resin content

is highest in material gatliered in the spring. The

rhizomes are dug, washed, cut into segments, and

dried carefully. Most commercial supplies of

podophyllum come from Virginia, North Carolina,

Tennessee, Kentucky, and Indiana.

Pokeroot

(Poke, pokeberry, pokeweed, pigeonberry, scoke, garget, red ink

plant)

PhytoJ-acca americana L. Phytolaccaceae

Pokeroot (fig. 31) is a glabrous perennial plant,

usually with a reddish or purplish cast as it matures. The root is large, much divided and rather

fleshy; leaves are broadly lanceolate to ovate,

acute, 4 to 5 inches or even more long; fruits

are in nodding terminal racemes, dark purple.

The tender shoots are edible, both berries and roots

are reputed to be poisonous. Sometimes pokeroot

is used in medicine as an emetic and in chronic

rheumatism.

Pokeweed is native to eastern Canada and New

England, south to Florida and Texas. It is usually found in rich low areas and in disturbed

locations.

Most root and berries in tlie drug market are collected from wild or spontaneous plants. The demand is small and it is questionable that formal

ciütivation would be profitable. Pokeweed grows

easily from seed, althougli germination of untreated seed is slow. It thrives in ricli moist soil.

Seedlings thinned to stand about 3 feet apart in

rows should be acceptable. The root might be

harvested by plow the first fall. The second year

the crop should be 8 to 4 times greater, and probably it would have to be harvested by hand. A

crop of 600 pounds of root per acre may be exFigure 31.—Pokeroot.

pected the first year. The plant has been suggested as a crop for greens, and the University of

Arkansas has done some experimental work.

Psyllium

(Planlago seed, planlago, plantain or plantain seed, psyllium

seed, French or Spanish psyllium seed, black psyllium, blond

psyllium, Indian plantago seed, flea seed)

Pl-antaffo psyUiwm L., P. indica L., and P. ovata

Forsk. Plantaginaceae

PysUiums are annual caulescent or acaulescent

herbs. The flowers, in bracteate spikes or heads,

are usually borne on long scapes or peduncles.

Plantago psyllium and P. indica are caulescent

plants with leaves in pairs or whorls; P. ovata is

acaulescent with linear or lanceolate basal leaves.

The official drug (g, p. 4S3), "Plantago Seed is the

cleaned, dried, ripe seed" of the three species mentioned above. These species are native to the

Mediterranean region and to Asia, all are now

spontaneous or naturalized in other parts of the

world. The seed of P. ovata, blond psyllium, is

far more important than the others commercially.

Psyllium, or plantago seed, is used in medicine

almost exclusively in the treatment of chronic constipation. The seeds act as a mechanical laxative

and the mucilaginous covering tends to absorb water and swell and thus give bulk and softness to the

fecal mass.
DRUG AND CONDIMENT PLANTS 25

The mucilage from plantago seed is used as a

sizing for cloth, in cosmetics, in printing, and as

a basic stabilizer in the ice cream industry.

Psyllium has not been cultivated as a crop in the

United States, but some experimental work has

been done in Arizona. The results of this experimentation seemed to indicate that the plant can be

grown here. FJantago ovata is to be preferred

over other species.

Seed is planted (in Arizona) after November 1,

as shallow as possible, and the soil kept moist for

good germination. Frost damage and grasshopper damage were encountered in the experimental studies.

Harvesting, wlien the seed is mature or ripe, has

caused some difficulty, because the plants are not

erect and mechanical harvesting is difficult. Crops

of about 1,000 pounds of seed per acre have been

reported in France. No production data is available for the United States. Mucilage content is

normally between 30 to 35 percent in P. ovata

seeds and may be diy-extracted.

This crop may cause difficulty in the United

States as many species of Plantago are serious

weeds.

Sage

(Salvia, garden sage, true sage)

Salvia officinalis L. Labiatae

Sage (fig. 32) is a herbaceous perennial, or subslirub, to about 2 feet tall, usually white woolly.

Leaves are oblong, acute or obtuse, entire or denticulate, petiolate, the surface rugose ; inflorescence

is simple, terminal or axillary racemes of white,

blue, or purple flowers. Sage is rarely used medicinally in this country, although it is said to be

used in that manner in Europe.

Sage is perhaps the most used condiment herb

and has long been regarded as essential in flavoring of sausages, meats, stuffing for birds, cheeses,

and in ground spice mixtures used to flavor foods

of many kinds. The essential oil or the oleoresin

is sometimes used as flavoring when addition of

leaves would make the product unattractive.

Sage is native to the Mediterranean region and

is now established and cultivated in many regions.

Most of the world supply comes from Yugoslavia

and Albania.

Sage may be propagated from stem cuttings,

which can be rooted in sand. The cuttings, when

rooted, are planted 12 to 18 inches apart in rows

3 feet apart. Larger plantings are made with the

seeds drilled about three-fourths inch deep in

rows 3 feet apart. The seedlings may be thinned

to the desired spacing. Seed may be started also

in a coldframe or greenhouse and transplanted

by hand or by the macliine used to transplant tobacco or vegetable crops. One pound of seed

should provide 10,000 to 15,000 seedlings—enough

for an acre at the spacing given. The first year's

crop from a planting will usually be light, but

after the plants are established two or more cutFigure 32.—Sage.

tings a year may be possible. On the second and

subsequent years, crops of 1,500 to 2,000 pounds

per acre may be obtained.

Several varieties and clones of sage have been

grown. Care should be taken to obtain one that

IS commercially acceptable.

Harvesting is by hand or by cutting the tops

with a mower. Sage is dried in the sliade to retain

as much of the natural color as possible. Drying

sheds may be used or the herb may be dried outside if sun, rain, and dew are avoided. Sage loses

flavor with age and exposure to air. It should be

baled and marketed as soon as possible. Leaves

and small tops bring the best prices. The percentage of stems in sage must be kept at or below

12 percent to comply with the regulation governing this product.

