LI E) R.AFLY OF THE UNIVERSITY or ILLINOIS 570 W4TURAL History SURVEY WATURAC HISTORY SURVf^- L" Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2010 with funding from University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign http://www.archive.org/details/drugplantsofilli44teho DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS LEO T E H O N ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY CIRCULAR 44 -ist^r ii ,\ )M^ 'TV^ STATE OF ILLINOIS Adlai E. Stevenson, Governor DEPARTMENT OF REGISTRATION AND EDUCATION Noble J. Puffer, Director The Drug Plants of Illinois LEO R. TEHON Draii'ings by Kay H. Wadsworth CIRCULAR 44 Printed by Axithority of the State of Illinois NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY DIVISION ^^ VRB.iyA Harlow B. Mills, Chief Ip^SK^ -^w/.v, /^5^ AUG 2 1 195.1 Adlai tL. bTEVENSON, GovemoT DEPARTMENT OF REGISTRATION AND EDUCATION Noble J. Puffer, Director A. E. Emerson, Ph.D., Biology L. H. Tiffany, Ph.D., Forestry L. R. HowsoN, B.S.C.E., C.E., Engineering BOARD OF NATURAL RESOURCES AND CONSERVATION Noble J. Puffer, Chairman George D. Stoddard, Ph.D., Litt.D., L.H.E LL.D., President oj the University oj Illinois Walter H. Newhouse, Ph.D., Geology Roger Adams, Ph.D., D.Sc, Chemistry NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY DIVISION Urbana, Illinois Scientific and Technical Staff Harlow B. Mills, Ph.D., Chief Bessie B. East, M.S., Assistant to the Chief Section of Economic Entomology George C. Decker, Ph.D., Entomologist and Head J. H. Bigger, M.S., Entomologist L. L. English, Ph.D., Entomologist C. J. Weinman, Ph.D., Entomologist S. C. Chandler, B.S., Associate Entomologist Willis N. Bruce, M.A., Associate Entomologist John M. Wright, M.A., Assistant Entomologist W. H. Luckmann, M.S., Assistant Entomologist H. B. Petty, M.A., Associate in Entomology Extension James M. Bann, B.S., Research Assistant Paul Suranyi, Ph.D., Laboratory Assistant Sue E. Watkins, Technical Assistant Section of Faunistic Surveys and Insect Identification H. H. Ross, Ph.D., Systematic Entomologist and Head Milton W. Sanderson, Ph.D., Associate Tax- onomist Lewis J. Stannard, Jr., M.S., Assistant Tax- onomist Leonora K. Gloyd, M.S., Laboratory Assistant Philip W. Smith, B.S., Laboratory Assistant William R. Richards, B.S., Laboratory Assistant Grace H. Hull, Technical Assistant Section of Publications and Public Rela- tions James S. Ayars, B.S., Technical Editor and Head Blanche P. Young, B.A., Assistant Technical Editor William E. Clark, Assistant Technical Pho- tographer James W. Curfman, B.S., Technical Assistant Technical Library Marguerite Simmons, M.A., M.S., Technical Librarian Ruth Warrick, B.S., Assistant Technical Libra- rian Section of Applied Botany and Plant Pj thology Leo R. Tehon, Ph.D., Botanist and Head J. Cedric Carter, Ph.D., Plant Pathologist J. L. Forsberg, M.S., Associate Plant Pathok\ gist G. H. BoEWE, M.S., Assistant Plant Patholog. Robert A. Evers, M.S., Assistant Botanist E. A. Curl, M.S., Special Research Assistant Sylvia Wolcyrz, M.S., Special Research As si. ant Wanda C. Palandech, B.S., Technical Assista Section of Aquatic Biology George W. Bennett, Ph.D., Aquatic Biolog. and Head William C. Starrett, Ph.D., Associate Aqua, Biologist D. F. Hansen, Ph.D., Assistant Aquatic Biolog., R. W. Larimore, Ph.D., Research Assistant \ Walter H. Hart, Field Assistant Leonard Durham, M.S., Technical Assistant* QuENTiN Pickering, M.A., Technical Assistan William M. Bain, B.A., Technical Assistant* Section of Game Research and Manage- ment T. G. Scott, Ph.D., Game Specialist and He, Ralph E. Yeatter, Ph.D., Game Specialist Frank C. Bellrose, B.S., Associate Game Sp cialist H. C. Hanson, M.S., Assistant Game Speciah James S. Jordan, M.F., Assistant Game Tec nician George C. Arthur, B.S., Project Leader^ Lysle R. Pietsch, M.F., Project Leaderf John C. Calhoun, B.S., Assistant Project Leade., Section of Forestry Willet N. Wandell, M.F., Forester and Hei Lawson B. Culver, B.S., Associate in Forest Extension Ross J. Miller, M.S., Field Ecologist Charlotte Aschbacher, B.A., Technical Assi. ant Consultant in Herpetology: Hobart M. Smith, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Zoology, University t Illinois. ♦Employed by the Illinois Department of Conservation and assigned to the Natural History Survey for ad mini trative and technical supervision. tEmployed by the Illinois Department of Conservation under terms of the Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration A' and assigned to the Natural History Survey for administrative and technical supervision. This paper is a contribution from the Section of Applied Botany and Plant Pathology. (1069;]— 7500— 6-50) ^^^s^^z CONTENTS Collecting, Drying, and Marketing 1 What plants to collect 1 General requirements 2 Herbs and leaves 3 Roots 3 Barks from trunks 4 ^ Barks from roots 4 ^g Flowers 4 c^ Fruits 4 ^ Seeds 5 Drying methods 5 Packing drug plants 7 ^•^ Shipment of crude drugs 7 i£? Cultivation of Drug Plants 8 *■— • Kinds of Drug Plants 9 Plants included 9 ^ Scientific names 10 ^ Common names 10 ■ Species discussions 10 Availability of native drug plants 10 The collecting season 10 Medicinal principles 11 Medicinal uses of plants 13 Acknowledgments 13 The Plants and Their Pictures 14 Index 123 The frontispiece is a reproduction of "The Mystic Book of Hypocrates," from a rare old engraving by Pierre Francois Bason (1723-1797), in the Fisher Collection of Alchemical and Flistorical Pictures in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Bason's engraving is based on an original oil painting by David Teniers, Jr. (1610-1690). The engraving is reproduced here through courtesy of the Fisher Scientific Company. As stated on the title page, the drawings of drug plants are the work of Mrs. Kay H. Wadsworth. The drawings of a drying shed and drying shelves are by Earl S. Perrine. The cover design is by Mrs. Olga K. Durham. The Drug Plants of Illinois LEO R. TEHON ABOUT 900 plant species are used directly or yield some product em- ployed in the American drug trade. Of this large number, about 350 grow as native, naturalized, or cultivated plants somewhere in the United States. No accurate estimate can be made of the amount of drug plants collected annually, because of variations in demand for individual kinds of plants and in the supplies of them available from year to year. The total in both pounds and money value is great. To this total, Illinois is not at present one of the major contributors. However, significant amounts of crude drugs are collected in various parts, particularly the southern part, of the state. These collections find their way into the drug trade through local buyers and such principal markets as those in St. Louis, Missouri, Asheville, North Carolina, and Marion, Virginia. Nearly 300 plant species used as drugs grow wild or are cultivated in Illinois. A few of these are rare. Many however, are common, even abundant, and constitute a natural resource of considerable potential value. There is opportunity for residents of the state to engage more actively than they do now in the collection of crude drugs and, thereby, to increase their incomes by small to large amounts. It is the purpose of this publication to encourage the use of this natural resource by furnishing instructions for collecting, drying, packing, and marketing crude drugs and by listing, describing, and picturing those kinds of plants which are demanded by the drug trade. Collecting, Drying, and Marketing What plants to collect. — Generally it is best for the beginner not to collect any and every drug plant that is available. For many drug plants, the demand is small and irregular, and is likely to be supplied by established collectors. To spend effort in collecting such plants may result in loss of the collector's time and effort, because of the possibility that what has been collected cannot be sold. Other plants, though always in large and regular demand, may from time to time bring so small a price that the money received from their sale will hardly cover the transportation cost which the collector must pay on them from his home to the market, and will leave him little or no cash return for the labor of collecting. Before beginning the season's collecting, the prospective collector should write to one or more of the large firms that purchase crude herbs and roots and ask for want lists. Large purchasing firms issue periodical, usually monthly, lists of the crude drugs they wish to buy and give the price per [1] 2 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 pound they are willing to pay for each kind, delivered at their warehouses. Such lists also state what drug plants are not wanted — a helpful feature to the collector, since he can then avoid collecting what he cannot sell. Most want lists also indicate what items the purchasing firm most desires to obtain. Certain plants, for example ginseng, always bring high prices. These, if available in the collector's territory, may be gathered even in small quantities. However, since most plants bring only moderate prices, the collector should plan to collect plants that are available to him in quantity, concentrating on the collection of a number of selected plants which, want lists and other marketing information indicate, are likely to yield an ade- quate return for the time and labor expended in collecting and preparing them for sale. Especially with experienced and reliable collectors, some large buying firms are often willing to contract beforehand to purchase either specified quantities or the full season's collections of specific kinds of crude drugs, thus assuring their own supply and to some extent protecting the collectors as to price. Unless a contract exists or a definite order has been given the collector, a buying firm can refuse to accept what is shipped to it ; one large company reserves the privilege of taking not more than 1 ton of any one article or not over 100 dollars worth in total value, without previous contract. General requirements. — While for certain plants special procedures are necessary, there are fundamental requirements that must always be ob- served in collecting and handling drug plants. These requirements may be listed as follows: 1. Collect at the time of year proper for each plant. The amount of effective medicinal material present in certain drug plants may vary with such factors as season, the age of the plant, and the stage in development or maturity of the plant. Generally, the plant or plant part should be collected when the active constituent is present in greatest amount.- a. Barks. As a rule, collect when shrubs or trees are "in sap," that is to say, in very late winter or early spring. b. Herbs. Take usually in full flower, since they are then at their maximum of growth and will afford both the largest bulk and the largest amounts of medicinal principles. c. Bulbs, Take either in fall or winter, when the plant is dormant, or in early spring, when growth is starting. d. Roots. With a few notable exceptions, gather during the growing season, while the plants are green and active, and in the fall and winter, when the roots are filled with concentrated, stored materials. In general, the later roots are collected the better. They are often collected after the tops of the plants have died down but can still be seen and recognized. 2. Thoroughly dry, or "cure," collected material before offering it for sale. Some rules governing this drying are as follows: a. Air-dry the material in circulating air and out of direct sunlight. Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 3 b. Speed the dryinj^ process sufficiently to prevent the development of molds, and, in many plants containing volatile oils, to prevent dissipation of these oils during slow drying. {This rule does not apply if artificial heat is used.) c. Endeavor to retain in dried herb and leaf material as much of the natural green color as possible, d. Cut large, fleshy roots and rhizomes into pieces to hasten drying. (Ginseng! is an exception to this rule.) 3. See that all materials are clean and that they conform to the best standards for crude drug material. Roots and rhi/.omes should be washed clean of soil ; blossoms should have a minimum of leaf and stem parts; herbs should be free of foreign material, clean and free of dust, and as little shattered and broken as possible ; seeds should be clean, free of contaminating seeds, and free of pod, shell, and hull fragments, 4. Protect all dried material, during storage and prior to shipment, from becoming infested with insects or from being invaded b\- molds. 5. See that, when shipped, the materials are dry, free from insects, not moldy, and well packaged or baled. 6. Before the drug plant is collected, identify it beyond any possible doubt. This is extremely important, for the wrong plant material would, of course, be refused when offered for sale. Inexperienced collectors can submit sample material to firms purchasing crude drugs or obtain help from veteran collectors. In any event, a person intending to become a general collector should obtain some knowledge of the botanical characteris- tics of plants and learn to use botanical descriptions and illustrations in the identification of doubtful plants. Herbs and leaves. — Herbs are generally understood as being the entire above-ground parts, including stems, branches, leaves, flowers and, at times, some fruit or seed. Leaves include only leaves and should be whole and free of stem fragments. It is of prime importance that herbs and leaves. when offered for sale, be of a bright, natural green color, free of mold, and thoroughly dry, and that they contain no hard stems or stem fragments. For retention of natural greenness and prevention of molding, the drying should not be too rapid and should be done in the shade or indoors, the material being spread in thin layers or hung in such a manner as to permit free circulation of air. Exposing of herbs and leaves to strong sunlight causes them either to fade unduly or to turn dark ; also it may lessen the medicinal value. Herbs usually are cut at the point on the stem where whole, green, functioning leaves begin, the lower, hard, worthless part of the stem being discarded. Leaves must be entire, uninjured by insect or fungus attack, clean, green, and in prime vigor. Consequently, brown or dead leaves must never be taken, nor leaves ever gathered from the ground. Roots. — Roots include the underground structures known as rhizomes, rootstocks, corms, bulbs, and tubers, as well as true roots. After being 4 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 collected, roots must be cleaned and dried. The cleaning must be thorough and include the removal of all tops. In general, roots bring higher prices if they are also cleaned of their fibrous rootlets, but there are exceptions to this rule which should be carefully noted. With the single exception of the rootstock of the male fern, which must not be washed, roots should be rinsed in clean water to remove all soil. When clean, they may be dried in the shade or indoors. To speed up the drying and prevent molding, ail large roots except those of ginseng may be cut into slabs or sections. Some roots, for example those of burdock and pokeberry, are usually cut length- wise into slabs, while other roots, elecampane and Indian turnip for example, may be sliced crosswise. After being dried, roots should be stored in a dry place to make certain they do not become moldy. In general, the storage period should be as short as possible. Some roots, those of bloodroot and dandelion for example, can be adversely affected by being stored improperly or for a long time. For this reason and others, purchasers of crude drugs urge the collectors to make frequent shipments of small lots rather than delayed shipm.ents of large lots. Barks from trunks. — Trunk barks peel most readily in the spring of the year, when "the sap is up," and they can be gathered easily then. Slippery, elm bark must have all the outer, rough, corky part removed, that is, the bark must be rossed immediately after it is peeled from the tree ; the inner part is then dried under pressure, to keep it flat. Heavy, rough barks, such as those of the oaks, may be rossed before being peeled or shaved from the trunks. Other barks may be gathered and dried directly. All trunk barks must be dried flat. Although some barks can be sold unrossed, most barks bring a higher price in the rossed condition. Barks, like most other crude drugs, must be thoroughly dried before being offered for sale. Barks from roots. — All root barks must be cleaned and dried ; also, they must be completely free of the wood of the root. Flowers. — Flowers are usually the whole flowers, though In the case of the Compositae flowering heads are gathered and in a few instances only certain parts, for example, the petals, are gathered. These, like all other plant parts, should be gathered clean, whole, and fresh. They must, as a rule, be dried with particular care to preserve the volatile oils for which they usually are gathered. They should be spread thinly on cloth- or wire- bottomed trays and dried indoors without artificial heat or with very care- fully controlled, low artificial heat. Fruits. — Fruits gathered as crude drugs consist of the whole fruit. Usually they are soft and juicy and, therefore, require particular care in drying. They must, of course, be clean, fresh, whole, and, with the excep- tion of a few kinds, ripe. Usually they are dried in the open sunlight, after being spread in a thin layer on mesh-bottomed trays. They may also be dried in an oven, or kiln, at a temperature not exceeding 120 degrees F. Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS Seeds. — Seeds are generally understood to be the seeds alone, without an\ parts of the fruits in which they arc borne. Seeds must, of course, be uncontaminatcd, clean, and ripe. Tliey must also be well dried, or cured, and free of mold; otherwise they tend to heat and become moldy when in storage. Drying methods. — For drying crude drugs, various kinds of equipment can be used, ranging from the very simple things needed for the handling of a few kinds of drug plants in small lots to the extensive and costly cquip- W Drying drug plants in the open air. After the drug plants have been gathered, they are spread in thin layers in trays with wood sides and cloth or wire mesh bottoms. The loaded trays are then propped up so that air can circulate freely through them. They are placed where they will not be exposed to strong, direct sunlight throughout the day. Air drying permits the use of equipment that may be already available. (After United States Department of Agriculture Farmers' Bul- letin 1231.) ment necessary in handling many kinds in large lots. Drying is done by the use either of natural air temperatures and movements or of artificially heated and circulated air. Of the two methods, the artificial is better, if properly controlled and if the quantity of crude drug material handled is sufficient to justify the cost of the necessary equipment. Air drying under natural conditions permits the use of equipment that may be already available and the exercise of some ingenuity. Roots, fruits, and other materials that may be dried in direct sunlight can be spread on clean boards, canvas, burlap, sheets, or paper on open ground, on shed roofs or drying floors exposed to the sun, or they can be spread in trays set in the open to face the sun. Herbs, leaves, and other parts that must not be exposed to direct sunlight can be spread on floors, cloth, or paper in shade furnished by large trees; they can be hung on wires in open sheds or in a well-ventilated part of a barn ; or they can be spread on slat- or mesh- bottomed shelves or trays in drying cabinets or buildings erected for the purpose. Particularly in the drying of whole herbs, hanging them on wires is a convenient and effective method, as suitable places for the wires can be found easily. A good arrangement is to string the wires so that they arc ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 1 about 2 feet apart vertically and 1 foot apart horizontally. Wire will accommodate 1 to ll/^ pounds of green herb per linear foot. Drying with artificial heat requires the construction of special equip- ment. Such equipment can range from small, oil-stove-heated or electrical- ly heated chambers with space for 50 to 75 pounds of green herbs to fur- nace-heated buildings capacious enough to receive 1,000 pounds of green A large, specially constructed drying house for drug plants. The fresh plants are spread on trays like those shown in the drawing on page 5, and the loaded trays are carried in through the doors and stacked one above another. A furnace in the basement supplies a continuous current of warm, dry air which absorbs moisture from the plants and carries it out through the ventilating structure at the top. (After United States Department of Agriculture Farmers' Bulletin 1231.) herbs or 2,000 pounds of fresh roots. Directions for the construction of special equipment of this kind are given in United States Department of Agriculture Farmers' Bulletin 1231. In the use of artificial heat, best results are obtained if a few funda- mental principles are observed. Free circulation of the heated air must be provided in such a way that water-laden air is being continually discharged from the drying chamber and constantly replaced by fresh, dry, warm air. A high drying temperature must not be used. Plants and plant parts con- taining volatile oils lose much of their oil content at high temperatures and, therefore, throughout the drying process should be kept at a temperature not greatly exceeding that of the outside air. With most other plants, the temperature can be increased gradually, as the plants dry, until it reaches 120 degrees F., or, with most barks, 170 degrees F. Two emphatic exceptions must be made to the general statements in the 1 Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 7 preceding paragraph. In the drying of ginseng roots, under no circumstances may artificial heat be used. In the drying of sassafras bark with artificial heat, the temperature must never be allowed to exceed 120 degrees F. Also, no roots of any kind should be dried near a heated oven, for, with such drying, roots tend to lose weight unduly and to become parched or burnt; in that condition they have very little value. When artificial heat is used, careful attention must be given to the circulation of air. In the early stages of drying, when moisture is being taken up readily by the air from the surfaces of the drug material, too-free air movement results in a hardening of the plant surfaces, through too-rapid drying, and thus impedes the later stages of drying. Because of the variety of material that must be dried and the variation in atmospheric conditions, no definite rules can be given for adjusting temperature and air circulation. Drying must be learned by experience. In general, it is better to prolong dry- ing by the use of only a slightly increased temperature and air movement than to speed it up with a high temperature and rapid air movement. Packing drug plants. — Dried crude drugs may be packed in any of several suitable manners. Generally they are packed in used or secondhand burlap bags and sometimes in barrels or boxes. For herbs in quantity, some method of baling is desirable, and a paper-baling machine is very satisfactory, since bales of any convenient size can be made. Before being baled, the herb material should be allow^ed to lie on a clean floor or in a bin for several days, so that by absorbing some moisture from the air it will become less brittle and more easily handled. Small bales can be packed in cartons ; large bales should be securely wrapped in burlap. In packaging there must be no mixing of drug plants. Each kind must be packaged or baled separately. Also, every package, box, barrel, or bale should be accurately and plainly labeled as to its contents. Small packages of different kinds of drug plants may, of course, be packed together in boxes or bags for shipment, but the shipper should be sure that each package is so well packed that it cannot break open and its contents become mixed with other goods during handling. Shipment of crude drugs. — A number of the larger firms purchasing crude drugs w411, if requested, supply shipping tags and bill forms. They also give shipping advice on their want lists. Certain drugs, including especially ginseng and golden seal, which usually can be collected only in small amounts and should be sold as soon as they are dry, may be shipped by parcel post, insured, or by express. One large buyer of drug plants ad- vises collectors that they save money by shipping over 50 pounds by freight, from 20 to 50 pounds by express, less than 20 pounds by parcel post. The collector pays the cost of transporting his crude drug material to the buyer. He may prepay the transportation charges or, in the case of freight shipments for which he has received an order, he may have the transportation charges paid for by the buying firm and the amount deducted in the settlement of the account. 8 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 Cultivation of Drug Plants The cultivation of drug plants has appealed to many persons as a means of getting larger returns from small acreages. While in some instances large returns may be possible, no person should undertake to grow any drug plant, expecting profit, without first giving consideration to a number of factors. It is worth considering that among all the plants, totaling nearly 900 species, used in the drug trade, there are perhaps not more than 10 or 12 that are indispensable. Of the half dozen of these that can be grown in the United States, amounts sufficient to supply this entire country probably can be produced on no more than 3,500 acres of land each year. A large amount of hand labor is required with all kinds of cultivable drug plants, including planting, cultivating, weeding, controlling insects and diseases, harvesting, drying, cleaning, sorting, and packing. For many kinds, it is ver>- difficult to obtain seed. In the case of biennial and perennial plants, a minimum of 2 years must elapse before any harvest can be obtained. At present very little is known, even in a broad way, of the climatic, soil, and cultural re- quirements of most drug plants. An inexperienced grower faces the possi- bility of complete or partial failure. He may choose a plant not adapted to his climate, or he may produce a crop not satisfactory for drug use be- cause of an unsuitable soil or other cultural limitations. Finally, a num- ber of drug manufacturers have begun to grow some or all of the supplies they require, and it is likely that they will increase this phase of their business. Undoubtedly, many plants used in the drug trade, now either gathered in the wild or imported, could be grown as cultivated crops. A person undertaking to grow any of them should realize that at first he must do so experimentally and that to be successful he must produce a crop superior in drug quality to what can be obtained otherwise. In the United States, greatest success has attended the cultivation of plants yielding essential oils. This is true of Mentha piperita, which yields oil of peppermint; Mentha spicata, which yields oil of spearmint; and Mentha arvensis var. piperascens, the Japanese mint from which menthol is obtained. The oils of these plants, besides being useful as medicines, have commercial importance as flavoring agents. A plant of this kind offering possibilities in cultivation is Satnreja hortensis, the source of oil of savory. Closely allied groups of plants which perhaps offer better opportunity for cultivation are those used in the manufacture of perfumes and insecti- cides and as condiments. Some of these plants are also valuable sources of drugs. About seven kinds of commercially important condiment plants could probably be grown somewhere in Illinois; these comprise anise, cara- way, coriander, dill, fennel, marjoram, and mustard. Caraway, for example, is a biennial plant adapted to large-scale cultivation by machine methods. At a normal price of 8 cents per pound for the seed, it might net $80 per acre or, at an abnormal price of 30 cents or more per pound, it might net as much as $250 per acre. Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 9 Angelica {Arigelica Archangelica) , a plant native in Europe but intro- duced and escaped in some parts of the United States, might repay eliorts at cultivation, for it is a very important plant to many American industries. Oil obtained from its roots is used in the perfume industry, and the root itself is used in large quantities in the distillation of gin. The seed is used for its flavor, and oil from the seed is used in the manufacture of gin cordials, vermouth, and certain other beverages. The stem, crystallized in sugar, was formerly imported from France in large quantities, and its use as candy and cake decorations is, in itself, a very large business. A field that has not been sufficiently explored is the growing of plants yielding insecticides. For the production of rotenone and similar insect poisons more than 6,500,000 pounds of roots were imported into the United States in 1940. For the control of grubs and lice on cattle and ticks on sheep, 2,900,000 pounds of 5 per cent rotenone were required in the winter of 1946-47. Some 15 to 16 million pounds of pyrethrum are imported annually. Special races of the native American plant known as devil's shoestring {Tephrosia virginiana) have been developed, which yield 4 to 5 per cent of rotenone. As the plant is native to Illinois, some of these special races of it might be found which would be suitable for growth in this state, or native Illinois strains might be selected and grown here com- mercially. Pyrethrum {Chrysanthemum cinerariaefolium) also seems to be a possible plant for at least some parts of Illinois. The soil, cultural, and climatic requirements of a number of the most important foreign-grown drug, condiment, and insecticide plants have been collated in mimeographed circulars prepared by the federal Bureau of Plant Industry's Division of Drug and Related Plants. These circulars ought to be consulted carefully by anyone considering an attempt to grow any of these plants for profit. Kinds of Drug Plants Plants included. — An effort has been made to include every plant na- tive to or grown in Illinois that has been officially designated as a drug or is now used otherwise than as a home remedy in medicine. Only a few of these plants are now "official" ; they are indicated in the text hy page references (for example, U.S. P. XI, p. 331) to the Eleventh Decennial Re- vision of The Pharmacopoeia of the United States of America, which has been official since June 1, 1936. Most of the plants included have, however, been listed as official drugs or as the sources of official drugs in one or more of the earlier editions of the Pharmacopoeia. Many, too, are to be found in the National Formulary. Even though no longer official, many are still used extensively or limitedly in medical practice and in the manufacture of medicinal compounds or such closely allied products as candies, flavorings, and perfumes. Hence, the demand for them must be supplied. Also, cer- tain plants which have no known medicinal value and have never been official are listed because they are used in medicinal compounds, to which they lend flavor or color. 10 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 Scientific names. — The scientific names used for native plants, and as far as possible for introduced and cultivated plants, are those of the Seventh Edition of Gray's New Manual of Botany (American Book Company 1908). Otherwise, the scientific names of introduced and cultivated plants are those generally in use by the drug trade. When the nomenclature of Gray's Manual is not the same as that of the drug trade (see, for example, Agrimonia), an explanation is given, which will enable the collector to gather the right plants. Common names. — No attempt has been made to give complete lists of the common names by which individual plants are known. Where possible, one or more of the most frequently used names are given and, if they exist, one or more names referring to the medicinal property or use of the plant. Care must be exercised in the collecting of plants on the basis of their common names, for the same common name not infrequently is used for plants of entirely different kinds of properties. Hemlock, for example, is a harmless tree {Tsuga canadensis) from which pitch is obtained, or either of two extremely poisonous herbs (Cicuta maculata and Conium maculatum) containing toxins and alkaloids. At least eight different plant species are known as snakeroot. Species discussions. — The discussions given herein of drug-plant species follow a standardized order. Species are listed in the alphabetical order of their scientific botanical names. For each species, there is given one or more common names, the botanical family to which the species belongs, and, if the plant is official, a citation to the Pharmacopoeia. Following these items is a botanical description (omitted in the case of well-known cultivated species), brief but sufficient for the identification of the species. Following the description are statements of the part of the plant to be collected, of the time when collecting is to be done, and of the abundance, preferred situa- tions, and range of the species in Illinois. Finally, as additional information, there is given a statement of the medicinally effective contents of the plant and of the medicinal uses attributed to the drug. Availability of native drug plants. — Among almost 300 plants listed and described in the text, all to be found within the state of Illinois, a few are so rare and some are so narrowly restricted in occurrence that they will hardly repay the time spent in searching for them. Other plants are com- mon but restricted to well-defined parts of the state or to some general type of habitat, while still other plants are abundant everywhere in the state. To assist the prospective collector, a brief statement covering the frequency, distribution, and habitat of each species has been given in the text. The collecting season. — Crude drugs can be collected during all of the open months of the year. The proper season for collecting any given plant is determined by the time when the plant part is available, the time when it con- tains the greatest amount of medicinal principle, or the time when it can be Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 11 gathered most easily. For aii\ plant that must he collected at a particular time, a statement of the proper time is given in the text. Also, for any plant collected as an herb, the flowering season in Illinois is usualh' indicated. Medicinal principles. — The effectiveness (jf plants as drugs depends on the fact that the\ contain various constitutents, or principles, which, when taken int(j or applied on human or animal bodies, produce beneficial results. These principles are of man\ kinds, but they can be classified generall> under the following heads. 1. Common vegetable principles. All plants contain in greater or smaller amounts such substances as sugar, starch, cellulose, proteins, al- bumins, fats, and \ itamins, all of which may be regarded as nutritional. Certain plants reputed to have curative properties, Hepaiica, for example, contain only these common principles, 2. Crystalline substances. Certain plants either contain or yield crys- talline substances. The commonest of these substances is, perhaps, calcium oxalate, which is to be found, for example, in the corms of Arisaenia and the berries of grapes and Virginia creeper. Other crystalline substances may be more complex and may resemble alkaloids or glucosides in the effects they produce. They often are acrid and act as narcotics. Many of them have not been identified chemically. 3. Mucilaginous principles. Many species contain mucilaginous ma- terial. This, as a drug, is probably effective only through its mechanical action. The seeds of flax, psilla, and mistletoe are especially mucilaginous. 4. Gums. Some plants are valuable because of the gums they yield. Gum arabic is perhaps most familiar, though Acacia Senegal, the plant from which it is taken, does not grow in Illinois. American styrax is obtained from the sweet gum, Liquidambar Styraciflua. Many gums are similar to mucilages. 5. Resins. Resins are peculiar plant products about the chemical structure of which little is known. Some are highly important in com- merce (pine resins are the basis of the naval stores industry), and a few- are important in medicine. Some of them are mixed with gums, as is true of asafetida and myrrh ; and the>- may contain or yield poisonous and narcotic principles, as is true of the resin from hemp. The flower heads of Grindelia squarrosa are collected solely for the resin with which they are coated. 6. Acids. Many plants contain organic acids of various kinds. Most common are tannin, which is important in industry as well as in medicine, and gallic acid. Alum root {Heuchera americaua) contains 18 to 20 per cent of tannin, and oak "nut galls" ma\ contain from 25 to 75 per cent gallic acid (actually digallic, or gallotannic. acid). Other organic acids appear to be peculiar to definite genera or species of plants and are not found in others; examples of such acids are polygalic acid, obtained from Polygala Senega, sarracenic acid, obtained from species of Sarracenia, and fumaric acid, obtained from Fumaria officinalis. 