Sage has been successfully grown in the region

from Wisconsin to central Georgia and eastward

and, especially, in the Pacific Northwest. The

plant is usually quite hardy, but it is subject to

several diseases. The crop is economically attractive only when sage is not available from areas of

relatively cheap labor abroad. About 697 tons

of sage were imported from Mediterranean countries in 1958.

See reference 10.
26 AGRICULTURE HANDBOOK 172, U.S. DEPT. OF AGRICULTURE

Sassafras

(White sassafras, oil of sassafras, sassafras oil)

Sassafras alhidum (Nutt.) Nees Lauraceae

Sassafras (fig. 33) grows as a tree, with flowers

appearing before the leaves; flowere dioecious,

borne in several-flowered racemes. Leaves are alternate, entire, or two- or three-lobed; bark is

spicy, aromatic.

The official drug (^, p. 507) "is the dried bark

of the roots . . . ." An essential oil, sassafras oil,

which is also official (^, p. 509) "is the volatile

oil distilled with steam from the roots . . . ." Sassafras occurs as a native over much of the eastern

United States, from Maine to Florida and Illinois to Texas. It is often the first tree species to

reappear after woods have been cleared. It establishes quickly on abandoned farmland.

Sassafras is used as an aromatic, flavoring agent,

and diaphoretic. Perhaps the commonest use is

as a home remedy, "spring tonic" used "to thin the

blood." Eoot bark has been used since colonial

days to make a tea for this purpose.

Any therapeutic value that it may have is due

to the essential oil which it contains. The oil is

also an ingredient in sirups to make root beer,

sarsaparilla, and other soft drinks.

Sassafras is perhaps now^here cultivated for its

root bark or roots, but the drug is collected from

natural stands. Bark is usually collected in summer or fall. The trees are felled, then the roots

are pulled, using a tractor. The roots are cleaned

of adhering dirt and hauled out to the buyer or

distillery. When the ground is frozen the roots

do not pull easily, and in spring when the sap is

up the ijark may slip and be lost when the roots

are pulled. The bark and wood of the stem contains too little oil to be distilled profitably.

Figure 33.—Sassafras.

Senega

(Senega root, séneca snakeroot, rattlesnake root, mountain flax)

PolygaJa senega L. Polygalaceae

Senega (fig. 34) is a perennial herb with several stems, li/o feet tall, from a thick crown and

witli a fleshy, stout root. The loaxes ui-e mostly

liiiear-lanceolate to elliptic or ovate, acuminate, to

3 inches long and an inch wide. Inflorescence is

a terminal raceme witli white flowers. The official

drug is the dried root of the plant. It is used as

an expectorant for bronchitis and asthma. In

o\'erdoses it may become an irritant poison.

Senega is native from New Brunswick to Hudson Bay and Alberta southward to Georgia, Tennessee, and Arkansas.

Pi-opagation may be made from roots collected

fi'om wild plants or from seed. Seed must be

stratified by mixing with sand and burying it in

moist soil until spring, when it may be sown in

seedbeds or slnillow boxes of loam and leafmold.

The seedlings are set out in rows as soon as ready
DRUG AND CONDIMENT PLANTS 27

Fisure 34.—Senega.

to handle. Senega probably requires 4 years to

oblain a crop from seed. There are no data on

probable yield. The roots when mature are harvested, washed, and dried.

The supplies of this drug come mostly from

Canada, where the plant grows wild in some abundance, occasionally becoming a weed in cornfields.

The supply depends on price paid and labor that

cannot find more remunerative work. It is doubtful if the plant could be grown economically in the

United States as a crop in competition with the

wild source.

Sesame

ISesamum, sesame seed, sesame oil)

Sesamum indicum L. Pedaliaceae

Sesame (fig. 35) is an erect annual herb, usually 2 to 3 feet tall but occasionally to 6 feet or

even more, pubescent (or often glandular pubescent) to nearly glabrous; leaves lanceolate or

ovate, the lowermost leaves sometimes trilobate.

The corolla is about an inch long, white to pale

purple, in the axil of leaves or bracts ; the capsule

is about an inch long. The oil, as used medicinally and officially {28, p. 628), is described as "the

refined oil obtained from the seed of one or more

cultivated vai'ieties of Semmum ijidicuin L "

It is used as a solvent, emollient, and nutrient (as

a substitute for olive oil) and in the manufacture

of certain injecta.

Sesame may be native to Africa or India, although India seems more logical. The species is

not closely related to the wild species from south

of the Sahara in Africa. It has been in cultivation for less tiian 3,000 years in India, possibly

migrating to the region of tlie Mediterranean at

a later date. The plant is now widely cultivated

in dry tropical regions and is more commonly

grown in temi)erate regions. It shows promise of

becoming an important croi) in the United States.

Sesame seed, as a condiment, is commonly used

on bakery goods and on various confections and

candies. Toasted (and hulled) seed may be used

to replace nuts in salads and in other dishes in

which nuts are used.

Figure 35.—Sesame.

Tlie principal economic use of the seed is for the

extraction of tlie edible oil, which is known as

sesame oil, teel oil, gingelly oil, or benne oil.

The production of sesame is discussed in a

Farmers' Bulletin {26).
28 AGRICULTURE HANDBOOK 17 2, U.S. DEPT. OF AGRICULTURE

Spearmint

(Scotch spearmint, scotch mint, spearmint oil)

Mentha cardíaca Baker and Mentlia sjñcata L.

Labiatae

Spearmint lierb consists of the leaves and floAvering tops of the two species of Mentha (fig. 36)

given above. Spearmint oil is the essential oil of

these plants distilled with steam from fresh green

parts. Both plants are perennials.