12 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 7. Saponins. Numerous compounds, occurring in more than 400 species of plants, are called saponins from the fact that, with water, they form colloidal solutions which foam readily, stabilize emulsions of fats and oils, and greatly reduce surface tension. Chemically, they are glucosides. Their physiologic action is usually toxic. Two well-known plants yielding saponins are bouncing Bet {Saponaria officinalis), whose crushed leaves produce a soaplike emulsion in water, and foxglove {Digitalis purpurea), from which a complex of no less than five saponins, or glucosides, is derived for the treat- ment of diseases of the heart. 8. Alkaloids. Numerous chemically complex, nitrogen-containing, oily or crystalline substances occur in plants and are termed alkaloids because of their basic, or alkaline, reactions. They are rather limited in their dis- tribution in the plant kingdom, being found principally in members of the Solanaceae, Rubiaceae, Ranunculaceae, Papaveraceae, and Leguminosae. They include such well-known principles as strichnine, quinine, nicotine, cocaine, and morphine. They rarely occur alone. Usually at least two or three occur together; 24 are known in cinchona bark and 20 in poppy juice (opium). They, with the glucosides, constitute the striking anomaly among drugs, for in small doses they can induce very desirable physiological effects, while in large doses they prove extremely toxic or, often, fatal. Some alkaloids cannot be used medicinally, because the minimum fatal dosage differs too little from the minimum medicinal dosage. 9. Glucosides. Even more abundant in plants than alkaloids are the chemically very complex principles known as glucosides. These compounds, found most often in fruit, bark, and roots, but also in some leaves, are wide- ly distributed in the plant kingdom. Usually they occur in small amounts and are extremely difficult of chemical isolation and identification. They consist basically of a combination of some sugar, usually glucose, and one or more other, usually aromatic, substances. They are crystalline, color- less, soluble in water or alcohol, and bitter. Like the alkaloids, they may induce favorable physiologic reactions in small dosages but become toxic, even fatal, in larger dosages. Among the common glucosides are amygdalin. found in the almond ; sinigrin, found in black mustard seeds ; salicin, found in willow bark; and dhurrin, found in sorghum. 10. Aromatics. The great majority of plants contain at least small amounts of substances that give off characteristic odors. These substances are, chiefly, essential oils, also known as volatile oils. Chemically they are not, however, fats or compounds of fatty acids. In some plants or in some groups of plants — the mints, for example — they may be present in con- siderable quantity. Camphor oil, cedar oil. pine oil, and wintergreen oil, as well as many others, are important commercially outside the drug trade. In some plants essential oils occur in very small amounts ; 8 tons of rose petals yield only 1 pound of attar of roses, and 1,000 pounds of orange blossoms yield only 1 pound of orange-blossom oil. Widely different in chemical composition, essential oils have manv valuable uses as medicinal ] Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 13 principles, as well as being useful to impart flavors and odors. Essential oils well known for their medicinal wiliics are menthol, thymol, turpentine, and camphor. Medicinal uses of plants. — 'Ihe medicinal uses which the individual drug plants are reputed to have arc stated briefly in the text. It is, perhaps, unnecessary to include a warning that plant drugs, like other drugs, if used without a physician's direction, can prove very harmful or, sometimes, fatal. The plant principles which produce medicinal effects usually are poisons; in small amounts they may only stimulate, but in larger amounts they begin to produce stronger physiological reactions. If the dosage is not properly adjusted for the effect desired, the taking of a drug may actually produce effects worse than the illness the drug was intended to counteract. Acknowledgments In the compilation of this circular, information relating to the collection, drying, marketing, properties, and uses of plants entering into the drug trade has been drawn from so large a number of books, bulletins, pamphlets, trade publications, and other sources that a listing of the sources would be impossible. In the evaluation of this information, however, much assistance has been given by Professors E. N. Gathercoal (emeritus) and E. H. Wirth of the University of Illinois College of Pharmacy and by Messrs. W. W. Bell of S. B. Penick 6c Company, E. L. Donzelot of Eugene Donzclot 5c Son, William S. Fink of Peek & Velsor, Inc., C. R. Greer of R. T. Greer 5: Company, and H. L. Schaefer of the St. Louis Commission Company. Through their criticisms, suggestions, and contributions of particular facts, each of these men has added materially to the accuracy and usefulness of the circular. For their cordial interest and unstinted help, our sincere appreciation is expressed here. 14 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 The Plants and Their Pictures Plants described here are arranged in the order of their scientific names. In each case the scientific name is followed by one or more common names and the name of the family to which the plant belongs. In most cases, a de- scription of the plant is given, which is followed by mention of the part or parts collected, the distribution in Illinois, the medicinal contents, and the drug uses. For common cultivated plants, no descriptions are given. For a few plants, medicinal contents and uses are not given. These plants often are used in specialized food, condiment and candy industries, or, without known medicinal properties, may be used in compounding bitters or patent medicines. ACHILLEA MILLEFOLIUM L. Yarrow, milfoil. Compositae. — A stiff herb 1 to 3 feet tall, perennial; stem up- right, straight, more or less woolly, much branched at the top; leaves alternate, linear to narrowly oblong, subdivided into numerous small parts, more or less hairy; flowers white, or rarely pink, minute, in numerous small heads capping the apical branches. Entire herb, except the roots, collected when the plant is in full flower. Common throughout Illinois on grazed land, in abandoned fields and along roadsides; June to November. Contains a volatile oil and the alkaloid achilleine. Used as a stimulant, tonic, astrin- gent, and diaphoretic. AGONITUM NAPELLUS L. Aco- nite, monkshood, wolfsbane. Ranuncu- laceae. U. S. P. XL Pp. Ixvi, 31-2, 391, 485. Leaves and root collected ; the official drug is the dried tuberous root. Intro- duced, frequently grown in gardens, not known to have escaped. Yields the extremely poisonous alkaloid aconitine. Used externally as a local ano- dyne to relieve neuralgic and rheumatic pain; poisonous. Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 15 AGORUS CALAMUS L. Sweet flag, calamus, flag root. Araceae. — An erect, stenilcss, ^lahrtnis iuTb, perennial; root- stock lon^:;, branched, horizontal; leaves arising!; direct!)' from the rootstock, linear and sworiliike, 2 to 6 feet \on\z, up to 1 inch wide, siiarp-pointed, sharp-cd}j;ed ; niidvein ri;:id ; Howers minute, yellowish- jireen, crowded on a spikelike spadix 2 to ^l 2 inches lon'j; and i j inch tliick. Rootstock collected in earl\' sprinjz; or late fall. Not abundant in Illinois; re- stricted to localized occurrences along streams and in swampy situations; May to November. Contains a volatile oil and the bitter principle acorin. I'sed as a carminative and as an aromatic bitter to aid digestion. ADIANTUM PEDATUM L. Maid- enhair fern. Polypodiaceae. — An herb 8 to 20 inches tall, perennial; rootstock creeping, slender, chaff}'; leaves (fronds) raised on black, polished stipes each forked at the summit, divided into numerous short-stalked, obliquely triangular-oblong pinnules cleft and spore-bearing on the outer margin. The leaves (fronds) collected. Occa- sional to locally abundant in all wooded regions in the state. Medicinally effective constituents unknown; has a bitter, aromatic taste. Used as a demulcent and pectoral. AESGULUS HIPPOGASTANUM L. Horse-chestnut. Sapindaceae. The bark, especially that of younger trees, collected in the fall ; also the seed. To be seen occasionally as an ornamental tree; not native and, so far as known, not established as an escape. The bark contains tannin and the glu- cosides aesculin and fraxin. Used as a tonic and astringent. [The collection of native, species is to be avoided, because they contain a poisonous, narcotic alkaloid.] f!d^ s<^^ ■s? ^^ 5> 16 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 AGRIMONIA GRYPOSEPALA Wallr. Agrimony, feverfew, beggar- ticks. Rosaceae. — An herb 2 to 6 feet tall, perennial; roots fibrous ; stem erect, branched, covered with soft, spreading hairs; leaves alternate, large, compound, thin, bright green, composed of mostly 7 coarsely toothed leaflets and 2 or 3 pairs of smaller, interposed leaf segments; stipules conspicuous; flowers yellow, up to Yz inch wide, in spikelike racemes ; petals and sepals 5; fruit top-shaped, armed on its rim with numerous hooked bristles. Entire herb collected when in flower. Common throughout Illinois in thickets, especially on broken, ravine-cut land along streams and in woods borders; June to September. Contains tannin and a volatile oil. Used as a simple vegetable astringent. [Affrimonia Eupatoria of drug manuals includes the species described above, A. striata Michx., and perhaps A. mollis (T. & G.) Britt. All three species have about the same habitat and may be collected without discrimination.] AGROPYRON REPENS (L.) Beauv. Dog grass, quack grass, wheat grass, couch grass, triticum. Gramineae. — An herbaceous grass 1 to 4 feet tall, per- ennial ; rootstocks long, creeping, bright greenish-j^ellow ; roots fibrous; leaves bright green or glaucous, flat or inrolled, narrow, rough on the upper surface; spike- lets 3 to 8 flowered, set in two rows on opposite sides of the stem to form a termi- nal spike 3 to 8 inches long; glumes sharp- tipped or awned, strongly nerved. The rootstocks (not the roots) collected in the spring. Introduced and established along railroads and roadsides and in pas- tures and fields; abundant throughout the northern two-thirds of Illinois. Contains the carbohydrate principle trit- icin. Used as a demulcent; is said to possess diuretic properties also. Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 17 ALETRIS FARINOSA L. Star ^rass, colic-root, ague grass, true unicorn root. Liliaceae. — A stcmlcss, glabrous herb, perennial; roots fibrous, numerous, tough; leaves directly from the crown, lanci-oiatc, acuminate at the tip, narrowed to the base, pale yellow-green, 2 to 6 inches long, up to ^ inch wide; flowers white or yellow tipped, about I/4 inch long, closely set in a spike 4 to 12 inches long at the top of a slender, striate flower stalk li/^ to 3 feet tall. Rootstock and roots collected in the fall. Limited to wooded sandy regions - and occurring chiefly in the northeastern quar- ter of the state; July through August. Contains a bitter principle. Used as a uterine tonic, diuretic, emetic, and diaphoret- ic. ALNUS SERRULATA Willd. [A. rugosa (Du Roi) Spreng.] Tag alder, black alder, smooth alder, red alder. Betulaceae. — A shrub up to 20 feet tall; stems usually several; bark smooth, red- dish brown to gray, thin ; twigs hairy at first, later smooth and covered with small, dark specks; leaves alternate, obovate, serrate, 3 to 5 inches long, wedge-shaped at the base, often somewhat hairy on the veins below; the veins prominent below, straight, ending in the marginal teeth; male flowers in catkins 2 to 4 inches long; fe- male flowers and fruit in ovoid, woody cones 1/2 to ^ inch long. Bark of the stems collected in early spring or late fall. Rare along streams in wooded, hilly regions in southern Illi- nois. Contains tannin. Used as an alterative and astringent. ALTHAEA ROSEA Gav. Black malva, hollyhock. Malvaceae. The flowers collected. Grown as a dec- orative plant throughout the state and commonly escaping but not becoming estab- lished. Contains mucilage. Used as a demulcent and emollient. ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 AMARANTHUS RETROFLEXUS L. Amaranth, pigweed, rough green amaranth, red-root. Amaranthaceae. — An erect, strict herb branched above, roughish pubescent, 1 to 6 feet tall, annual; taproot long, fleshy, red or pink; leaves alternate, petioled, 3 to 6 inches long, dull green, rough hairy, ovate or rhombic, wavy-margined; flowers small, greenish, 3-bracted, crowded in dense axillary and terminal panicles; seed glossy black, lens- shaped, small, notched at the narrow end. Pollen is collected ; also there is occa- sional demand for the herb and root. Common as a weed along railroads and roads and in pastures, fields, and waste places throughout the state; August to October. Medicinal constituents unknown. Used as an astringent and detergent; pollen extract is used as an antigen in certain types of hay fever. AMBROSIA ARTEMISIIFOLIA L. Common ragweed, hog- weed, bitter- weed. Compositae. — An herb 1 to 3 feet tall, more or less hairy throughout, annual; roots fibrous; stem erect, straight, much- branched; leaves alternate, divided and subdivided into numerous lobes, 2 to 4 inches long, white-hairy beneath ; male flowers in small green heads crowded in numerous spikes 1 to 5 inches long; female flowers greenish, in small clusters in the axils of upper leaves. Leaves and tops collected while the plant is in flower; also the pollen. Extremely abundant in waste places throughout Illi- nois; occurs in nearly pure stands in grain fields after harvest; July through October. Contains a bitter principle and a volatile oil. Used principally as a topical astringent. [The pollen of this plant is the principal cause of hay fever in August and September. Pollen is collected and extracted ; and the extract is used as a prophylactic and cure for hay fever.] Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 19 AMBROSIA TRIFIDA L. Giant rag- weed, horse-weed. Compositae. — A very coarse herb up to \'^ feet tall, aiuiual ; stems stroiifj:, strai;^lit, branched, rough- hairy; leaves lar}j;e, opposite, petioled, ser- rate, often 10 to 12 inches wide, 3-ncrved, mostly 3-lobe(l, the lobes sharp-pointed; male flowers in green heads, the heads in loose to compact spikes up to 10 inches long; female flowers clustered in the axils of upper leaves. Leaves and tops collected \\ hen the plant is in flower. Extremely abundant along streams and roadside ditches, on over- flowed low land, and as a weed in vacant places; July to November. Has the same properties and uses as common ragweed. ANAGALLIS ARVENSIS L. Red chickweed, scarlet pimpernel. Primii- lacene. — A prostrate, spreading, smooth herb with branches 4 to 20 inches long, annual ; leaves ovate, -^ inch long, oppo- site, entire, sessile; flowers red, small, wheel-shaped, solitary on slender, axillary peduncles; fruit a small, many-seeded capsule opening by a circular lid. The leaves and flowering tops collected. Introduced in Illinois; infrequent in fields and waste places, especially near large cities. Contains two glucosidal saponins and a pepsin-like substance. Used as an expecto- rant and nervine ; has been used in the treat- ment of rheumatism; poisonous. ANEMONE PATENS L. Pasque flower, headache-plant, Pulsatilla. Ra- nunculaceae. — A silky-hairy, low, stemless herb 6 to 18 inches tall; rootstock thick; leaves much divided into linear, acute lobes; flowers light bluish-purple, solitary at the tip of the flower stalks, arising from a much-divided leaf>' involucre; fruit a silky achene tipped by a plumose style. The herb collected. Occurs sparingly on gravelly hills in Winnebago and Jo Daviess counties. Yields the drug Pulsatilla; contains a volatile oil which yields the acrid principle anemonin. l^sed as an irritant, diuretic, expectorant, and emmenagogue. 20 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 ANETHUM GRAVEOLENS L. Dill. Umbelliferae. The seed collected. Grown in home gar- dens in many parts of the state. Contains a volatile, aromatic oil. Used as an aromatic, carminative, condiment, and flavoring agent. ANGELICA ATROPURPUREA L. Great angelica, Aunt Jerichos, archan- gel. Umbelliferae. — A stout, glabrous herb 4 to 6 feet tall, biennial; taproot thick, often branched; stem erect, very stout, jointed, hollow, usually dark purple; leaves alternate, ternately decompound, very large, and with very broad petioles, the lower ones often 2 feet wide; leaflets lanceolate to ovate, serrate, often incised; flowers white, small, in 9 to 15 umbelled heads; petals inflexed at the tip; umbels up to 10 inches wide, with rays 2 to 4 inches long. The root collected in late fall. An occa- sional, sometimes abundant, plant on alluvial soils along streams in the north- eastern fourth of the state. Contains a volatile oil and the acrid resin angelicin. Used as an aromatic stimulant and tonic, emetic, and diaphoretic. ANTHEMIS NOBILIS L. Chamo- mile, Roman chamomile. Compositae. — ^A pubescent, aromatic herb 6 to 18 inches tall, perennial; stem round, with many procumbent branches; leaves alternate, 1 to 2 inches long, compactly subdivided into numerous filiform lobes; flower heads about 1 inch wide, with 12 to 18 white ray flowers, solitary at the ends of bare peduncles terminating the branches. Flower heads collected just before they expand. May possibly be found sparingly near old gardens, as an escape from culti- vation. Contains a volatile oil and a bitter prin- ciple. Used as a tonic, aromatic bitter, mild stimulant, emetic, diaphoretic, and fomen- tatorv. Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 21 APIUM GRAVEOLENS L. Celery. Umbelliferae. The seed collected. Grown in truck and home gardens throughout the state. Contains a volatile oil. Used as an aro- matic stimulant, carminative, and stomachic; also as a condiment and flavoring agent. APLECTRUM HYEMALE (Muhl.) Torr. Adam-and-Eve root, putty-root. Orchidaceae. — A stemless, smooth herb 1 to 2 feet high, perennial; corm round, with a few fibrous roots, usually attached to at least one older corm; leaf 1, elliptic, 4 to 6 inches long, parallel-veined, arising from the corm at the side of the flower stalk; flowers yellowish-brown mixed with purple, about 1 inch long and wide, several in a raceme at the top of the 3-scaled, tall flowering stalk; fruit a capsule. The corm collected. Rare but widely distributed in shady woods through most of the state. Contains mucilage. Used as a demulcent pectoral. APOCYNUM ANDROSAEMIFOL- lUM L. Dogbane, rheumatism wood, wild ipecac, spreading dogbane. Apocy- naceae. — A spreading, mostly glabrous herb 1 to 4 feet tall, perennial; sap milky; rootstock horizontal; root fibrous; stem erect, often purplish, w^oody at the base and with tough, fibrous bark ; branches broadly spreading; leaves opposite, oval, short-petioled, with entire margins and mucronate tips, dull green above, pale and somewhat hairy below, 2 to 4 inches long, 1 to li/2 inches wide; flowers pink, bell- shaped, 1/3 inch long; the 5 petal tips spreading; calyx minute, green; fruit a long, slender pod (usually in pairs) con- taining numerous small, silk-tipped seeds. Roots and rootstocks collected in late fall. State-wide in distribution and com- mon; often occurring in large patches in open cutover woods, thickets, and barrens. Contains the glucoside apocynein, the toxic resin apocynin, and several other toxic sub- stances, including cymarin, which yields cyna- marigenin. Used as a cathartic, diaphoretic, diuretic, emetic, and cardiac stimulant. 