Mentha cardiaca is considered by many botanists to be a hybrid between M. spicata L. and M.

aroensis L. M. .'^picata is sometimes considered to

be of hybrid origin. It is most variable and hybridizes with several other species of Mentha.

The principal use of both the leaf and the

oil is for flavoring. Its best known use is for

flavoring chewing gum. The oil should contain

not less than 55 percent of carvone, the principal

constituent. Spearmint has been used as flavoring

and as a drug plant since Biblical times. It is not

now used in medicine except as flavoring. There

are several other species of mints that have the

odor characteristic of spearmint.

Both species of spearmint are native in Europe

and have been introduced in most parts of the

world. Both kinds are cultivated for oil. Mentha

cardiaca is the one most grown in America.

See references 8, 21.

Stramonium

(Jimson weed, Jamestown weed, thornapple, apple-of-Peni)

Datura stramonium L. Solanáceas

{Datura tatula 1J.)

Stramonium (fig. 37) is an annual herb, to 5

feet or even more tall, glabrous or sparsely pubescent. Leaves are ovate but with irregular acute

lobes or teeth, 3 to 8 inches long; flowers are white

or purple, about 4 inches long ; the capsule is erect,

ovoid, separating into 4 valves, the surface prickley. The official drug (^, p. 560) consists of the

"clried leaves and flowering or fruiting tops with

branches . . . ."

Stramonium is a native probably of America;

in many tropical and temperate regions of the

world it is a naturalized or weedy plant.

Stramonium is used for relief in spasms of

bronchial asthma. The constituents are nearly

the same as those found in belladonna and are

used for the same purpose.

The demand for stramonium is filled normally

from imported material or from domestic material

collected from naturalized plants. Cultivated material is usually of superior quality and cultivation is relatively easy. Rich heavy soils are best.

The seed is drilled in rows about 3 feet apart in

the spring. The seedlings should be thinned to

Figure 36.—Spearmint. Figure 37.—Stramonium.

PN-718
DRUG AND CONDIMENT PLANTS 29

6 to 10 inches apart in the rows. Conti-ol of weeds

is necessary. When t\\e phmts are in flower, the

leaves and tops may be picked by hand. Two or

three pickings are possible. A more economical

method as to the use of hibor is to cut the crop

with a mower. After di-ying, either in tlie Held if

weather permits or in a shed, the heavy stem is

separated from the leaves by flailing or threshing

and discarded. The leaves and small stems are

baled for market. Handpicked material is preferred for medical use, but machine-harvested

material may be satisfactory for the extraction

of the alkaloids.

Stramonium will grow in almost any part of the

United States, except some cold or high or dry

regions. Measures should be taken to control any

leaf-eating pests that attack the crop. Under good

conditions yields of 1,000 to 1,500 pounds of dry

leaf per acre are obtained. The seed may also be

of value, and yields of 500 to 2,000 pounds per

acre have been reported. The crop in the United

States will probably not be profitable as long as

supplies from foreign sources are available.

The use of this plant in home remedies is not

recommended. The alkaloids that it contains are

extremely foisonxnis.

Tonsy

(Common tansy, golden-buHons)

Tanacetum vulgäre L. Compositae

Tansy (ñg. 38) is an odorous perennial herb,

2 to 3 feet tall. Leaves are pinnately divided, the

Fisure 38.—Tansy.

segments linear to lanceolate, serrate or pinnately

divided. Tlie inflorescence is terminal with axillary corymbs of yellow flowers to a half inch

across.

The flowers or herb is used in home remedies;

and an essential oil is distilled from the flowers.

It is used occasionally as a vermifuge or anthelmintic. The oil is quite toxic and care must be

taken in its use.

Tansy is a native of Europe and is now introduced in many areas in the United States, especially the eastern half of the country as an escape

or in cultivation.

Tansy grows well in most soils. It may be

started in seedbeds from seeds or planting may be

made from cuttings or small plants taken from

established fields. After one season the crop covers the field. It should be hand weeded, if necessary. Fields once established are easily maintained for years. For production of oil the crop

is usually cut with a mower, the herb partially

cured in the field, and then distilled. Yields of

10 to 40 pounds of oil per acre are obtained. The

plant is usually grown by producers of other essential oil crops who have equipment to distill the

herb. The demand for the oil of tansy is limited.

Tarragon

Artemisia dracunculus L. Compositae

Tarragon is a much-branched perennial herb

with linear or narrowly lanceolate leaves; flower

heads are greenish white, in spreading panicles.

Native to Europe, tarragon is widely cultivated

for its leaves, which are used, when fresh, for seasoning. An essential oil, called estragon, may be

distilled from the plant.

The cultivated plant rarely produces seed, but it

is easily propagated by root or crown divisions.

The root divisions are set early in spring, spaced 1

foot apart in rows 3 feet apart. The large crown

that develops should be taken up and subdivided

after 3 or 4 years.

The leaves and tops may be harvested at intervals during the growing season and dried carefully in subdued light to retain the color. The

dried product must be stored in tight containers

to prevent loss of flavor.

There has been no experience in this country in

the growing of tarragon as a volatile-oil crop. In

Europe two haiwests are obtained. The flowering

plants are cut to the ground in July, and new

growth develops for a second harvest in September. The oil is distilled like most other volatile oils.

Thyme

(Common fhyme, garden thyme, mother-of-thyme)

Thymus vidgaris L. and T. serpyllum L. Labiatae

The two species of thyme (fig. 39) are small

subshrubs, usually with the stems densely pubes-
30 AGRICULTURE HANDBOOK 172, U.S. DEPT. OF AGRICULTURE

Figure 39.—Thyme.

cent; the leaves are fragrant. The official drug

(2, p. 610) is "the dried leaf and flowering tops of

Thymus vulgaris Linné . . . ." The thymes are

native of Europe but are naturalized and cultivated in many parts of the world.

Thymes are used in flavoring foods, especially

fish, meats, soups, and dressings. Medicinally, the

official species is used as a flavor.

Thyme does well on rich well-drained soils, but

it will grow on poor soils. It may be propagated

by either seeds or cuttings. When grown from

seed it is sown in the field in rows 3 feet ajiart or

started in a greenhouse or seedbed and later transplanted to the field about 18 inches apart in the

rows. Cutting or crown divisions may be rooted

in sand under glass. Field weeding and cultivation are required. Plants tend to become woody

and the crop should be replanted every 2 to 3

years.

Thyme is har^^ested when the plants are in

flower. The herb should be dried in the shade to

retain as much color as possible. The quantity of

stem must be limited in good quality herb. Harvesting is a problem, for adequate machinery has

not been developed. At present hand harvesting

and selection are necessarj^ to keep the percentage

of stems low. In the United States, cost of hand

harvesting, however, may be prohibitive on relatively low value material. Crops of up to 2,000

pounds of dry herb or some 20 pounds of essential

oil per acre may be possible.

Valerian

(Valeriana, garden heliotrope, vandal root, St. Georges herb)

Valeriana offîcinaUs L. Valerianaceae

Valerian (fig. 40) is a perennial herb, to 5 feet

tall, glabrous, or somewliat pubescent below.

Figure 40.—Valerian.

pairs of segments, the segments entire or toothed.

Flowers are small, white to lavendar or red,

fragrant.

valerian is native to Europe and Asia. It has

been cultivated as a drug plant in Europe but

rarely in the United States. The roots are the

part of the plant used as a drug. Valerian is not

now an official drug in the United States and its

value as a drug is sometimes questioned.

Many types of soil are suitable for valerian.

It grows best in moist, rich loams. Propagation

is by division of the old roots in either fall or

spring, and setting them out about 1 foot apart

in rows 2 or 3 feet apart has been recommended.

Plants may be grown from seeds sown as soon as

ripe into a seedbed, and transplanted in eai'ly

spring. Plants require about a year to mature

from cuttings and about 2 years from seedlings.

Roots are perhaps best harvested in the fall,

cleaned, and then dried. Drying is hastened by

cutting the roots lengthwise.

Wintergreen

ICheckerberry, teaberry, goultheria oil, oil of wintergreen)

GauUheria procwmhens L. Ericaceae

Wintergreen (fig. 41) is a small procumbent

Leaves are much divided, usually with 7 to 10 subshrub or an almost herbaceous plant, with the
DRUG AND CONDIMENT PLANTS 31

Figure 41.—Wintergreen.

flowering branches upright and leafy; leaves are

elliptic to obovate, % to 2 inches long, tender at

first but becoming leathery ; flowers are one or

few, white, nodding. Oil ojF wintergreen is not

an official drug. It is used, however, as a flavoring and as a stimulant, rubefacient, and an

antirheumatic.

Wintergreen is native from eastern Canada,

Wisconsin, and Minnesota south through the east

to Georgia and Alabama. Most material collected

for distillation of the oil comes from wild plants

in Pennsylvania and adjacent States. Cultivation is not likely to prove profitable.

Divisions of wild plants may be used for propagation. The divisions should be set out in fall

or spring in a well-prepared bed—leafmold mixed

with good soil and about 4 inches deep—and

placed about 6 inches apart each way. Wintergreen may be harvested from June to the end of

the growing season. The leaf material should be

dehvered to the distillery while still fresh. It

may be stored as long as 2 weeks, however, if it

is spread out to dry.

See reference 9, v. 6, pages 3 to 7.

Witch-Hdzel

(Hamamelis, Hamamelis leof, witch-hazel leaves, Hamamelis

wafer)

Hamamelis virginiana L. Hamamelidaceae

Witch-hazel (fig. 42) is a spreading shrub or

small tree about 15 feet tall. I^eaves are obovate

to suborbicular, crenate-dentate, subcordate at the

base nearly glabrous or pubescent, 2 to 6 inches

Figure 42.—Witch-hazel.

long. Flowers are yellow, the petals strap

sliaped, half to nearly an inch long, appearing in

the fall after the leaves have fallen. Hamamelis

water {2, f. 270) is an official drug. It is prepared

by macerating in water the recently cut, partially

dried, dormant twigs; distilling the material, and

tlien adding 14 or 15 percent of alcohol to the

distillate.

Witch-hazel occurs from southeastern Canada

to Minnesota and southward to Georgia, Tennessee, and Missouri.

Hamamelis water, commonly called witch-hazel,

is used as an astringent. It is used also as a home

remedy for aching muscles, irritated skin, and

other purposes. There is diversity of opinion as

to the therapeutic value of witch-hazel.

Witch-hazel is not cultivated for its medicinal

use. The material used comes entirely from wild

plants, and in only two rather restricted areas are

commercial collections made. In Connecticut, occasionally in Massachusetts and Rhode Island, the

bushes are cut in fall and used in the manufacture

of hamamelis water, the common witch-hazel of

the drugstore. Between 644,000 and 1 million gallons of hamamelis water have been manufactured

annually during the last decade. In the southern

Appalacliians, Virginia, West Virginia, North

Carolina, Tennessee, and Kentucky fresh leaves

and bark stripped from the branches are collected.

This raw material is used in tlie manufacture of

pharmaceuticals and cosmetics.