22 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 APOGYNUM GANNABINUM L. Black Indian hemp, Amy root, rheuma- tism root, Indian physic, Choctaw root. Apocynaceae. — An erect, mostly gla- brous, glaucous herb 2 to 10 feet tall, per- ennial; sap milky; root and rootstalk verti- cal, deep, soon branching; stem extensive- ly branched, woody at the base; bark tough, fibrous; branches erect, exceeding the main stem; leaves opposite, oblong to oblong lanceolate, nearly sessile, entire, mucronate-tlpped, pale green, at most sparingly pubescent beneath; the flowers greenish-white, in dense terminal clusters; the 5 petal tips erect; calyx as long as the corolla tube; fruit a long, slender pod (usually in pairs) containing numerous brown, slender, silk-tipped seeds. Roots and rootstocks collected in late fall; the top, woody part of the rootstock, which is valueless, should be removed. State-wide in distribution; of very common occurrence along streams on moist, gravel- ly, or sandy flats. Contents and uses the same as those of the preceding species. ARALIA NUDIGAULIS L. Wild sarsaparilla, sarsaparilla, small spike- nard. Araliaceae. — An almost stemless herb 8 to 16 inches tall, perennial; roots long, horizontal, aromatic; leaf 1, long- stalked, compound, with 3 primary divi- sions each bearing 5 oblong-ovate to oval- pointed, serrate leaflets; blossoms greenish white, In 2 to 7 umbels at the top of the flower scape ; fruit a purplish-black berry 14 inch long, 5-lobed when dry. Root collected In the fall. Infrequent to rare on rocky, wooded bluffs across the northern third of the state. Contains a bitter, pungent volatile oil and a resin. Used as a substitute for the true sarsaparilla, which is obtained from certain species of Smilax. It is an aromatic stimu- lant, diaphoretic, and alterative. Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 23 ARALIA RAGEMOSA L. Spikenard, American sarsaparilla, old man's root. Araliaceae. — A divaricately branched herb 3 to 5 feet tall, perennial; roots large, fleshy, aromatic; leaves alternate, decom- pound; the leaflets cordate-ovate, pointed, downy, doubly serrate, 2 to 6 inches long; flowers greenish, small, in umbels form- ing large compound panicles; fruit dark purple to reddish brown, berrylike, 5- seeded. The roots collected in the fall. Com- mon to rare in rich woods throughout the state. Contains a bitter volatile oil and a resin. Used as an aromatic, stimulant, diaphoretic, and alterative. ARALIA SPINOSA L. Prickly elder, Hercules' club. Araliaceae. — A spine- and prickle-armed shrub up to 20 feet tall; leaves alternate, bipinnately compound, very large ; leaflets many, ovate, serrate, glabrous, 1 to 3 inches long, Y? to 2 inches wide ; flowers white, small, in umbels of 10 to 30 forming a very large, branched panicle; fruit black, globose, juicy, 5- seeded. The bark collected. Occurs locally in dry, open places on wooded slopes in the southern tip of the state. Contains the saponin aralien, a volatile oil, and an acrid resin. Supposed to have stimulant and diaphoretic properties. 24 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 ARCTIUM MINUS Bernh. Burdock, smaller burdock, clotbur, cuckoo but- ton. C ompositae . — A large-leaved, coarse, hairy herb up to 5 feet tall, bien- nial; taproot long, up to 3 inches in diam- eter; stem the second year erect, stout, ridged; leaves up to 12 inches long, cor- date, pale hairy beneath, with ruffled en- tire to dentate margins, in rosettes from the crown the first year, alternate on the stem the second year; petioles hollow; flower heads pink to purple, globular, com- pact, burlike, clustered in the kaf axils, armed with inwardly hooked spines. The root collected in the fall of the plant's first year, seeds the second year. State-wnde in distribution; occasional to abundant as a weed in farmyards, pas- tures, abandoned fields, and open land. Source of the drug lappa; contains inulin and the glucoside lappin. Used as a diuret- ic and alterative. \_Arctium Lappa L., the great burdock, is the European plant from which the drug lappa is obtained. It has been introduced into Illinois but is not nearly so common as the species above. It can be recognized by the solid petioles of its leaves,] ARGTOSTAPHYLOS UVA-URSI (L.) Spreng. Uva-ursi, bearberry. Ericaceae. — A low, trailing, evergreen shrub, 4 to 16 inches tall; roots thick, woody, creeping; stems numerous, spread- ing, 2 to 3 feet long; bark shredding, red- dish-brown ; leaves evergreen, shining, leathery, alternate, broadly obovate, 1/2 to 1 inch long, half as wide ; flowers rose- tinted, small, urn-shaped, 5-parted ; fruit a red, globose, dry-mealy drupe containing 5 coalescent nutlets. The leaves collected in the fall. Occa- sional to abundant on sandy slopes and crests in the extreme northeastern cor- ner of the state. Contains the glucosides arbutin and erico- lin, the crystalline principle ursone, tannin, and gallic acid. Used as an astringent, tonic, and diuretic. Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 25 ARISAEMA TRIPHYLLUM (L.) Schott. Indian turnip, Jack-in-the-pul- pit. Araceae. — An herb 8 inches to 3 feet tall, perennial; corm turnip-shaped, wrinkled, intensely acrid ; leaves mostly 2, compound; leaflets 3, veiny, elliptical ovate; petioles tall, sheathing the flower stalk; flowers minute, crowded at the base of a club-shaped spadix, the latter inclosed by a hoodlike and tubular, variegated, more or less colored spathe ; fruit a scarlet, 1- to 5-seeded berry. The corm collected in summer or au- tumn. In open or dense woods, common to abundant throughout the state. Contains a volatile acrid principle, muci- lage, possibly an alkaloid, and calcium oxa- late crystals. Used as a stimulant, expecto- rant, irritant, and diaphoretic. ARISTOLOGHIA SERPENTARIA L. Virginia snakeroot, serpentaria. Aristolochiaceae. U. S. P. XI, p. 331. — An upright herb 6 to 18 inches tall, per- ennial; roots fibrous, from a short, thin, bent, aromatic rhizome with the odor of turpentine; stems several, simple or branched only at the base, swollen at the nodes, often red-tinged below; leaves ovate or oblong, cordate or halberd-shaped at the base, pointed, entire, petioled, and alternate; flowers on basal scaly branches, S-shaped, contracted in the middle, dull brownish-purple; the fruit a 6-angled, 6- valved, many-seeded pod. The roots and rhizome collected in the fall. Rare to frequent, sometimes com- mon, in moist woods throughout the state south of Peoria. Source of the drug serpentaria; contains a volatile oil containing borneol, the amor- phous bitter principle aristolochin, and the alkaloid aristolochinine. Used as an aro- matic, bitter stimulant; is often given with other drugs, such as cinchona, to increase their absorption and activity. 26 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 ARTEMISIA ABSINTHIUM L. Wormwood, absinthe, sage. Composi- tae. — A branching, silky-hoary, aromatic herb 2 to 4 feet tall; perennial; stems erect, much-branched, woody at the base; leaves pinnately divided into numerous linear to obovate obtuse lobes, 2 to 5 inches long, alternate; uppermost leaves entire, linear, and smaller; flowers yellow, in numerous drooping, short-peduncled, small heads. The leaves and tops collected when in flower. Introduced and sparingly estab- lished along roadsides and in waste places throughout the state ; July to October. Contains a volatile oil, the bitter principle absinthin, and tannin. Used as a stimulant, tonic, and flavoring for certain alcoholic drinks. ASARUM GANADENSE L. Wild ginger, Canada snakeroot, Indian gin- ger. Aristolochiaceae . — A low, stemless, soft pubescent herb, 6 to 12 inches tall, perennial; rhizome slender, creeping, aro- matic, pungent, jointed about every half inch, with thin roots from each joint; leaves 2, kidney-shaped, 4 to 6 inches wide, on long petioles; flower solitary, dull purple, bell-shaped, the calyx 3-parted, no corolla present; stamens 12; style 6-lobed at the summit, with 6 radiating stigmas ; fruit a fleshy, globular pod 1/ inch or more in diameter. The rhizome and roots collected in the fall. Infrequent to common in rich woods throughout the state. Contains an aromatic volatile oil, a pun- gent resin, and the fragrant principle arasol. Used as an aromatic stimulant, carminative, and tonic. [Other species are collected and used with- out distinction.] Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 27 ASGLEPIAS SYRIAGA L. Milk- weed, silkweed, cotton weed. Asclepia- daceae. — -An upright, unbranched, coarse herb with milky sap, 3 to 5 feet tall, peren- nial; rootstock horizontal, long, creeping; stems stout, simple, finely pubescent above ; leaves broadly oval to oblong, 4 to 8 inches long, opposite, smooth and green above, downy and pale beneath; flowers purplish, in simple, many-flowered terminal and axillary peduncled umbels; fruit a hairy, soft-spiny pod 3 to 5 inches long, borne up- right on the recurved peduncle; seeds dull brown, tufted with silky hairs at the base, Rootstock and roots collected. Com- mon throughout the state in waste places, fields, and pastures, especially where the land is sandy or gravelly. Contains a latex. Used as is the following species. ASGLEPIAS TUBEROSA L. But- terfly-weed, pleurisy-root, orange milk- weed. Asclepiadaceae. — An erect, hir- sute, little-branched herb without milky sap, 1 to 3 feet tall, perennial; rhizome large, fleshy; stems several, densely clus- tered ; leaves linear to narrowly oblong, 2 to 6 inches long, alternate, obtuse, and cordate ; flowers orange, in simple, termi- nal and axillary umbels; fruit a hoary, .dark brown pod 4 to 5 inches long; seeds brown, flat, tufted with silky hair at the base. The rhizome and roots collected in the autumn. Occasional or locally abundant in waste places and dry and sandy fields throughout the state. Contains two resins and the glucoside asclepiadin. Used as a diuretic, purgative, emetic, expectorant, and diaphoretic, especial- ly in pulmonary and bronchial affections, and in rheumatism. \_Asclepias tncarnata L., swamp milkweed, is also sometimes collected. It is important that collections of the roots of the different milkweed species should not be mixed, as drug buyers specify that the roots shall be true.] 28 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 ASPARAGUS OFFICINALIS L. Asparagus. Liliaceae. Root and seed collected. Grown com- mercially in several regions, also an occa- sional escape from gardens in all parts of the state. Contains asparagine. Used as a diuretic and aperient. ASPIDIUM MARGINALE (L.) Sw. Male fern, leatherwood fern, shield fern. Polypodiaceae. U. S. P. XI, p. 246. — An herbaceous, evergreen fern 1 to 2 feet tall, perennial; rhizome densely covered with glossy brown chaff, 3 to 6 inches long, I/2 to 1 inch thick, with stipe remnants 2 to 3 inches in diameter; stipes chaffy at the base; fronds leathery, bipin- nate; pinnae lanceolate, broadest at the base, their segments (pinnules) oblong, obtuse, entire; sori rather large, nearly marginal. The rhizome only collected, from July through September; must be carefully cleaned, but not washed, dried rapidly in the shade, and marketed at once. Com- mon in woods on rocky hillsides from Kane and Henderson counties southward. Contains an oleoresin which yields filicin. Used as a vermifuge for tapeworm. [Aspidium Filix-mas (L. ) Sw., male fern, is the official plant {U. S. Pharmacopoeia XI, p. 76). It does not, however, occur in Illi- nois.] AVENA SATIVA L. Oats. Gramin- eae. The inflorescence and grain collected. Grown in large acreages throughout the state as a farm crop. Contains starch, a protein, and avenin. Used as a stimulant and nutrient. Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 29 BAPTISIA TINGTORIA (L.) R. Br. Wild indigo, rattlebush, yellow broom. Leguminosae. — An erect, much-branched, smooth herb 2 to 3 feet tall; perennial; stems slender, glaucous; leaves compound, 3-foliate, petioled, alternate; leaflets obo- vate, H to ll/^ inches long; stipules minute, soon lost; flowers yellow, pealilce, I/2 inch long, in few-flowered, terminal racemes; fruit an ovoid to globose, slender-tipped, stalked, inflated pod. The root collected, also the herb itself. Infrequent to rare in dry, waste, and wooded land; very much localized. Contains the glucoside baptisin and the alkaloid cytisine. Used as an emetic, cathar- tic, and coloring agent. [Baptisia bracteata (Muhl.) Ell., B. leu- cantha T. & G., and B. australis (L.) R. Br. also grow in Illinois and are all more abun- dant than the foregoing species. B. leu- cantha, white wild indigo, is the most com- mon. Because of the difficulty in distinguish- ing species, they may have been collected without discrimination. However, each ap- pears to have distinctive toxic properties.] BERBERIS VULGARIS L. Yellow- root, common barberry. Berberida- ceae. — An upright, spiny shrub 4 to 8 feet tall ; roots with whitish, shining bark ; stems gray; wood yellow; leaves ovate, with sharp, bristly teeth; flowers yellow, small, in long, drooping, axillary racemes; sepals and petals each 6; fruit a small, scarlet, 2-seeded, acid, astringent berry. The barks from stem and root collected ; also the berries. Introduced, widely es- caped in the northern quarter of the state, and now almost eradicated. The bark contains several alkaloids, in- cluding berberine ; the berries are acid but contain no medicinal principle. The bark is used as a bitter tonic; the berries are used to flavor drinks employed in the treat- ment of fevers. BETA VULGARIS L. Sugar beet. Chenopodiaceae. The root is harvested. Grown usually in small acreages in the northern half of the state. Yields sucrose (sugar), which is used as a food and flavoring agent. 30 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 BETULA LENTA L. Sweet birch, cherry birch, black birch, spice birch. Betulaceae. — An aromatic tree 50 to 80 feet tall; baric of the trunk thick and rough, that of the branchlets shiny and reddish-brown; leaves bright green, ovate, acute, 21/ to 4 inches long, sharply serrate, petioled, alternate; flowers in catkins; fruit a winged nutlet, produced in erect, oval cones about 1 inch long. The bark of the trunk collected. Rare in the state, occurring in Lee County and in the bogs of Lake County. Contains an aromatic oil similar to win- tergreen oil and the glucoside gaultherin ; methyl salicylate is obtained from the glyco- side. Used as a flavoring agent, an antisep- tic, and an antirheumatic. I BRASSIGA ALBA (L.) Boiss. [Sina- pis alba L.) White mustard, yellow mustard, charlock, kedlock, senvre. Cru- ciferae. — An erect, spreading-branched, stiff-hairy herb 1 to 2 feet high, annual; lower leaves deeply pinnately lobed and with a large terminal lobe, 6 to 8 inches long; stem leaves tending to be less lobed and lanceolate ; flowers yellow, 4-parted, small; pods narrow, about 1 inch long, spreading, constricted betw^een seeds, rough-hairy; seed roundish, pale yellow. The seed collected when ripe but before the pod is ready to burst. Introduced and often escaping but apparently failing to be- come established. Contains the glucosides sinalbin and myr- osin, and these in the presence of water form a pungent fixed oil. Used as an emetic and rubefacient. I Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 31 BRASSIGA NIGRA (L.) Koch. Black mustard. Cruciferae. U. S. P. XI, pp. 268, 333. — An erect, alternate-leaved, hairy herb 3 to 6 feet tall, annual ; stem branched and spreading above; lower leaves lyrate, with a large terminal lobe; upper leaves entire, lanceolate, tapered at the base; flowers yellow, in long, slender racemes, 4-parted, on erect, appressed pedi- cels ; pods erect, appressed, j/2 to ^ inch long, beaked; seeds dark brown to light reddish-brown, ellipsoidal, reticulated. The seed collected ; may not contain more than 5 per cent of other seeds or foreign organic matter and must yield at least 0.6 per cent of volatile oil of mustard. Frequent as an introduced weed in fields, pastures, and neglected places throughout at least the northern half of the state. Dried ripe seeds contain sinigrin and myr- osin, glucosides yielding volatile oil of mus- tard. Used as an aid to digestion, an emetic, and a rubefacient. BRAUNERIA ANGUSTIFOLIA (DG.) Heller. Purple cone-flower, nar- row-leaved purple cone-flower. Cotn- positae. — An erect, usually unbranched, hirsute herb 1 to 2 feet high, perennial; taproot thick, long, breaking to show numerous black lines radiating from the center to the outer edge of a black circle ; stem strict, slender, hispid; leaves lanceo- late, pointed at both ends, petioled, 3 to 8 inches long, i/^ to 1 inch wide, strongly 3-nerved; flower heads long-peduncled, usu- ally solitary, with spreading, purple rays notched at the tips and about 1 inch long. The root collected in the fall. In the prairie regions of the state, occasional to frequent as far south as the northern slopes of the Ozarks. Yields the drug echinacea, which contains resins but no alkaloids. Used as alterative, stimulant, diaphoretic, and sialagogue. [Brauneria pallida (Nutt. ) Britt., Kansas snakeroot, and B. purpurea (DC.) Britt., black Sampson, occur in prairie regions and along railroad tracks. More abundant than the foregoing species, they probably can be collected without discrimination.] 