See reference 7.
32 AGRICULTURE HANDBOOK 172, U.S. DEPT. OF AGRICULTURE

Wormseed

(Chenopodium oil, American wormseed oil, oil of Chenopodium)

Chenopodium amhj'osioides L. Chenopodiaceae

(Syn. Chenopodium ambrosioides var. anthelmint.¿cum (L.) Gray)

Wormseed (fig. 43) is an annual or perennial

herb, to 31/^ feet tall, much branched, and strong

smelling. Leaves are oblong to lanceolate, entire

to coarsely toothed or often the lower ones are

laciniate. The flowers are in loose spikes, the inflorescences compound in older plants. Seeds

about one-thirtieth of an inch broad. The commercial and official (2, p. H8) product, "Chenopodium oil is the volatile oil distilled with steam

from tlie fresh, above ground parts of the flowering and fruiting plant . . . ." Wormseecl is a native of the West Indies, Central America, and

South America. It is now widely naturalized in

temperate and tropical regions of the world and

cultivated in a few places for the oil that it produces. Carroll County, Md., is perhaps the center

of cultivation of the plant.

Chenopodium oil is used as an anthelmintic for

both man and animals. CA TJTION! This oil is

toxic; it must not he carelessly used.

The plant grows well under cultivation, and the

preparation usually given to cornland is satisfactory for it. Plants may be started in weed-free

seedbeds as early as February (in Maryland).

Seedlings may be pulled and then transplanted by

machine when they are 6 to 8 inches tall. The

seedlings are set about 18 inches apart in rows

that are 3 feet apart, or the width of rows adjusted to the available cultivating equipment.

Cultivation to avoid contamination of the crop by

weeds is important. Harvesting should be done

at a stage of maturity when about 50 percent of

the seecls are black and about 25 percent are

brown. Excessive shattering and loss of seed may

result if the crop is permitted to mature more.

The oil is found on all parts of the plant, but most

(90 percent) is on the seed. The plants may be

cured several days before being distilled. Shattering and loss of seed should be avoided in handling the crop after drying.

See reference 17.

Figure 43.—Wormseed.
DRUG AND CONDIMENT PLANTS

GLOSSARY OF DRUG TERMS

(Excluding Chemical Constituents)

33

AUeyative.—A rather vague term to indicate a substance that hastens renewal of tissues that they may

better carry on their function.

Atttlielmintic.—A medicine used to expel or destroy intestinal worms.

Antiasthmatic.—A remedy that relieves asthma.

Aphrodisiac.~An agent alleged to stimulate sexual

desire.

Aromatic.—An agent or substance added to a medicine

to give it aroma or flavor.

Astringent.—An agent which shrinks, blanches, wrinkles, and hardens tissue ; diminishes secretions and exúdales and coagulates blood.

Bitter.—A drug of bitter taste used to stimulate the

appetite.

Carminative.—An agent used to expel gas and relieve

colic.

Cathartic.—An agent or drug used to cause an evacuation of the bowel. There are several classes of cathartics that act in different ways to induce evacuation.

Caustic.—A substance that burns organic tissue by

chemical action.

Counterirritant.—An agent used to cause irritation to

the part to which applied and draw blood away from

a deep-seated area.

Demulcent.—An agent used to protect and soothe mucous membranes.

Diaphoretic.—An agent used to increase the perspiration.

Diuretic.—An agent used to increase the flow of urine.

Emetic.—An agent that causes vomiting.

Emmcnagogue.—An agent that reestablishes or increases the menstrual flow.

Emollient.—Any agent used externally that softens,

makes supple, or soothes and protects the skin.

Kj/jretorant.—An agent used to cause the expulsion

of mucus from the respiratory tract.

Flavoring.—Any substance used to give a particular

flavor to a medicine.

GaUictagoyiic.—An agent used to increase the secretion

of milk.

liaUiicinogcnic—An agent that produces hallucinations.

Hemostatic.—An agent used to arrest internal hemorrhage.

Hijilrugogue cathartic—A cathartic that causes abundant watery evacuations.

Injecta.—Drugs or agents administered by injection.

Laxative.—A mild cathartic agent that causes a more

or less normal evacuation of the bowel, usually without

griping or irritation.

Mydriatic.—A medicine or agent causing dilation of

the pupil of the eye.

Riibefacient.—An agent that, when applied to the skin,

produces a mild irritation accompanied by reddening of

the skin.

Sedative.—An agent that allays excitement and soothes

the system.

Solvent.—A fluid capable of dissolving substances.

Stimulant.—An agent that increases functional activity.

Stomachic.—An agent used to stimulate the appetite

and gastric secretion.

Tonic.—A medicine or agent used to stimulate the restoration of physical or mental tone.

Vermifuge.—A medicine that tends to expel worms.

REFERENCES

(1) ANONYMOUS.

1927. GINGER : ITS CULTIVATION, PREPARATION AND

TRADE. Imp. Inst. Bui. 24: 677-681, illus.

(2) AMERICAN PHARMACEUTICAL ASSOCIATION.

1955. THE NATIONAL FORMULARY. Ed. 10. 867 pp.

Philadelphia and Montreal.

(3) BARGER, GEORGE.

1931. ERGOT AND ERGOTISM. 279 pp., illus. Londou

and Edinburgh.

(4) DERMEN, HAIO.

1940. C0LCHICINE POLYPLOIDY AND TECHNIQUE.

Bot. Rev. 6 : 599-635.

(5) DE WOLP, G. P.

1954. NOTES ON CULTIVATED LABIATES, 2. MENTHA.

Baileya 2 : 3-11, illus.

(6) ELI LILLY & Co.

1957. THE ERGOT ALKALOIDS. Res. Today 57: 1-18,

illus.

(7) FULLING, E. H.

1953. AMERICAN WITCH HAZEL HISTORY, NOMENCLATURE AND MODERN UTILIZATION. ECOU.

Bot. 7 : 359-381, illus.

(8) GREEN, R. J., JR., and ERICKSON, H. T.

1959. MINT FARMING. U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Inform. Bui. 212, 26 pp., illus.

(9) GUENTHER, ERNEST.

1948-52. THE ESSENTIAL OILS. 6 V., lllus. New

York and London.

(10) HANSON, W. I., and HOCKING. G. M.

1957. GARDEN SAGE. Econ. Bot. 11: 64-74.

(11) HILL, A. F.

1952. ECONOMIC BOTANY. Ed. 2. 560 pp., illus.

New York and London.

(12) HOCKING, G. M.

1945 AMERICAN ARNICA IN MEDICINE. Chcm. Digest 4: 10-12.

(13)

(14)

(15)

(16)

(17)

(18)

(19)

(20)

(21)

(22)

HODGE, W. H.

1953. THE DRUG ALOES OF COMMERCE WITH SPECIAL

REFERENCE TO THE CAPE SPECIES. EcOU. Bot.

7 : 99-129, illus.

HOUSEMAN, P. A.

1944. LICORICE ROOT AS A CHEMURGIC CROP FOR

AMERICA. Chem. Digest 3: 84-88, illus.

HUMM, H. J.

1944. AGAR RESOURCES OF THE SOUTH ATLANTIC AND

EAST GULF COASTS. Scicnce 100: 209-212,

illus.

1947. AGAR A PRE-WAR JAPANESE MONOPOLY. EcOn.

Bot. 1: 317-329, illus.

KUHN, A. O.

1951. PRODUCTION OF woRMSEED OIL. Md. College

of Agr. Fact Sheet 45.

LOWMAN, M. S., GILBERT, N. S., and KELLY, J. W.

1949. CORIANDER YIELD AND QUALITY. Amer. Perfumer and Essenüal Oil Rev. 54:209-212,

300-302, illus.

OsoL, ARTHUR, and FARRAR, G. B., Jr., with others.

1955. THE DISPENSATORY OF THE UNITED STATES OF

AMERICA. EM. 25, 2139 pp. Philadelphia

and Montreal.

REDGROVE, H. S.

1933. SPICES AND CONDIMENTS. 361 pp. London.

RüTTLE, M. L.

1938. SOME COMMON MINTS AND THEIR HYBRIDS.

The Herbalist 4 :17-29, illus.

SHINNERS, L. H.

1956. TECHNICAL NAMES FOR THE CULTIVATED PEPPERS. Baileya 4: 81-83.
34 AGRICULTURE HANDBOOK 172, U.S. DEPT. OF AGRICULTURE

(23) SiEVERS, A. F.

1948. PRODUCTION OF DRUG AND CONDIMENT PLANTS.

U.S. Dept. Agr. Farmers' Bui. 1999, 99 pp.,

illus.

(24) STARKER, T. J., and WILCOX, A. R.

1931. CASCARA. Amer. Jour. Phar. 103, Nos. 2

and 3.

(25) STOLOFF, LEONARD.

1949. IRISH MOSS FROM AN ART TO AN INDUSTRY.

Econ. Bot. 3 : 428-435, illus.

(26) UNITED STATES AGRICULTURAL RESEARCH SERVICE.

1958. SESAME PRODUCTION. U.S. Dept. Agr. Farmers' Bui. 2119, 12 pp., illus.

(27) UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE.

1954. CENSUS OF AGRICULTURE, V. 2, eh. 7.

(28) UNITED STATES PHARMACOPEIAL CONVENTION, INC.

1955. THE PHARMACOPEIA OF THE UNITED STATES.

15th Rev. 1178 pp., supplements. Easton,

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(29) VAN HORN, D. L.

19.52. CASTORBEAN PRODUCTION. U.S. Dept. Agr.

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(30) WILLIAMS, L. O.

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INDEX TO COMMON AND SCIENTIFIC NAMES