32 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 CALENDULA OFFICINALIS L. Mangold, pot marigold, calendula. Compositae. The flower heads collected when in full blossom. Grown extensively in gardens and in greenhouses; not established as an escape. Contains a volatile oil and a bitter prin- ciple. Used as a carminative and mild stimulant. CANNABIS SATIVA L. Hemp, In- dian hemp, red-root, gallow grass, mari- juana. Urticaceae. U. S. P. XI, pp. Ixvii, 104, 155, 169. — A stout, sparingly branched, rough herb 3 to 6 feet tall, an- nual; leaves digitately compound, on long, weak petioles, opposite or alternate above; leaflets 5 to 7, linear lanceolate, sharply serrate; flowers small, green, dioecious; pistillate flowers in spikelike clusters; staminate flowers in axillary racemes or panicles; seed yellow to olive-brown, small. ovoid to nearly round, with obtuse edges. Leaves, seeds, and fruiting tops col- lected. Established locally, especially near transportation lines, throughout the state ; occasionally covers acres. Contains the resin cannabin and a volatile narcotic oil, from which may be derived the alkaloids cannabinene and tenanocannabine, also cannabinol, a glucoside. Used as a nar- cotic, analgesic, and sedative. CAPSELLA BURSA-PASTORIS (L.) Medic. Shepherd's purse, pepper plant, case weed. Cruciferae. — ^An erect, much-branched, smooth herb Yz to 2 feet tall, annual; taproot thin, long, deep; stem slender, pubescent below; leaves variously lobed or toothed, on the stem sessile and arrow-shaped, 2 to 5 inches long, alter- nate; flowers small, white, 4-parted, pedicellate in slender racemes; pods small, triangular, or purse-shaped. The herb collected. Introduced and now common in neglected places of all kinds in all parts of the state. Yields a volatile oil on distillation and has a pungent, bitter taste. Used as a tonic, ascorbutic, and astringent. Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 33 GARYA LAGINIOSA (Michx. £.) Loud. King nut, big shell-bark hickory. Juglandaceae. — ^A large, shaggy-barked tree 50 to 90 feet tall, with a narrow, ob- long crown of short, spreading branches ; trunk light gray; twigs somewhat hairy, roughened by orange lenticels; leaves pin- nately compound, 15 to 22 inches long, alternate; leaflets 5 to 9, usually 7, sessile except the stalked terminal one, dark green above, pale and soft hairy beneath, sharp-pointed, finely toothed; nut husks 1 to 2Y2 inches in diameter, roughened with orange lenticels; nuts prominently 4- to 6-ridged. The bark collected. Occasional on rich, overflowed bottomlands from Peoria County southward. Medicinal contents unknown. Used as a cathartic. \_Carya ovata (Mill.) K. Koch, shag-bark hickory, is also collected and used as the foregoing.] CASSIA MARILANDIGA L. Amer- ican senna. Leguminosae. — An erect, coarse, smooth herb about 3 feet tall, per- ennial; stems often in clumps; leaves pin- nately compound, alternate ; leaflets ovate- oblong, 1 to 2 inches long, about Yz inch wide, in 6 to 9 pairs; petiole with a sessile, club-shaped gland at the base ; flowers yellow, in short axillary racemes ; pod linear, flat, curved, partitioned, 2 to 4 inches long; seeds flattened, grayish-brown with a darker area on each side. Leaflets collected. Occasional to fre- quent along roadsides and in fields and pastures on alluvial soils throughout the state. Contains glycosides similar to those of the imported sennas. L^sed as a cathartic. 34 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 GASTALIA ODORATA (Ait.) Woodville & Wood. Sweet-scented water lily, white pond lily. Nymphaea- ceae. — A large, aquatic, stemless herb, perennial; rhizome very large, rough, and knotty, up to 6 feet long, thick as an arm; leaves floating, glossy, dark green, orbic- ular, cordate-cleft to the petiole, 6 to 10 inches wide, crimson- or purple-tinged be- neath; petioles semicircular in section, as long as the water is deep; flowers floating, white, pink, or rose, very sweet-scented, 3 to 6 inches wide, on round stalks; fruit maturing under the water, globose, many- seeded. The rhizome collected. Frequent to abundant in lakes and river sloughs, in extreme northeastern counties and along the Illinois and Rock rivers; infrequent southward. Contains tannic and gallic acids. Used internally and topically as an astringent. GASTANEA DENTATA (Marsh.) Borkh. Chestnut. Fagaceae. The leaves collected in September or October while still green and bright. In- frequent as a shade or ornamental tree; planted as a nut orchard tree in several localities; no longer native. Contains tannin. Used as a tonic and astringent. GAULOPHYLLUM THALIGTROI- DES (L.) Michx. Blue cohosh, squaw- root, blueberry root. Berberidaceae. — An erect, unbranched, smooth herb 1 to 2Y2 feet tall, perennial; rhizome horizon- tal, knotty, somewhat branched ; stem glaucous; leaf 1, large, triternately com- pound; leaflets oval, 3- to 5-lobed at the tip, 1 to 3 inches long ; flowers greenish- purple, up to Y2 inch wide, in a terminal panicle; seeds blue, fleshy, borne on stout, short stalks. The rhizome and roots collected. Com- mon in rich woods throughout the state. Yields the drug caulophyllin ; contains two resins and a principle analogous to saponin, as well as glucosldes and the alkaloid methyl- cytisine. Used as an alterative, a diuretic, and an emmenagogue. Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 35 GEANOTHUS AMERIGANUS L. New Jersey tea. Rhamnaceae. — A free- ly branching shrub 2 to 4 feet high ; root- stock dark red ; stems pubescent when young; leaves oblong-ovate, serrate, 2 to 3 inches long, strongly 3-ribbed, alternate, short-petioled; flowers white, in dense clusters at the ends of long terminal or axillary peduncles, 5-parted; fruit a bluntly triangular, dry, leathery capsule containing 3 smooth, light brown, small seeds. Leaves, rootstock, and bark of the root- stock are collected. Frequent in dry, usually woody situations in the northern quarter of the state; becoming rare south- ward; flowering in June and early July. Contains tannin and the active principle ceanothin, which tends to increase blood clotting in wounds. Used as an astringent. GELASTRUS SGANDENS L. Bit- tersweet, false bittersweet, American bittersweet. Celastraceae. — A twining, woody, smooth vine ; stems moderately slender, climbing to 20 or 30 feet; leaves ovate, pointed, 4 to 5 inches long, finely serrate, short-petioled, alternate; flowers small, greenish-yellow, in racemes ; fruit an orange capsule that opens and folds backward to expose 3 crimson, seed-con- taining arils. Bark of the root, also that of the stem, collected. Abundant to rare in woods and along fences, more or less throughout the state. Medicinally effective constituents un- known; said to contain euonymin. U?ed as a diaphoretic, diuretic, alterative, and mild narcotic, also as an insecticide. [The true bittersweet is Solarium Dulca- mara; it and the above should not be con- fused.] GENTAUREA GYANUS L. Gorn- flower,' bachelor's button. Compositae. Commonly grown, and persisting, in home gardens throughout the state. Contains the glucoside cyanin. 36 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 1 1/?) -XE 'f^Wi. ^ (^ 1 ' \ f ^ 1 a 1 f ^ n%^ ^ GENTAURIUM UMBELLATUM Gilib. {Erythraea Centaurium Pers.) Centaury, bloodwort, bitter herb. Gen- tianaceae. — An erect, usually branched, smooth herb 4 to 20 inches tall, annual; leaves oblong, obtuse, narrowed at the base; basal leaves 1 to 2i/2 inches long; stem leaves opposite, sessile; flowers pur- plish-rose, Yz to ^ inch long, in terminal, dense, compound cymes; fruit an oblong, 2-celled. many-seeded capsule. The herb collected. Not known to be established in the state but might be found in the vicinity of large cities; should not be confused Avith American centaury. Contains several active principles, includ- ing erythrocentaurin. Used as a tonic and febrifuge. GEPHALANTHUS OGGIDENTA- LIS L. Buttonbush. Rubiaceae. — A spreading smooth shrub 4 to 10 feet tall; stems often rough-barked; leaves oval to lanceolate, pointed, 3 to 5 inches long, opposite, petioled, entire-margined, more or less hairy beneath; flowers white, small, in dense, globular, peduncled heads; fruit a small capsule, arranged in the same dense, globular heads as the flowers. The bark collected. Abundant in low, wet ground about swamps, ponds, and sloughs and along slow-moving streams. Contains tannin, a substance similar to saponin, two resins, and the glucosides ceph- alanthin and cephalin. Used in the treat- ment of fevers. I Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 37 GHAMAELIRIUM LUTEUM (L.) Gray. Star root, false unicorn root, grub root, blazing star, devil's bit, star- wort. Liliaceae. — An erect, unbranched, slightly fleshy, smooth herb Ij/? to 2 feet tali ; rootstock tuberous, i/^ to 2 inches long and curved upward at one end like a horn, dark brown, wrinkled, fibrous-rooted; stem wandlike; basal leaves spatulate, obtuse, tapered below, 2 to 8 inches long; stem leaves lanceolate, sessile, smaller; flowers white, small, starlike, in a terminal, nar- row raceme; fruit a many-seeded, ovoid, membranous pod. The rootstock collected in the fall. Ex- tremely rare in low ground in the southern tip of the state. Contains the bitter principle chamaelirin. Used as a uterine tonic and anthelmintic. [The true unicorn root is Aletris farinosa, or star grass; it and the above are not to be confused.] CHELONE GLABRA L. Balomy, turtlehead, true snakehead. Scrophu- lariaceae. — ^An erect, slender, smooth herb 1 to 3 feet tall, perennial; stem not usually branched, obtusely 4-sided ; leaves lanceolate, acuminate, serrate, 3 to 6 inches long, opposite, short-petioled; flowers white to purplish, 2-lipped, about 1 inch long, in terminal, dense, bracted spikes; fruit an ovoid, many-seeded cap- sule. The herb collected, also the leaves alone. Frequent in swampy places, wet woods, and along streams throughout the state. Contains an unidentified bitter principle. Used as a laxative and purgative. 38 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 GHENOPODIUM ALBUM L. Lamb's quarters, pigweed. Chenopo- diaceae. — An erect, branched, white-mealy herb 2 to 8 feet tall; stems angular or ridged; leaves ovate-lanceolate, gray-green above, white-mealy beneath, 1 to 4 inches long, coarsely few-dentate, 3-nerved; flowers greenish, small, sessile, in spikes clustered in the upper leaf axils; seed small, glossy black, lens-shaped. The pollen collected, rarely the leaves. Common in waste places about hom.es and farm buildings throughout the state ; a weed. An extract of the pollen is used to a slight extent as a hay fever antigen ; the leaves are said to be antiscorbutic. GHENOPODIUM AMBROSIOIDES L., var. ANTHELMINTIGUM (L.) Gray. Wormseed. Chenopodiaceae. U. S. P. XI, p. 251. — ^An erect or decum- bent, much-branched, spreading, strong- scented herb 1 to 3 feet high, annual ; stems angular, ridged ; leaves bright green, vari- able, ovate, deeply to shallowly sinuate, thin, smooth, not mealy, 1 to 5 inches long, alternate, glandular beneath; flowers greenish, small, in dense, small, axillary clusters; seed minute, glossy, brown to black, lens-shaped. Flowering and fruiting parts, and the seed especially, collected. Introduced; oc- casional or frequent in yards, fields, and waste places. Yields a volatile oil, which contains the active principle ascaridol. The oil is used only as a vermifuge for roundworms, hook- worms, and intestinal amoebae. GHIONANTHUS VIRGINIGA L. Fringe-tree. Oleaceae. The bark of the root collected. Fre- quently planted as an ornamental. Contains the bitter glucoside chionanthin. Used as a tonic, diuretic, febrifuge, and alterative. Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 39 GIGHORIUM INTYBUS L. Chicory, coffee weed, succory, blue sailors. Compositae. — An erect, much-branched, pubescent herb 2 to 3 feet high, perennial; taproot large, deep; stem stiff, hispid, round, hollow; juice milky; leaves oblong to lanceolate, clasping, entire to dentate or (the lower) pinnatifid, 1 to 6 inches long, alternate, hairy; flower heads blue, 1 to XYi inches wide, 1 to 4 together in clusters on the nearly leafless branches. The root is collected. Common along roadsides and railroads and in pastures and fields throughout the state. Contains inulin and the bitter glucosidal principle chicorin. Used to Increase appetite and aid digestion; also as an adulterant of coffee and as a coffee substitute. GIGUTA MAGULATA L. Hemlock, water hemlock, musquash root. Um- belliferae. — An erect, stout, branched, smooth herb 3 to 6 feet tall, perennial; roots' fleshy, tuberous; stems pointed, purple-streaked, hollow but with internal partitions at the base ; leaves ternately de- compound, often 1 foot long, alternate ; leaflets lanceolate, serrate, acuminate, 1 to 5 inches long, the veins leading to the marginal notches; flow^ers white, small, in compound, loose, terminal umbels; seeds broadly oval, flat on one side, 5-ridged on the other side. Roots, rootstocks, and seed collected. Widespread, occasional, or, sometimes, abundant in wet meadows and pastures throughout the state. Contains a yellowish aromatic oil and the resinlllfe poison cicutoxin. Used, though rarely, because of Its extreme polsonousness, In cases of barbital poisoning. 40 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 GIMIGIFUGA RAGEMOSA (L.) Nutt. Black cohosh, black snakeroot, squaw-root, rattle root. Ranuncula- ceae. — An erect, several-stemmed herb, 4 to 8 feet tall, perennial; rhizome thick, horizontal, knotty and rough, dark brown, 2 to 6 inches long, with the form of a cross inside when broken; stems slender, not usually branched, leafy about midway to the top; leaves bright green, decompound, very large, 2 or 3 in number, alternate ; leaflets thin, smooth, cut-serrate, 1 to 3 inches long; flowers white, Yi inch wide, ill-scented, numerous, in a long, terminal raceme, opening from the base to the top ; fruit a dry pod about ]4 inch long. The rhizome and roots collected after the fruit has ripened. Rare and very local in rich, open woods in the extreme south- ern part of the state. Contains several resins and tannin, f sed as a tonic, astringent, bitter, and sedative. GIRSIUM ARVENSE (L.) Scop. Ganada thistle. Compositae. — ^An erect, heavily spine-armed, rigid, branched, near- ly smooth herb XYi to 3 feet high, peren- nial; rootstock and root system creeping, extensive, deep; leaves oblong, irregularly much-lobed and armed with long, spiny teeth, alternate; flower heads rose-purple, 1 inch wide, their bracts spineless, in termi- nal and axillary clusters; seeds light to dark brown, small, capped by a cottony tuft of hairs which soon is lost. The leaves, also the root, collected. Widely distributed in the state as a weed of fields and waste places. Used as an antiphlogistic, tonic, and diuretic. GITRULLUS VULGARIS Schrad. Watennelon. Cucurbitaceae. Seed of the black-seeded varieties col- lected. Cultivated in farm gardens in all parts of the state and as an important crop in most of the state's sand regions. Contains a resin-yielding cucurbital and a fixed oil. Used as a diuretic and anthel- mintic. Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 41 GLAVIGEPS PURPUREA (Fries) TuL Ergot. Clavicipitaceae. U. S. P. XI, Ixix, 147, 171. — The darkened, en- larged, fungus-filled grains of rye infected with the disease known as ergot. Ergot grains are several times the size of nor- mal grains, violet to almost black, curved, hard, and hornlike; they protrude con- spicuously from rye heads in the field, and in threshed grain they can be easily rec- ognized by their size, color, and hardness. The ergot collected. Occurs sporadical- ly as a rye disease and is often abundant on rye growing in wheat ; in all parts of the state. Contains the alkaloids ergonovine, ergo- toxine, and ergotamine, also tyramine and histamine. Used in obstetrical practice to induce contraction of the uterus and to re- lieve hemorrhage. ill « f t % f r 1 f 1 ^ ' GNIGUS BENEDIGTUS L. Blessed thistle. Compositae. — An erect, hairy, spiny-leaved herb, up to 2i/^ feet tall, an- nual; stems much branched; leaves oblong- lanceolate, dentate or lobed and spiny, 3 to 6 inches long, the uppermost ' clasping the stem, alternate; flower heads yellow, 1 inch wide, sessile, and solitary among the leaves at the ends of branches; bristles capping the seed in 2 rows, the inner row longer and stronger than the outer. Leaves and flowering tops are collected in the first blooming, also the seed when ripe. Occasionally grown in herb gardens and for ornament, but not known to have escaped from cultivation. Contains the principle cnicin. Used as a bitter tonic and as a uterine sedative and hemostatic. 42 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 GOLLINSONIA CANADENSIS L. Stone-root, horse balm, citronella. La- biatae. — An erect, somewhat branched, aromatic, smooth herb 2 to 3 feet tall, per- ennial; rootstock thick, hard; stem stout, often glandular above; leaves ovate, acumi- nate, dentate, 6 to 10 inches long, slender- petioled or the upper ones sessile, opposite ; flowers light yellow, about Yi inch long, 2-lipped, lemon-scented, in racemes on the branches of a large panicle. The roostock and the herb collected. From Champaign County south and south- westward in dry, rich woods, becoming common in the Ohio River valley; rare in the north. Contains a glucoside and a resin ; the leaves also contain a volatile oil. The root is used as a diuretic and tonic. I GONIUM MACULATUM L. Poison hemlock, deadly hemlock, poison pars- ley. Umbelliferae. — An erect, branched, smooth herb 2 to 5 feet tall, biennial; tap- root large, white, parsnip-like ; stem stout, ridged, purple-spotted, hollow; leaves de- compound, large; leaflets ovate, dentate, thin; flowers white, small, in large, open, compound umbels terminal on branches; umbels bracted; seeds gray-brown, small, oval, granular, conspicuously wavy-ribbed. Fruit is gathered green but fully devel- oped and the leaves are collected at flower- ing time. Formerly cultivated; escaped and now locally established along road- sides, in pastures, and on waste ground throughout the state. Contains the volatile, poisonous alkaloid coniine, also conhydrine and meth^lconiine. Used as an antispasmodic, sedative, and anodyne. Both the fresh plant and the dried fruit are highly poisonous. Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 43 GONVALLARIA MAJALIS L. Lily of the valley. Liliaceae. — A low, stem- less, smooth herb 4 to 12 inches tall, per- ennial; rootstock slender, running; roots fibrous, numerous; leaves 2 to 3 in number, broad-bladed, parallel-veined, and smooth- margined, 4 to 12 inches long; flowers white, 14 iri^h wide, fragrant, drooping, in loose, 1-sided racemes on a somewhat angular flower stalk up to 12 inches tall; fruit a few-seeded, small, red berr3\ Rootstock and roots collected, also flow^ers. Introduced; grown commercially for the blossoms and for decoration about homes; persistent about abandoned home sites. Contains two glucosides, convallarin and convallamarin. Used as a cardiac tonic. GORALLORRHIZA ODONTORHI- ZA (Willd.) Nutt. Coral root, Craw- ley root. Orchidaceae. — A yellow-brown to purplish, leafless, rootless herb 6 to 16 inches tall, perennial; rootstock coral-like, branched, bulbous, large, and massed; stem upright, smooth, scaly below ; flowers dull purple to white and crimson-spotted, small, 6 to 20 in number in a loose termi- nal raceme ; fruit an oblong reflexed pod 14 to 1/2 inch long. The rootstock collected. Widely dis- tributed throughout the state but localized to sandy, humus-bearing soil of black oak and white oak w^oods. Medicinally eff^ective constituents un- known. Used as a diaphoretic. 