Aconite, 2, 3

Aconite root, 2

Aconitum nnpclltif!, 2, 3

Agar, 3

Agar-agar, 3

Ahiifcltia plicata, 3

Algin, 3

Aloe harhadcnsis, 4

Aloe, Curaçao, 4

Aloe vera, 4

Aloe milgaris, 4

Aloe, West Indian, 4

Aloes, 4

Aloin, 4

Althaea ofßcinalis, 4

Althea, 4

American arnica, 6

American wormseed oil, 32

Anethiim gmveolens, 16

Angelica, 5

Angelica archangelica, 5

Angelica atropurpúrea, 5

Angelica root, 5

Angelica seed, 5

Anise, 5

Anise oil, .5

Anise seed, 5

Anithol, 6

Anthémis nobilis, 9

Anthraqulnone, 11

Apium graveolens, 12

Apiiiwi grai'eolens var. dulce, 12

Apple, may-, 23

Apple-of-Peru, 28

Apples, bitter, 13

Apples, colocynth, 13

Aretium lappa, 8

Arctinin minus, 8

Arnica, 6

Arnica, American, 6

Arnica co-rdifolia, 6

Arnica, European, 6

Arnica flowers, 6

Arnica fulgens, 6

Arnica montana, 6

Arnica sororia, 6

Artemisia dracunculus, 29

Asthma weed, 21

Atropa helladonna, 7

Atropa helladonna var. acumituita, 7

Autumn crocus, 13

Basil, 6

Basil, garden, 6

Basil oil, 6

Basil, sweet, 6

Basilic, grand, 6

Bean, hogs, 19

Bearberry, 11

Bearwood, 11

Beggars buttons, 8

Belladonna, 1, 7, 28

Belladonna leaf, 7

Belladonna root, 7

Benne oil, 27

Bitter apples, 13

Bitter thistle, 7

Bitterweed, 7

Black henbane, 10

Rlaclv mustard, 22

Black psyllium, 24

Blessed thistle, 7, 8

Blond psyllium, 24

Blowballs, 14

Bluerocket, 2

Hrassica alha, 22

Hrassica hirta, 22

Brassica nigra, 22

Brown mustard, 22

Burdock, 8

Burdock root, 8

Calendula, 8

Calendula officinalis, 8

Camomile, 9

Camomile, English, 9

Camomile flowers, 9

Camomile, garden, 9

Camomile, German, 9

Camomile, Hungarian, 9

Camomile, Roman, 9

Camomile, sweet false-, 9

Camomile, wild, 9

Capsicum, 10

Capsicum annuuin, 9

Capsicum- annuum var. fasciculatum,

9, 10

Capsicum annuum var. frutescens,

9,10

Capsic-um annuum var. grossum, 9,

10

Capsicum annuum var. longum, 9, 10

Capsicum peppers, 2, 9,10

Caraway, 10

Caraway fruit, 10

Caraway oil, 10

Caraway seed, 10

Carrageen, 13

Carragenin, 13

Carum carvi, 10

Carvone, 10, 28

Cascara buckthorn, 11

Cascara sagrada, 3, 11

Castorbean, 1, 11,12

Castor oil, 11

Castor oil plant, 11

Castor oil.seed, 11

Celery, 12

Celery fruit, 12

Celery, oil of, 12

Celery seeds, 12

Chamomile, 9

Checkerberry, 30

Chenopodium amirosioides, 32

Chenopodium ambrosioides var. anthclminticum, 32

Chenopodium oil, 32

Chinese gelatin, 3

Chittem bark, 11

Chondrus, 13

Chondrus crispus, 13

CitruUus colocgnthis, 13

Clavioeps purpurea, 16

Cnicus benedictus, 7

Coffeeberry, 11

Colobicine, 13

Colcliicnm, 13

Colchiciim autumnale, 13

Colcliicum-root, 13

Colocynth, 13

Colocynth apples, 13

Colocynth pulp, 13

Conunon tansy, 29

Common thyme, 29

Coriander, 14

Coriander fruit, 14

C'oriander oil, 14

Coriander seed, 14

Coriandrum sntimtm, 14

Crocus, autumn, 13

Cumin, 14

Cumin fruits, 14

Cumin seed, 14

Cumin urn cyminum, 14

Curaçao aloe, 4

Cursed thistle, 7

Dandelion, 14, 15

Datura stramonium, 28

Datura fatula, 28

Deadly nightshade, 7

Diethylamide, lysergic acid, 17

r>igitalis, 1, 15

Digitalis lanata, 16

Digitalis leaf, 15

Digitalis purpurea, 15

Digitoxin, 15, 16

Dill, 16

Dill oil. 16

Dill seed, 16

Dill seed oil, 16

Dill weed, 16

Dill weed oil, 16

Emetic weed, 21

Kndncladia muricata, 3

Ergot, 16, 17

Ergot of rye, 16

Estragon oil, 29

European arnica, 6

Fairy cap, 15

Fennel, 17

Fennel fruit, 17

Fennel, oil of, 17

Fennel seed, 17

Flax, mountain, 26

Flea seed. 24

Focniculum vulgäre, 17

Focnieulum vulgäre var. dulce, 17

Focniculum. vulgäre var. pannwriuni,

17

Focniculum vulgäre var. vulgäre, 17

Foxglove, 15

Foxglove, i>urple, 15

French psyllium seed, 24

Friars cap, 2

Garden basil, 6

Garden-camomile, 9

Garden dill, 16

Garden heliotrope, 30

Garden marigold, 8

Garden marjoram, 21

35
36 INDEX TO COMMON AND SCIENTIFIC NAMES

Garden sage, 25

Garden thyme, 29

Garget, 24

Gaultheria oil, 30

Gaultheria proaumbetis, 30

Gelatin, Chinese, 3

Gelatin, Japanese, 3

Oelidium ammisii, 3

OeJidium cartilaginetim, 3

Gelosa, 3

Gigartina mamlllosa, 13

Gingelly oil, 27

Ginger, 18

Ginger rhizome, 18

Ginger root, 18

Ginseng, 18, 19

Ginseng root, 18

Glycyrrhiza, 20

GUjcyrrhiza glabra, 20

Giycyrrhim glabra var. glan4t(lifera,

20

Golden-buttons, 29

Goldenseal, 18

Gracilaria cmifervoides, 3

Grand basilic, 6

Ground raspberry, 18

Guar, 1

Hamamelis, 31

Hamamelis leaf, 30

Hamamelis virginiana, 31

Hamamelis water, 31

Heliotrope, garden, 30

Hemp, 2

Henbane, 19, 20

Henbane, black, 19

Herb, seal, 19

Hoarhound, 20

Hogs bean, 19

Holy thistle, 7

Horehound, 20

Horn seed, 16

Hydrastis, 18

Hydrastis canadensis, 18

Hyoscyamine, 20

Hyoseyamus, 19

Hyoscyamus herb, 19

Hyoseyamus leaves, 19

Hyoscyamus niger, 19

Hypnea muciformis, 3

Indian paint, 18

Indian plantago seed, 24

Indian tobacco, 21

Irish moss, 13

Isinglass, Japanese, 3

Isobarbaloin, 4

Jalap, wild, 23

Jamestown weed, 28

Japanese gelatin, 3

Japanese isinglass, 3

Jimson weed, 28

Ladys glove, 15

Lappa, 8

Licorice, 20, 21

Licorice root, 20

Minaloöl, 6

Lions tooth, 14

Liquorice, 20

Lobelia, 21

Lobelia inflata, 21

Lobeline, 21

Majoranu horten-sis, 21

Mandrake, 23

Marigold, 8

Marigold, garden, 8

Marjoram, 21, 22

Marjoram, garden, 21

Marjoram, sweet, 21

Marrubium, 20

Marrubiiim vulgäre, 20

Marshmallow, 4

Marshmallow root, 4

Matricaria chamomilla, 9

May-apple, 23

Meadow saffron, 13

Meadow saffron corm, 13

Mentha aquatica, 23

Mentha arvensis, 28

Mentha cardiaca, 28

Mentha piperita, 23

Mentha spicata, 2S, 28

Mint, scotch, 28

Monkshood, 2

Moss, Irish, 13

Moss, salt rock, 13

Mother of rye, 16

Mother-of-thyme, 29

Mountain flax, 26

Mucilage, 25

Mustard, 22

Mustard, black, 22

Mustard, brown, 22

Mustard, white, 22

Nightshade, deadly, 7

Nightshade, stinking, 19

Oe-imum basilicum, 6

Oil, American wormseed, 32

Oil, anise, 5

Oil, basil, 6

Oil, benne, 27

Oil, bitter fennel, 17

Oil, caraway, 10

Oil, castor, 11

Oil, chenopodium, 32

Oil, coriander, 14

Oil, dill, 16

Oil, dill herb, 16

Oil, dill seed, 16

Oil, dill weed, 16

Oil, estragon, 29

Oil, gaultheria, 30

Oil, gingelly, 27

Oil, Indian fennel, 17

Oil of celery, 12

Oil of chenopodium, 32

Oil of dill, 16

Oil of fennel, 17

Oil of sassafras, 26

Oil of wintergreen, 30

Oil, Roman fennel, 17

Oil, sassafras, 26

Oil, sesame, 27

Oil, spearmint, 28

Oil, sweet fennel, 17

Oil, tansy, 29

Oil, teel, 27

Orange root, 18

Orif/anum majorana, 21

Our Ladys thistle, 7

Palma Christi, 11

Panax quinquefolius, 18

Parsley, 2, 22

Peppermint, 23

Peppers, 10

Peppers, capsicum, 2, 9,10

Petroselinium crispum, 22

Phytolacca americana, 24

Pigeonberry, 24

Pimpinella anisum, 5

Plantago, 24

Plantago indica, 24

Plantago ovata, 24, 25

Plantago psyllium, 24

Plantago seed, 24

Plantago seed, Indian, 24

Plantain, 24

Plantain seed, 24

Podophyllin, 24

Podophyllum, 23

Podophyllum peltatum, 23

Podophyllum resin, 24

Podophyllum root, 23

Poison tobacco, 19

Poke, 24

Pokeberry, 24

Pokeroot, 24

Pokeweed, 24

Polygala senega, 26

Poppy, opium, 2

Psyllium, 24

Psyllium, black, 24

Psyllium, blond, 24

Psyllium seed, 24

Psyllium seed, French, 24

Psyllium seed, Spanish, 24

Puccoon, yellow, 18

Purple foxglove, 15

Raspberry, ground, 18

Rattlesnake root, 26

Red ink plant, 24

Resin, podophyllum, 24

Rhaninus purshiana, 11

Rhubarb, 14

Ricinus communis, 11

Rye, ergot of, 16

Rye, mother of, 16

Rye, spurred, 16

Sacred bark, 11

Safflower, 1

Saffron, meadow, 13

Sage, 25

Sage, garden, 25

Sage, true, 25

St. Georges herb, 30

Salt Rock moss, 13

Salvia, 25

Salvia officinalis, 25

Sang, 18

Saponins, 15

Sassafras, 26

Sassafras albidum, 26

Sassafras oil, 26

Sassafras, white, 26

Scoke, 24

Scotch mint, 28

Scotch spearmint, 28

Seal herb, 19

Seneca snakeroot, 26

Senega, 26, 27

Senega root, 26

Senna, 14

Sesame, 1, 27

Sesame oil, 27

Sesame seed, 27

Sesamum, 27

Sesamum indicum, 27

Snakeroot, séneca, 26

Spanish licorice root, 20

Spanish liquorice root, 20

Spanish psyllium seed, 24

Spearmint, 28

Spearmint oil, 28

Spearmint, scotch, 28

Spurred rye, 16

Stinking nightshade, 19

Stramonium, 28
INDEX TO COMMON AND SCIENTIFIC NAMES 37

Sweet basil, 6

Sweet false-camomile, 9

Sweet luarjoi-am, 21

Tanacetum vulgäre, 29

Tansy, 29

Tansy, common, 29

Taraxacum, 14

Taraxacum erythrospermum, 14

Taraxacum offlchiale, 14

Tarragon, 29

Teaberry, 30

Teel oil, 27

Thistle, bitter, 7

Thistle, cursed, 7

Thistle, Holy, 7

Thistle, Our Ladys, 7

Thornapple, 28

Thyme, 29,30

Thyme, common, 29

Thyme, garden, 29

Thyme, niother-of-, 29

Thijmus serpyUum, 29

Thymus vulgaris, 29

Tobacco, 20

Tobacco, Indian, 21

Tobaccf), poison, 19

Tobacco, wild, 21

True sage, 25

Valerian, .30

Valeriana, 30

Valeriana afflcinalis, 30

A'andal root. 30

Vegetable gelatine, 3

Wahoo, 11

Water, Hamamelis, 31

West Indian aloe, 4

White mallow, 4

White mustard, 22

White sassafras, 26

Wild camomile, 9

Wild jalap, 23

Wild tobacco, 21

Wintergreen, 30, 31

Wiiitergreen, oil of, 30

Witi'h-hazel, 31

Witch-hazel leaves, 31

Wolfbane, 2

Wolf.s-bane, 6

Wormseed, 32

Yellow puccoon, 18

Yellow root, 18

Ziwjiter officinale, 18

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