44 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 €§, i i ^ 1 (c^^^ ^ ^^^:^^ ^ ^ i ^^'P^^ s % ,^/7l" v^TN^N^ % » V M ^^ ^""^^^1 ^ 1 % 7/ yVt>^ 5^' ^ ^J^ ^ X y^y%^ "^ Kft, ^ V ^ L\ (« GORNUS FLORIDA L. Flowering dogwood. Cornaceae. — A small, bushy, flat-crowned tree 10 to 30 feet tall; branches and branchlets spreading, slender, up-tilted at the ends ; leaves bright green, firm, oval, pointed, 3 to 6 inches long, opposite ; flowers small, greenish, in clus- ters surrounded by large, white, petal-like bracts notched at the apex; fruit a bright scarlet drupe containing 1 or 2 pale brown seeds. The bark of the roots collected. Fre- quent, often abundant, in rich, dry woods throughout the state south of the Rock River. Contains the bitter principle cornin, or cornic acid, also gallic acid and tannin. Used as a tonic and astringent. \Cornus circinata L'Her., round-leaved dogwood, C. Amomum Mill., silky dogwood, and perhaps other species also collected.] I CRATAEGUS OXYAGANTHA L. (C. monogyna Jacq.) Hawthorn, Eng- lish hawthorn. Rosaceae. The fruit collected and, when dried, sold as hawthorn berries. Grown about dwell- ings as an ornamental tree ; rare as an es- cape in a few widely separated localities. aJ 1 1 / V\| // Wi r^ A \ \/ fm^ Mt ^^/ cX^ 5# ^^^7yK i^ \l^ -J^ 1^ w-^ Y^/ GUGURBITA PEPO L. Pumpkin. Cucurbitaceae. Seed collected. Grown as a market and garden vegetable throughout the state. Contains an active resin. Used as an anthelmintic. Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 45 GUNILA ORIGANOIDES (L.) Britt. Dittany, stone mint. Labiatae. — A tufted, much-branched, aromatic herb 8 to 20 inches tall, perennial; stems slender, stiff, purplish, smooth; leaves ovate, ser- rate, sessile, ]/i to l]/2 inches long; flowers purple-pink, 2-lipped, half as long as the 2 stamens, numerous in terminal, loose clus- ters. The herb collected. Infrequent on sum- mits and slopes of dry, wooded ridges in the Ozark region of Illinois; rare north- ward to Shelby and Macoupin counties. Contains a fragrant volatile oil. Used as an aromatic, stimulant, and carminative. GYDONIA VULGARIS Pers. Quince. Rosaceae. The seed collected to some extent in the United States but most of the quince seed used in the American drug trade imported from Persia and Spain. Grown occasional- ly in home and farm plantations and to a small extent in orchards. Contains mucilage. Used as a demulcent. GYNOGLOSSUM OFFIGINALE L. and other species. Hound's tongue, wild comfrey. Boraginaceae. — ^An erect, leafy, branched, hairy herb ll/^ to 3 feet tall, biennial; stems stout, leafy to the top; basal leaves oblong, 6 to 12 inches long, smooth-margined, slender-petioled ; upper leaves sessile or clasping, lanceolate ; flowers reddish purple, about 14 inch wide, 5-parted, numerous in several racemes; fruit an aggregate, 1/ inch wide, of 4 prickle-studded nutlets. The leaf and root collected. Intro- duced, escaped, and naturalized through- out the state; often common along trans- portation lines and in dry field and woods pastures. Contains the principle consolidin and the alkaloid cynoglossine. Used as a demulcent and sedative. 46 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 GYPRIPEDIUM PARVIFLORUM Salisb. Yellow lady's slipper, nerve root, American valerian, yellow Indian shoe. Orchidaceae. — An upright, glan- dular hairy, ill-smelling herb 1 to 2i/ feet tall, perennial; rhizome horizontal, crooked, bearing tufted, thick, fibrous roots; stems hairy, leafy; leaves oval, 2 to 6 inches long, 3 or 4 in number, strongly parallel-ribbed, alternate; flower pale yel- low, lined or blotched with purple, much inflated and slipper- or moccasin-shaped, the "slipper" i/^ to 1 inch long, sepals purplish. Rhizome and roots collected in fall. Rare in boggy places in northern half of state. Contains a minute quantity of volatile oil, a volatile acid, and a glucosidal resin. Used as a mild nervous stimulant and anti- spasmodic. [Var. pubescens (Willd.) Knight, large yellow lady's slipper, with "slippers" 1 to 2 inches long, is rare to infrequent in moist or dry woods probably throughout state. Col- lected and used without distinction.] DATURA STRAMONIUM L. James- town weed, thorn apple, Jimson weed. Solanaceae. U. S. P. XL p. 360.— An erect, coarse, branched, smooth herb 1 to 3 feet tall, annual; stem coarse, green, its branches spreading; leaves large, ovate, irregularly and angularly toothed or lobed, up to 8 inches long, strongly scented, alternate, petioled ; flowers white, large, about 4 inches long, standing on short peduncles in the axils of the branches; fruit an ovoid, densely prickly capsule about 2 inches long. Leaves and flowering tops collected when plant is in flower, also seed when mature. Infrequent to common as a weed in fields, waste places, and cattle yards on farms. Contains the alkaloids hyoscyamine, atro- pine, and scopalomine. Used as an antispas- modic, especially in asthma, an anodyne, and a narcotic. \^Datura Tatiila L., purple thorn apple, differs from Jamestown weed in that it is more robust, reaching a height of 5 feet, and has a purple stem and pale purple flow- ers. It is not usually distinguished from Jamestown weed.] Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 47 DAUGUS GAROTA L. Garrot, wild carrot, Queen Anne's lace, bird's nest, devil's plague. Umbelliferae. — An erect, branching, bristly hairy herb 1 to 3 feet tall, biennial; taproot large (the vegetable carrot); stem slender, ridged, hollow; leaves pinnately decompound, the basal leaves with long petioles, the upper leaves with stem-sheathing bases; leaflets dentate or pinnately lobed or cut; flowers white, sometimes pink, small, numerous in com- pound umbels surrounded by cleft, linear, long bracts; umbels, as the fruit matures, becoming concave and forming a "bird's nest"; seed light gray-brown, oblong, flat on one side, bristly and prickly along the ribs on the other. The seed, when mature, collected. In- troduced; infrequent to common through- out the state as a naturalized plant and weed. Contains a volatile oil. Used as a stimu- lant, diuretic, and aromatic. DELPHINIUM AJAGIS L. Annual larkspur, rocket larkspur. Ranuncu- laceae. — An erect, somewhat branched, finely pubescent herb up to 3 feet tall, annual; leaves finely cut into very narrovy, acute segments, alternate, the lower leaves petioled, the upper sessile ; flowers blue to white, with a slender, backward-reaching spur, about 1 inch long; fruit an erect, pubescent pod. The seed collected. Introduced; occurs sparingly to frequently in fields and woods in many parts of the state; most abundant in the extreme south. Contains several alkaloids and the gluco- side delphinin. Used as an insecticide for the destruction of body parasites. [Delphinium carolinianum Walt., Caro- lina larkspur, seed is collected when ma- ture.] 48 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 DIGENTRA CANADENSIS (Goldie) Walp. Turkey com, squirrel corn. Fumariaceae. — A low, stemless, smooth herb 5 to 10 inches tall, perennial; rhizome slender, scaly, creeping, bearing clusters of pealike or kernel-like yellow- tubers ; leaves ternately compound, 10 to 12 inches long; leaflets glaucous beneath, deeply cut into numerous linear lobes; flowers greenish-white tinged with rose, somewhat flattened and heart-shaped, 4 to 10 in a loose raceme at the end of a slender flower stalk. (Above ground, this plant greatly resembles Dicentra Cucullaria (L.) Torr., Dutchman's breeches, which is sometimes collected, also.) The bulbous tubers are collected. Com- mon, but usually not abundant, on rich, wooded slopes throughout the state. Contains several alkaloids, including corydaline and the toxic cuculiarine. Used as a tonic, diuretic, and alterative. DIGITALIS PURPUREA L. Digi- talis, foxglove. Scrophulariaceae. U. S. P. XL pp. 136, 131, 397, 485. Leaves collected from the second year's growth. Grown in gardens throughout the state; not known to have become estab- lished as an escape. Contains several glucosides, among which digitoxin, digitalin, and digitonin are the most active. Of great use as a stimulant in treating heart disorders. i Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 49 DIOSGOREA VILLOSA L. Wild yam, colic-root, rheumatism root, devil's bones. Dioscoreaceae. — A twining her- baceous vine up to 15 feet long, perennial; rootstock slender or stout (to i/j inch in diameter), horizontal, woody; stems slender, smooth; leaves heart-shaped, long- pointed, parallel-veined, 2 to 6 inches long, petioled, pale and pubescent beneath; flowers greenish-yellow, small ; male flow- ers in drooping panicles; female flowers in drooping racemes; fruit a strongly 3- winged, membranous, yellowish-green cap- sule. The rootstock collected in the fall. Rare in the southern half of the state, becoming more frequent northward, in moist, rich woods. Contains an acrid resin and a saponin- like glycoside. Reputedly useful as a uterine sedative and hemostatic. DIOSPYROS VIRGINIANA L. Per- simmon. Ebenaceae. — A less than mod- erately large, round-topped tree, 25 to 30 feet tall; trunk dark gray to dark brown, its bark square-plated; branches spread- ing and drooping; leaves oval, pointed, leathery, shiny dark green, 4 to 6 inches long, petioled, alternate; female flowers greenish to creamy white, solitary on short stalks in the leaf axils; male flowers in clusters of 2 or 3 ; fruit globular, fleshy, astringent when green, reddish-yellow and sweet when ripe (after frost). The fruit is collected while still unripe ; also the bark. Occurs as a scattered tree in dry woods from Peoria County south- ward, becoming increasingly common southward. Contains tannin, gallic acid, and pectin. Used as an astringent, chiefly in internal hemorrhage. 50 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 DIPSAGUS SYLVESTRIS Huds. TeaseL Dipsacaceae. — ^An erect, branched prickly herb 3 to 9 feet tall, biennial; stem stiff, stout, angled, coarsely prickly; leaves lanceolate, the lowest leaves sessile, veiny, and very spiny; the stem leaves tending to be connate around the stem, prickly on the margins, irregularly serrate; flowers lilac, small, in dense, cylindric, long-bracted heads 3 to 4 inches long; the head at maturity furnished with numerous long, straight, stiff, barbed awns. The seed collected. Introduced and nat- uralized; an infrequent to common plant along transportation lines and roads and in fields and waste places; sometim.es a troublesome weed. DROSERA ROTUNDIFOLIA L. Sundew, round-leaved sundew. Dros- eraceae. — A low, small, insect-catching herb with flat, round, tentacled leaves ]/^ to Y2 inch long, which spread on flat petioles up to 2 inches long; flowers red to white, small, in a 1 -sided raceme at the top of a 4- to 10-inch flower stalk. The herb in flower collected. Rare in sphagnum and tamarack bogs in extreme northeastern counties. Furnishes a bitter, acrid resin. Used as a pectoral. EPIGAEA REPENS L. Gravel plant, trailing arbutus, ground laurel, May- flower. Ericaceae. — A prostrate, run- ning, low, evergreen shrub up to 4 inches high; stems woody, spreading, rooting at the joints, clothed with stiff, brown hairs; branches upright or trailing, glandular- hairy; leaves oval, leathery, cordate, 1 to 3 inches long, alternate ; flowers pinkish, waxy, very fragrant, in small clusters in the axil of the topmost leaf. The leaves collected at flowering time. Infrequent to rare, and local, in sandy woods in the extreme northeastern corner of the state. Contents said to be similar to those of Arctostaphylos Uva-ursi. Used as a sub- stitute for or in place of Uva-ursi. Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 51 EPILOBIUM ANGUSTIFOLIUM L. Great willow herb. Onagraceae. — An erect, unbranched, smooth 'herb 4 to 7 feet tall, perennial; rootstocks creeping; stems somewhat stout and woody, reddish ; leaves lanceolate, sessile, with smooth or undu- lating margins, alternate, distant; flowers purplish, showy, in long, terminal racemes; fruit a reddish brown, linear, many-seeded capsule 2 inches or more long; seeds with a tuft of long hairs on one end. The leaves and root collected. Rare, or at most infrequent, in wet, sandy soil in the extreme northeastern part of the state. Medicinally active contents unknown. Said to have value as a tonic, astringent, demulcent, and emollient. EQUISETUM HYEMALE L. Scour- ing rush, tall scouring rush, rough horse- tail. Equisetaceae. — An evergreen, leaf- less, usually unbranched, jointed herb 1 to 5 feet tall, perennial; stems stiff, rough, hollow, sheathed at the joints; cones ter- minal, pointed ; rootstock horizontal. The herb, that is the reed, collected. Infrequent, but sometimes in large col- onies, in moist sandy soil along stream banks throughout the state. Contains aconitic acid and, probably, the alkaloidal nerve poison equisitine. ERIGERON ANNUUS L. Fleabane, white top, sweet scabious. Cotnposi- tae. — An erect, upwardly branched herb 6 inches to 5 feet tall, annual or biennial; root fibrous, stem stout, usually hairy; leaves ovate, the lower obtuse, with mar- gined petioles, coarsely dentate, the upper acute, mostly sessile, serrate at the middle; flower heads white or purple-tinged, nu- merous, about Y2 irich wide, in few- flowered clusters terminal on the stem and branches arising from the axils of upper leaves ; seeds small, straw-colored, crowned with fragile bristles. The herb collected. Frequent to com- mon as a weed in fields and pastures and along roadsides throughout the state; blossoming from mid-June to mid-July. For contents and uses, see Erigeron cana- densis. LIBRARY UNIVERSITY OF ILUNOIS 52 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 ERIGERON CANADENSIS L. Can- ada fleabane, mare's-tail, horse-weed, bitter-weed, hog-weed. Compositae. — An erect, unbranched, bristly hairy herb 6 inches to 6 feet tall, annual; stem wand- like; leaves somewhat hairy, alternate, the lower spatulate, petioled, and dentate, the upper linear-lanceolate, sessile, often en- tire; flower heads greenish-white, small, very numerous, in panicled clusters on numerous axillary and terminal floral branches at the top of the plant. The leaves and tops are collected while the plant is in bloom. Common as a weed and frequent in open woods and pastures throughout the state; blossoms from mid- August to mid-September. Contains a volatile oil (oil of fleabane), tannin, gallic acid, and a bitter extractive. Used as a diuretic, tonic, and astringent. [^Erigeron philadelphicus L., daisy flea- bane, purple-flowered and blossoming in May and June, is collected as other Erigeron species and contains the same volatile oil.] ERYNGIUM AQUATIGUM L. But- ton snakeroot, eryngo, corn snakeroot, rattlesnake master. Umbelliferae. — An erect, coarse, little-branched herb 2 to 6 feet tall, perennial; rootstock stout, knotty, branched, fibrous-rooted; stem stout, stifiE, furrowed; leaves linear, grass- like, rigid, 1 to 2 feet long, bristly mar- gined, parallel-veined ; flowers whitish, small, in dense ovate or conical heads at the ends of the stout branches of a termi- nal inflorescence. The rootstock collected in the fall. In- frequent in damp soil throughout the state. Medicinally effective constituents un- known. Used as a diaphoretic, diuretic, expectorant, and, in large doses, as an emetic. Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 53 \ ERYTHRONIUM AMERIGANUM Ker. Yellow adder's-tongue, dog's-tooth violet. Liliaceae. — A low, stemless, 2- leaved herb 6 to 12 inches tall, perennial; corm deep, membranous-covered, Y? to 1 inch long, with off-shooting small corms on stems from its base; leaves pale green mottled with purple, oblong-lanceolate, with long, clasping petioles, 3 to 8 inches long; flowers yellow, solitary, and nodding at the top of a smooth stalk up to 12 inches long; fruit an obovate, short-stalked cap- sule 1/2 to 1 inch long. The corm collected. Usually in dense colonies, infrequent to frequent in rich woods throughout the state. The medicinally effective constituents un- known. Used as an emetic. EUPATORIUM PERFOLIATUM L. Boneset, thoroughwort, ague weed, feverwort, sweating plant. Cotnposi- tae. — An erect, usually unbranched, often rather coarse herb 2 to 5 feet tall, peren- nial; stems stout, rigid, hairy; leaves op- posite, grown together around the stem, lanceolate, tough, veiny, wrinkled on both surfaces; flower heads white, small, nu- merous in a stiff, branched, flat-topped, terminal inflorescence. The herb collected without large stems, also the leaves and flowering tops when the plant is in flower. Common through- out the state in low ground ; late August through September. Contains the bitter glucoside eupatorin. Used as a tonic, diaphoretic, emetic, and cathartic. 54 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 EUPATORIUM PURPUREUM L. Queen of the meadow, Joe-Pye weed, gravel root, purple boneset. Composi- tae. — An erect, coarse, unbranched, usually smooth herb 3 to 10 feet tall, perennial; stems stout, green or purple ; leaves in whorls of 3 to 6, ovate, pointed, petioled, 4 to 12 inches long, serrate; flower heads purple, small, very numerous in a dense, large, stiffly branched, terminal inflores- cence. The root collected. Infrequent to com- mon in moist and dry woods and along streams throughout the state; from early July to September. Contains the glucoside euparin. Used as a diuretic. EUPHORBIA GOROLLATA L. Flowering spurge, white-flowered milk- weed. Euphorbiaceae. — An erect, un- branched, light green herb 1 to 3 feet tall, perennial; rootstock stout, long, bright green ; stems often several, sometimes spotted; leaves ovate, obtuse, entire, ses- sile, up to li/2 inches long, alternate but whorled below the inflorescence ; flower heads white, small, terminal on the branches of a 5- to 7-stalked, much-forked, terminal inflorescence. The rootstock collected. Infrequent but well distributed throughout the state ; most abundant in dry, sandy soil; seldom found in wet soil. Said to contain "euphorbon," a poisonous principle. Used as an emetic, cathartic, and diaphoretic. Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 55 EVONYMUS ATROPURPUREUS Jacq. Waahoo, burning bush, spindle tree, Indian arrow-wood, pegwood. Celastraceae. — A shrub or small tree 6 to 25 feet tall; bark ashy gray; branchlets green, smooth, 4-sided; leaves elliptic, pointed, petioled, II/2 to 6 inches long, serrate, opposite; flowers purple, small, in slender-stalked clusters at the bases of current-season twigs; fruit pale purple to deep red, deeply cleft into 4 flattened lobes, opening to disclose red, fleshy arils. The bark of the stem and root collected. Infrequent on the alluvial, wooded banks of streams throughout the state. Contains resins and the bitter principle euonymin ; used as a mild purgative. FAGUS GRANDIFOLIA Ehrh. Beech. Fagaceae. — ^A moderate to large, narrow-crowned tree 60 to 80 feet tall; bark dull gray, smooth, mottled with dark spots, thin; twigs bright brown, slender; buds narrow, conical, up to 1 inch long; leaves ovate, pointed, 2i/^ to 5 inches long, coarsely serrate, alternate ; flowers incon- spicuous; fruit a short-stalked, prickly bur containing two shiny, brown, 3-sided nuts. The leaves and bark, also the wood, col- lected. Rare to infrequent in the extreme northeastern corner and east-central bor- der of the state; common in the Ozark region. The wood yields creosote upon distillation. The bark is used as a tonic and astringent. FOENIGULUM VULGARE HilL Fennel. Um belli ferae. U. S. P. XI, p. 254. — An erect, branched, smooth herb 2 to 4 feet tall, perennial; leaves large, alter- nate, dissected in linear or capillary seg- ments, petioled, the petiole clasping the stem ; flowers yellow, small, in large, com- pound, bractless umbels; seed flat on one side, convex and angled on the other. The ripe fruit is collected. Planted in gardens, but not known to have escaped or become established in the state. Yields the volatile oil of fennel and con- tains trigonellin and cholin. Used as an aromatic flavoring, a carminative, and a stomachic stimulant. 56 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 FRAGARIA VESGA L. Strawberry. Alpine strawberry. Rosaceae. The leaves collected, also the fruit. Cultivated in home and farm gardens throughout the state and locally in many places in fields of some size; persists after being planted but does not become estab- lished. The fruit contains salicylic acid and malic acid. Said to have astringent and diuretic properties but is valuable chiefly for the fruit syrup which is used as a pleasant ve- hicle for medicines. \_Fragaria 'virginiana Dene., Virginia strawberry, is native throughout the state ; except for the small size of its fruit, it is hardly distinguishable from the foregoing species and may be collected also, for both its fruit and leaves. The fruit is said to be refrigerant.] I FRASERA GAROLINENSIS Walt. American columbo, calumba. Gentia- naceae. — An erect, coarse, little-branched, smooth herb 3 to 7 feet tall, perennial; taproot large, spindle-shaped; stem stout; leaves lanceolate, on the stem 3 to 6 inches long, petioled, entire, 4 at a node ; flowers yellowish white dotted with purple-brown, short-pedicelled, numerous in a large, terminal, cymose inflorescence; fruit an oval, flattened, few-seeded capsule. The root collected. Infrequent to rare but in all parts of the state in dry oak woods. Contains the bitter principle gentiopicrin and gentisic acid. Used as an emetic, a cathartic, and a bitter tonic. I I Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 57 FRAXINUS AMERICANA L. White ash. Oleaceae. — A moderate to large tree 60 to 80 feet tall; bark of the trunk gray to dark brown, furrowed, thick; branchlets gray to brown; leaves large, odd-pinnately compound, opposite; leaf- lets thin, dark green, pointed, ovate, den- tate, 5 to 9, usually 7, in number; flowers inconspicuous; fruit an oblong, narrow "key" 1 to 2 inches long, with a long, membranous wing. The inner bark of trunk and root col- lected. Common in woods on uplands, bottomlands, and stream banks through- out the state. Contains several resins, an alkaloid, and the glucoside fraxin. Reputed to be benefi- cial in dysmenorrhea; used as a tonic, cathartic, and diuretic. FRAXINUS NIGRA Marsh. Black ash. Oleaceae. — ^A moderate to large tree 70 to 100 feet tall; bark of the trunk gray, red-tinted, thin, separating into papery scales; branches and twigs ashy gray to orange; leaves large, odd-pinnate- ly compound, opposite; leaflets lanceolate, serrate, sessile except the terminal one, 7 to 11 in number; flowers inconspicuous; fruit a narrowly oblong "key" 1 to ll/^ inches long. The bark of the trunk and root col- lected. Infrequent but widely distributed in the northern two-thirds of the state, in wet or swampy wooded sites. Contains the glucoside fraxin. Used as a tonic and astringent. 58 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 GALIUM APARINE L. Cleaver's herb, cleavers, goose grass. Rubiaceae. — A low, weak, reclining or scrambling, prickly herb, annual; stem square, with recurved prickles, 2 to 5 feet long; leaves oblanceolate, 1 to 3 inches long, 6 or 8 at a node, hispid and rough on the margin and midrib; flowers white, small, in groups (1 to 3) on axillary peduncles; fruit appearing double, fleshy, covered with hooked prickles. The herb collected. Common through- out the state in gardens, along roads and streams, and in moist woods; May and early June. The species of Galium contain either galitannic or apertannic acid, other organic acids, and a bitter principle. Used as a diuretic and refrigerant. GALIUM TRIFLORUM Michx. Sweet-scented bedstraw. Rubiaceae. — A diffuse, low, spreading, mostly unarmed, smooth herb, fragrant in drying, perennial; stems shining, square ; leaves narrowly oval, nearly sessile, 6 at a node, cuspidate, 1-nerved; flowers greenish, small, in clus- ters of 3 or in 3 clusters of 3 at the ends of slender, terminal, and axillary peduncles; the fruit appearing double, covered with hooked bristles. The herb collected. Common and abun- dant in moist woods throughout the state. Contains, in addition to the usual Galium constituents, coumarin. Used additionally In nerve disorders. Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 59 GAULTHERIA PROGUMBENS L. Wintergreen, teaberry. Ericaceae. U. S. P. XI, p. 234. — A low, running, ever- green, aromatic shrub up to 6 inches tall; stems creeping, subterranean; branches erect, simple, woolly hairy, leafy at the top; leaves oval to orbicular, leathery, thick, up to 2 inches long, short-petioled; flowers white, small, waxy, urn-shaped, solitary in the leaf axils; fruit bright red, small, flattened globose, mealy, spicy, ad- hering until spring. The herb and leaves collected in the fall. Rare, or perhaps now extinct, along the Lake Michigan shore. Contains the glucoside gauhherin, tannin, and the crystalline principles arbutin, erico- lin, and ursone ; gaultherin, upon hydrolysis, yields volatile oil of gaultheria (wintergreen oil), which consists mostly of methyl sali- cylate. Used as an aromatic stimulant, as a flavoring agent, and in rheumatic fever. GENTIANA SAPONARIA L. Soap- wort gentian, blue gentian. Gentian- aceae. — An ascending or erect, simple or short-branched, usually smooth herb 1 to 2l/2 feet tall, perennial; stems slender, round, leafy; leaves lanceolate, opposite, entire, 3- to 5-nerved, rough-margined; flowers blue, 1 to 2 inches long, sessile in terminal and axillary clusters of 1 to 5 ; fruit a short-stalked capsule. The root collected. Infrequent in sandy- oak woods in northeastern counties and in dry woods in the Ozark region of the state. Contains tannin in small amount, the glucoside gentiin, and the bitter principle gentiamarin. Used as a simple bitter. 60 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 GERANIUM MAGULATUM L. Granesbill, wild geranium, alum root. Geraniaceae. — An upright and sparingly branched, hairy herb 1 to 2 feet tall, per- ennial; rootstock (rhizome) 2 to 4 inches long, thick, with numerous scars from previous years' growths; stem slender, hairy; leaves palmately 3- to 5-parted and the divisions cleft and toothed, mostly basal, long-petioled, 3 to 6 inches wide, usually 2 or more forming an involucre ; flowers rose- or violet-purple, 1 to II/2 inches wide, in loose, long-stalked clusters terminating the stems; fruit a slender, dry capsule whose sides, on opening, curl outward and up- ward. The root (rhizome) collected just before flowering. Frequent to abundant in moist woods throughout the state ; early April to mid-June. Contains gallic acid and tannin, the latter to the extent of about 25 per cent of the dried drug. Used chiefly as an astringent. GILLENIA STIPULATA (Muhl.) Trel. American ipecac, Indian physic. Rosaceae. — An erect, branching, pubes- cent herb 2 to 4 feet tall, perennial; leaves compound, nearly sessile, with large, leaf- like stipules; leaflets 3 in number, ovate, acuminate, 1/^ to 1 inch long, sharply in- cised-serrate ; flowers white or pinkish, about y^, inch wide, solitary at the ends of slender, flexuous stalks arising from upper- most leaf axils; fruit a cluster of 5 2- to 4-seeded pods lightly adhering within the calyx. The root collected. Infrequent or lo- cally abundant in dry woods southward from Macon and Clark counties; rare northward to La Salle County. Contains the bitter principle gillenin, gum, resin, and tannin. Used as an emetic and stomach tonic. Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 61 GNAPHALIUM POLYGEPHA- LUM Michx. Life everlasting, sweet cudweed, common everlasting, sweet balsam. Compositae. — An erect, stiff, sparingly branched, white-woolly, fragrant herb 1 to 21/? feet tall, annual; stems woolly, glandular; leaves lanceolate, ses- sile, alternate, green above, woolly beneath, wavy-margined, 1 to 3 inches long; flower heads shining white, sometimes brown- tinted, 14 i"ch long, numerous, in clusters at the tips of the branches of a terminal, panicled inflorescence. The leaves and tops collected. Infre- quent to common in dry, open woods, fields, and pastures throughout the state. Contains a bitter principle and a volatile oil. Used as a tonic. [Gnaphalium uliginosum L., marsh cud- weed or mouse-ear, sometimes collected, oc- curs locally in the extreme northeastern and southern parts of the state, inhabiting wet or muddy places. It is low, much branched from the base, and ascending; Its flower heads, in dense clusters at the ends of branches, are sessile in leafy cups.] GOSSYPIUM HIRSUTUM L. {G. herbaceum L.) Gotton. Malvaceae. U. S. P. XL pp. 182, 255. The bolls, w^hen ripe, and the bark of the root collected ; also the seed. Grown as a crop in the southern tip counties of the state. The lint furnishes absorbent cotton and pyroxylin; the seed yields cottonseed oil; the fresh root bark contains an active, color- less, resinous substance which becomes In- active and red In color as the bark ages. The root bark Is used as an emmenagogue and ecbollc; the oil as an emollient. 62 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 GRINDELIA SQUARROSA (Pursh) Dunal. Gum-plant, tar-weed, gum weed, rosin-weed. Compositae. — An erect, branched, gummy, smooth, var- nished-looking herb 8 to 24 inches tall, biennial or perennial; stems often reddish; leaves spatulate or oblong, sessile, often clasping the stem, alternate, yz to \]/i inches long, spinulose-dentate ; the flower heads yellow, about 1 inch wide, solitary and terminal on the branches, very gummy and sticky. The leaves and flowering tops collected during full bloom. Rare to infrequent in gravelly and sandy, open soils and along railroads across northern Illinois and south to La Salle County. Contains a resinous varnish in which are the active principles, a volatile oil, a resin, and the alkaloid grindeline. Used as a stimulant for mucous membranes and as an antispasmodic. {^Grindelia robusta Nutt. of the Pacific coast is the plant that formerly was official. It and the foregoing species are believed to be about equally efficacious and are often mixed,] HAMAMELIS VIRGINIANA L. Witch-hazel, snapping hazel, striped alder, tobacco wood. Hamamelida- ceae. — ^A moderate-sized shrub 8 to 15 feet tall; stems crooked; branches long and flexuous; bark brown, smooth; leaves suborbicular to obovate, 2 to 5 inches long, short-petioled, alternate, sinuate margined, usually acute, unevenly cordate; flowers yellow, with 4 linear, crinkled petals; fruit a woody, pubescent capsule containing 2 black, oblong seeds. Leaves, twigs, and bark collected in the autumn. Infrequent to abundant in dry woods in the northern half of the state; rare to absent southward. Contains tannin and a bitter principle ; the aqueous distillation of the leaves produces an aromatic principle in the extract (ex- tract of witch-hazel). Used chiefly in treat- ment of internal hemorrhage. Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 63 HEDEOMA PULEGIOIDES (L.) Pers. Pennyroyal, -squaw mint. La- biatae. — A low, erect, much-branched, aromatic herb 4 to 12 inches tall, annual; stem slender, 4-angled, pubescent; leaves oblong-ovate, short-petioled, opposite, en- tire or serrate, l/^ to 1 inch long, glandu- lar-dotted; flowers bluish, small, in loose whorls in the leaf axils, 2-lipped ; seeds minute, dark brown or black. The leaves, small stems, and flowering tops are collected in full flower. Common everywhere in the state, occurring in dry soil in open woods and as a weed in fields and pastures and along transportation lines. Contains and yields oil of hedeoma (oil of pennyroyal). Used as an aromatic stimu- lant and emmenagogue. HELIANTHEMUM GANADENSE (L.) Michx. Frostweed, rockrose. Cistaceae. — An ascending or erect, gray- hairy, branching herb 6 to 24 inches tall, perennial; stems simple at first, later branching; leaves oblong, l/^ to Ij^^ inches long, nearly sessile, alternate, entire, dark green above ; flowers bright yellow, showy, about I14 inches wide, solitary (later flowers without petals, in axillary clus- ters) ; fruit a globose, small capsule. The herb collected. Infrequent to fre- quent in dry sandy or gravelly oak woods, at least from the Illinois Ozarks north- ward. Contains tannin. Used as a mild astrin- gent. HELIANTHUS ANNUUS L. Sun- flower, annual sunflower, common sun- flower. Cotnpositae. The seed collected. Cultivated in many parts of the state, occasionally escaped and established as a weed. Contains a bland fixed oil. Said to be useful as a diuretic and expectorant. 64 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 HEPATIGA AGUTILOBA DC. Hepatica, liverwort, liverleaf. Ranun- culaceae. — ^A low, stemless, early-flower- ing herb 4 to 9 inches tall, perennial; roots fibrous; leaves peculiarly 3-lobed and "liver-shaped," 2 to 2i/^ inches wide, on slender, hairy, lax petioles 4 to 6 inches long; flowers blue, purple, or white, about ^ inch wide, solitary on slender, hairy stalks up to 9 inches tall, with 3 small, hairy bracts beneath the perianth; fruit a small, hairy achene (grain). The leaves collected in April. Infre- quent to abundant on wooded slopes along streams. Contains only tannin and such vegetable constituents as mucilage and sugar. Is inert and without useful properties. [^Hepatica triloba Chaix, round-leaved hepatica, is distinguished from the foregoing chiefly by the rounded tips of the lobes of its leaves; it is, also, more prostrate. It is most likely to be found in the northern third of the state ; the other species grows through- out the state. Both species may be collected without discrimination.] HEUGHERA AMERIGANA L. Alum root, American sanicle. Saxi- fragaceae. — ^An erect, stemless herb 2 to 3 feet high, perennial; leaves round-cor- date, 3 to 4 inches wide, with 7 to 9 short, rounded, crenate-dentate lobes, rising from the rootstock on long, smooth, or densely hairy petioles; flowering stalk stout, glandular, hairy, sometimes with 1 or 2 small leaves; flowers greenish, small, with protruding stamens bearing orange an- thers, numerous in loose panicle; fruit a capsule. The rootstock collected. Frequent to common throughout the state on dry. wooded slopes. Contains a large percentage of tannin. Used as a topical astringent. HOLGUS SORGHUM L., van TEGH- NIGUS Bailey. Broom corn. Gramin- eae. The seed collected. Grown in large acreages in Coles and Douglas counties and occasionallv elsewhere in the state. Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 65 HORDEUM VULGARE L. Barley. Gramineae. U. S. P. XI, p. 155-159. The grain collected. Grown as a small grain crop in all parts of the state and in a large total acreage. The malted grain furnishes malt extract, which contains amylolytic enzymes, also diastase. Used in the preparation of barley water; a demulcent. HUMULUS LUPULUS L. Hop. Urticaceae. The fruiting catkins (strobiles), also the flowers, collected. Grown occasionally as a cultivated crop ; infrequent in the wild state along roadsides, lakes, and streams. Yields the drug lupulin, which contains a volatile oil and a bitter principle. Lupulin is used as a tonic, sedative, and hypnotic. HYDRANGEA ARBORESGENS L. Hydrangea, wild hydrangea, seven bark. Saxifragaceae. — A moderately high, strict clumpy shrub 3 to 6 feet tall; the bark on old stems shreddy; branchlets pubescent; leaves ovate to orbicular, acuminate, usual- ly cordate, opposite, 2 to 6 inches long, serrate; flowers small, greenish-white, very numerous in terminal, cymelike clus- ters, among them a number of conspicuous sterile flowers with large, white sepals ; fruit a tiny, many-seeded capsule. The roots collected in the fall. When dry, the root is very tough; it should be cut in short pieces before drying. Fre- quent in the south half of the state, infre- quent northward, on wooded slopes along and near streams. Contains the glucoside hydrangin, a vola- tile oil, and a saponin. Used as a diaphoret- ic and diuretic. [^Hydrangca cinerea Small, ashy hydran- gea, is a smaller shrub with leaves tomen- tose on the underside. It occurs sparingly in the southern tip of the state and its root is collected.] 1 1/ r t 66 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 HYDRASTIS CANADENSIS L. Golden seal, yellow-root, yellow puc- coon, Indian turmeric. Ranunculaceae. U. S. P. XI, p. Ixx (not official J. —An erect, pubescent herb about 1 foot tall, perennial; rootstock horizontal, yellow, 1/^ to 2 inches long, up to lA inch thick, wrinkled lengthwise, bearing numerous fibrous roots. Upper part of the plant consisting of a basal, long-petioled leaf, and a stem terminating in 2 smaller leaves, one of which subtends the solitary flower. Leaves palmately lobed, 5 to 8 inches broad, serrate; flowers greenish-white, less than yz inch wide; fruit a crimson, fleshy head resembling a raspberry. The leaves collected in late summer, the rootstock in the fall after the seeds have ripened. Infrequent in moist, rich woods throughout the state. Contains the alkaloids hydrastine, ber- berine, and canadine, a fixed oil, and a black resin. Used as a tonic to the mucous mem- brane, principally in catarrhal affections. HYPERICUM PERFORATUM L. St. John's-wort, Tipton weed, Klamath weed, rosin rose. Hypericaceae. — An erect, upwardly much-branched, very leafy herb 1 to 21/ feet tall, perennial; taproot woody; stem slender, somewhat 2-ridged, smooth, dark-ringed at the nodes, with basal runners; leaves elliptic, sessile, entire, opposite, Yi to 34 inch long, black-dotted; flowers yellow, black-dotted, ^"4 to 1 inch wide, numerous in terminal cymes; fruit a many-seeded capsule. The flowering tops collected. Infre- quent to abundant throughout the state as a weed in poor soil, along roads, and in waste places. Contains the volatile oil of hypericum (red oil) and the fluorescent substances hy- pericin and hypericum red. The oil is used as an application to heal cuts and bruises. Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 67 ILEX VERTIGILLATA (L.) Gray. Black alder, common winterberry, false alder, fever bush. Aquifoliaceae. — A small to moderate, unarmed, deciduous shrub 6 to 8 feet tall; bark of the stem grayish, warty with corky lenticels; leaves lanceolate, acuminate, serrate, 1 to 4 inches long, alternate, rather thick, turning black in the fall; flowers greenish- or yellowish- white; fruit a small, globose, bright red, 3- to 5-seeded berry. The leaves and fruit collected, also the bark. Infrequent to rare, and local, in swamps and bogs in the northern third of the state; occurs also in the extreme south- ern part of the state. Contains the bitter principle ilicin, ilicic acid, the yellow coloring matter ilexanthin, and caffeine. Used as a diaphoretic and de- mulcent. INULA HELENIUM L. Elecampane, inula, scabwort, yellow starwort. Com- positae. — An erect, rough, sunflower-like herb 3 to 6 feet tall, perennial; taproot large, long, yellow; stem produced the second and later years, stout, simple, pubescent; leaves the first year a ground rosette, thereafter on the stems, ovate, pointed, clasping the stem, up to 12 inches long, white-woolly beneath; flower heads yellow, 2 to 4 inches wide, terminal, on stout, hairy peduncles. The root collected in the fall of the second year. Introduced and escaped as a weed throughout the state. Contains inulin, helenin, a volatile oil, and alantol. Used as a stimulant and tonic. 68 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 IPOMOEA PANDURATA Meyer. Wild potato-vine, man-of-the-earth. Convolvulaceae. — A twining or trailing herbaceous vine; stems stout, 2 to 12 feet long; root very large, fleshy, 2 feet or more long, weighing 15 pounds or more, exuding a milky sap when cut; leaves broadly ovate, pointed, cordate, pinnately veined, petioled, alternate, 2 to 6 inches long; flowers white, 2 to 3 inches long, morning-glory-like ; fruit an ovoid, 2- to 4-seeded capsule. The root collected. Infrequent to fre- quent in streamside woods and moist wood- lands throughout the state. Contains a milky, resinous juice and the glucoside ipomoein. Used as a purgative. IRIS VERSICOLOR L. Blue flag, wild iris, flag lily, poison flag. Irida- ceae. — A leafy, smooth herb 2 to 3 feet tall, perennial; rootstock horizontal, fleshy, thick, branched, ^vith many long, fibrous roots; leaves swordlike, 1/ to 1 inch wide, somewhat glaucous; flowers purplish blue, iris-like, large, handsome, 2 to 6 or more on the stem, rising from the axils of small stem-leaves. The rootstock and roots collected in the fall; the rootstock is pink when broken (those breaking white or yellow have little medicinal value). Frequent, locally some- times very abundant, on the banks of sloughs, ponds, streams, and ditches in all parts of the state. Contains the acrid, resinous substance irisin to the extent of about 25 per cent of the dry drug. Used chiefly as a cathartic and emetic, also as alterative, vermifuge, and diuretic. IRIS GERMANIGA L., I. PALLIDA Lam., I. FLORENTINA L. Iris (cul- tivated). Iridaceae. Rootstocks and roots collected. Culti- vated in gardens throughout the state. Yields orris, which has the odor of violets. Used in tooth powders and sachets. Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 69 JEFFERSONIA DIPHYLLA (L.) Pers. Twinleaf, rheumatism root, hel- met pod, yellow-root. Berberidaceae. — A stemless, smooth herb 6 to 18 inches tall, perennial; rootstock horizontal, somewhat fleshy, thick, knotty, yellow-brown, with numerous matted, fibrous roots; leaves arising directly from the rootstock, long- petioled, 3 to 6 inches long, glaucous be- neath, divided into 2 broad, somewhat semicircular, sometimes lobed parts; flowers white, about 1 inch wide, solitary at the ends of flowering stems 6 to 8 inches tall; fruit a capsule that at ma- turity is raised to a height of 16 to 18 inches on the elongated flower stalk and opens in a manner suggesting a helmet. The rootstock and roots collected in the fall. Infrequent to rare in rich w^oods in the northern two-thirds of the state. Contains a bitter principle, an acid simi- lar to polygalic acid, and the alkaloid ber- berine. Used as an alterative, antispas- modic, diuretic, diaphoretic, and expectorant. JUGLANS NIGRA L. Black walnut. Juglandaceae. — A large, round-topped tree 75 to 100 feet tall; bark of the trunk dark brown to blackish, deeply fissured into broad, rounded, scaly-topped ridges, 2 to 3 inches thick ; leaves pinnately com- pound, 1 to 3 feet long; leaflets 1 1 to 23, ovate, pointed, serrate; flowers incon- spicuous; fruit a globular, green, pulpy drupe containing a brown, corrugated nut. The inner bark of the root, the leaves, and the nuts collected. On rich bottom- lands and hillsides throughout the state. Contains a volatile acid (juglandic acid) similar to nucin. Used as a mild cathartic. [^Juglans cinerca L., butternut or white walnut, very similar to the black walnut but a much smaller tree (30 to 50 feet tall), is also sought for its leaves and root bark.] V ^ «d 1 ^ >\r\i \\ ff M^ M 1" j^^ ^ -'<^V^)j/_ k^ ^i D 70 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 JUNIPERUS COMMUNIS L. Com- mon juniper, hackmatack, horse savin, gorst. Pinaceae. U. S. P. XI, p. 256.— A low and spreading or upright, small shrub or tree, evergreen; bark of the trunk shreddy; foliage in the form of needles, the needles straight, rigid, sharp-pointed, up to ]/i inch long; flowers lacking, cones present instead; fruit blue, glaucous, berry- like, 14 inch in diameter, 3-seeded. The fruit collected in fall and winter, when ripe. In cultivation as an ornamen- tal; established near Lake Michigan in Lake County. Contains the fragrant oil of juniper. The oil is used as a stimulant, diuretic, carmina- tive, and emmenagogue. JUNIPERUS VIRGINIANA L. Red cedar, juniper. Pinaceae. — A small, erect, evergreen tree (not shrubby in Illinois) 20 to 50 feet tall; trunk lobed, eccentric, and buttressed, with thin, red- tinted, fibrous, peeling bark; foliage in the form of needles and scales; needles dark green, slender, 14 to ^ inch long, 4 ranked; scales closely appressed, 1/16 inch long, 4 ranked; fruit a small, blue, glaucous, globose, 1- or 2-seeded berry. Throughout the state on rocky bluffs and cliffs, hillsides, wasteland, and aban- doned fields. The wood yields cedarwood oil. The oil is used as a rubefacient. LAGTUGA SATIVA L. Lettuce, garden lettuce. Compositae. The leaves collected. Grown in home and truck gardens throughout the state. Contains lactucol, lactucopicrin, and, to a slight extent, hyoscjamine. Reputed to be useful as a sedative. Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 71 LAGTUGA SGARIOLA L. (L. viro- sa L.) Wild lettuce, prickly lettuce, wild opium, compass plant. Cowposi- tae. — An erect, unbranched, bright green herb 2 to 7 feet tall, annual; stem stiff, rigid; leaves deeply, pinnately lobed, ob- long, finely toothed, up to 10 inches long, clasping the stem, alternate but turned to form 2 ranks (pointing north and south), spiny on the midrib beneath; flower heads yellow, small, numerous in a large, open, terminal panicle; seeds black, small, flat- tened, with an apical, stalked tuft of floss. The leaves collected in late summer and early fall. Common to abundant as a weed in all neglected waste places through- out the state. Yields a white, milky juice (lactucarium), which contains hyoscyamine. Used as a sedative. LARIX LARIGINA (Du Roi) Koch. Larch, tamarack, American larch, hack- matack. Pinaceae. — A tall, pinelike, de- ciduous tree 25 to 60 feet tall; bark of the trunk separating into bright, reddish- brown, thin scales ; foliage in the form of needles; needles slender, triangular, weak, 1/^ to ^ inch long, mostly in crowded bundles from lateral buds, falling in late autumn; fruit a small cone with a few rounded scales. The inner bark and the resinous exudate collected. Limited to the cold bogs in Lake and McHenry counties. Contains tannin, a volatile oil, and a res- in. Used as a laxative, tonic, diuretic, and alterative. ■i^i Z. 72 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 LEONURUS GARDIAGA L. Moth- erwort, lion's-tail, lion's-ear. Labia- tae. — An erect, little-branched, nearly smooth herb 2 to 4 feet tall, perennial; stem stiff, 4-angled ; leaves palmately 5- or 3-lobed, toothed, long-petioled, opposite, the upper leaves with wedge-shaped bases; flowers purplish to pink or white, small, in dense, axillary whorls, 2-lipped ; seeds dark brown, tiny, 3-angled. The herb (leaves and flowering heads) collected. Introduced, frequent as a weed in fields and waste places and well-estab- lished in woods and along roads. Contains a volatile oil and a bitter prin- ciple. Used as a stimulant, tonic, and dia- phoretic. LIATRIS SPIGATA (L.) Willd. But- ton snakeroot, colic-root, devil's bit. Compositae. — An erect, usually un- branched, leafy, smooth herb 2 to 6 feet tall; perennial; rhizome round, tuberous, bulblike; stem stiff, straight; leaves lanceo- late to linear, blunt-pointed, sessile, alter- nate, the lowest sometimes 1 foot long, progressively shorter upward; flower heads bluish-purple, sometimes white, showy, ses- sile, crowded in a terminal spike; bracts surrounding the flowers obtuse, not punc- tate. The root collected. Common to abun- dant in the northern half of the state, in- frequent in the southern, in m.oist prairies, in marshy sites, and on open wooded slopes. Contains a volatile oil and a resin. Used as a diaphoretic, diuretic, and uterine tonic Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 73 LINARIA VULGARIS Hill. Butter and eggs, flaxweed, yellow toadflax, wild snapdragon. Scrophulariaceae. — An erect, sparingly branched, smooth herb 1 to 3 feet high, perennial; roots creeping; stems in clumps, glandular above; leaves pale green, linear, sessile, alternate, Y? to Xyz inches long, acute; flow^ers yellow, orange within, 2-Hpped, w^ith a downward- pointing spur, in dense racemes; fruit a 2-celled, many-seeded, oval capsule. The herb collected. Introduced; now naturalized and common in sandy fields, pastures, and waste places and along road- sides throughout the state. Contains the glucoside linariin. Used as a diuretic and cathartic. LINUM USITATISSIMUM L. Flax. Linaceae. U. S. P. XL PP- 202, 258. The seed is harvested when ripe. Culti- vated to a considerable extent in several parts of the state; has not persisted as an escape. Contains oil (flaxseed oil), mucilage, and, under certain conditions, the cyanogenic glu- coside phaseolunatin (linamarin). Used as a demulcent and emollient. LIQUIDAMBAR STYRAGIFLUA L. Sweet gum, American storax. Ham- amelidaceae. U. S. P. XI, pp. 363-364. — A moderate to tall, oblong- and small- crowned tree 80 feet or more tall; bark of the trunk light gray, deeply furrowed ; twigs round or corky-ridged ; leaves 5- or 7-lobed, star-shaped, finely serrate, on slender petioles 5 or 6 inches long; fertile flowers in globular, long-stalked heads from the upper leaf axils, the heads devel- oping into woody, prickly armed spheres. A resinous gum, styrax, is collected after exuding from w^ounds in the bark of the trunk. Frequent to common in low woods from Crawford County south and west to the Ohio and Mississippi rivers. Styrax contains cinnamic acid, styracin, and the aromatic oily hydrocarbon st>'rol. Used for catarrhal affections and externally as an ointment. 74 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 LIRIODENDRON TULIPIFERA L. Tulip tree. Magnoliaceae. — A straight, narrow-crowned tree of great height; bark of the trunk thin and scaly or, later, 2 inches thick and deeply furrowed; leaves dark green, shiny, 5 to 6 inches long and as wide, with 2 large, pointed lobes on each side and a deep, wide notch at the end, alternate, petioled ; flowers greenish-white, inwardly orange-marked, large, showy, re- sembling a tulip blossom ; fruit conelike and scaly, 2]/^ to 3 inches long. Bark, taken from root, trunk, and branches, collected. An infrequent to com- mon tree southward from Vermilion and Hancock counties among oaks, hard maple, and beech. Contains the crystalline principle lirio- dendrin. Used as a simple or bitter tonic, aromatic, and diaphoretic. LOBELIA INFLATA L. Lobelia, Indian tobacco, asthma weed, gag root. Lobeliaceae. U. S. P. XI , p. Ixxi (not official). — An upright, little- to much- branched, mostly smooth herb 1 to 3 feet tall, annual; stem rough-hairy below, con- taining a milky juice; leaves ovate, toothed, alternate, the lower petioled and 2 inches long, the upper sessile and smaller; flowers pale blue, showy but small, 2-lipped, in loose terminal and axillary racemes; fruit a glossy, yellow-brow^n, round, ridged capsule containing very many minute, brown seeds. The leaves and tops collected while the plant is in flower; also the seed. Infre- quent to frequent in open woods, fields, and waste places throughout the state, often occurring as a weed; mid-August through September. Contains a volatile oil and the alkaloids lobcline and lobelidine. Used as an anti- spasmodic in laryngitis and spasmodic asth- ma, an expectorant, and emetic. Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 75 LYGOPODIUM INUNDATUM L. Bog club moss. Lycopodiaceae. (L. clavatum L., U. S. P. XI, />. 221.)— A low, creeping, small evergreen, pinelike shrub; stems prostrate, 1- or 2-forked, rooting below, leafy above ; branches upright, to 2i/2 inches high, enlarged and spikelike at the tips (the strobiles) ; needles linear- lanceolate, entire, acute, curved upward on the stem, spreading on the branches. The spores (or strobiles containing the spores) collected. Local and rare to in- frequent in sandy regions in the northeast corner of the state. Contains a fixed oil. Used as a dusting powder for the skin, especially of infants. LYGOPUS VIRGINIGUS L. Bugle weed, water horehound, buglewort, gypsy weed, carpenter's herb, wood betony. Labiatae. — An erect, strict, bas- ally branched herb 6 to 24 inches tall, perennial; stems slender, 4-angled, smooth, with long, threadlike runners from the base; leaves dark green or purplish, broad- ly lanceolate, tapered at both ends, serrate, opposite ; flowers white, tiny, 2-lipped, in dense, axillary clusters. The herb (leaves and tops) collected during flowering time. In wet situations in woods, along streams and ditches throughout the state; common southward, infrequent in the north. Contains an aromatic, volatile oil. Said to be useful as a sedative, tonic, astringent, and narcotic. 76 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 MAGNOLIA ACUMINATA L. Cu- cumber tree. Magnoliaceae. — A mod- erate-sized to large tree 60 to 90 feet tall; bark of the trunk dark brown, fur- rowed, scaly, thin; branchlets slender, bright red-brown; leaves yellow-green, broadly ovate, pointed, entire, 6 to 10 inches long, petioled, alternate; flowers greenish-yellow, large; fruit cucumber- shaped, consisting of numerous, fleshy, seed-bearing carpels. The bark of the trunk and root col- lected. Infrequent to common on slopes and partially drained bottomlands in the extreme southern part of the state. Contains an aromatic, volatile principle and a bitter principle. Used as an aromatic, bitter tonic. MAJORANA HORTENSIS Moench. Sweet marjoram, marjoram. Labiatae. The herb and the leaves alone collected. Grown in home gardens in many parts of the state. Contains an aromatic, volatile oil. Used medicinally as an aromatic stimulant, also as a culinary flavoring. MALVA ROTUNDIFOLIA L. Round-leaved mallow, low mallow, cheeses. Malvaceae. — A low, procum- bent, widely spreading herb, annual or biennial; stems pubescent, very leafy; leaves roundish, cordate, palmately veined, slightly lobed, ]/> to 1 inch wide ; petioles long, slender; flowers whitish, small, 5- parted; fruit a ring of light brown, flat- tened, circular, 1-seeded pods. The herb, including the roots, collected ; also the flowers. Frequent to common, especially as a weed, around dwellings and in waste places throughout the state. Contains mucilage. Used as an emollient and demulcent. \^MaUva sylvestris L., high mallow, Is also collected for Its herb and leaves. It Is culti- vated as a garden ornamental and may possibly be found as an escape near large cities.] Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 77 MARRUBIUM VULGARE L. Hore- hound, marrub, marvel, houndsbane. Labiatae. — An erect, bushy, branching, white-woolly, aromatic herb 1 to 3 feet tall, perennial; stems stout, 4-an^led above, usually in clumps; leaves oblong, green above, white-woolly beneath, 1 to 2 inches long, opposite, crenate, petioled ; flowers whitish, small, 2-lipped, in dense, axillary clusters. Clean, small stems, leaves, and tops col- lected just before the plant begins to flower. Introduced, escaped, and now fre- quent to common in pastures and farm- steads; rare or infrequent in woods and along roads. Contains a volatile oil and the bitter prin- ciple marrubiin. Used as a stimulant, tonic, and laxative. MATRICARIA GHAMOMILLA L. Wild chamomile, German chamomile, horse gowan. Compositae. — An erect and much-branched, pleasantly aromatic, smooth herb 1 to 2 feet tall, annual; leaves much divided into many linear lobes, alter- nate; flower heads white on the margin, yellow in the center, ^ to 1 inch wide, numerous but solitary and terminal on slender peduncles; seeds 3-ribbed, lacking a crown. The flowering top and leaves collected. An old garden herb, still grown in many places; not known to have become estab- lished in Illinois but possibly to be found near large cities or old settlements. Contains anthemidin and a deep blue v^olatile oil. Used as an aromatic bitter, nervine, carminative, diaphoretic, and, ex- ternally, as a counterirritant. MEDIGAGO SATIVA L. Alfalfa. Leguminosae. The herb is collected, also the leaves and seeds separately. Grown in large and small acreages in all parts of the state ; also escaped and established in many waste places. Contains vitamin K, the antihemorrhagic vitamin. Used for its vitamin ; the seeds furnish a yellow dye. 78 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 > MELILOTUS OFFICINALIS (L.) Lam. Sweet clover, yellow sweet clover, melilot. Leguminosae. The herb (leaves and tops) and the flowers collected. Cultivated in large acreages, also established in waste ground, throughout the state. Contains the aromatic principle coumarin. Used as an expectorant and diuretic. MELISSA OFFICINALIS L. Balm, lemon balm, garden balm, honey plant, sweet Mary. Labiatae. — ^An erect, much- branched, finely hairy, lemon-scented herb 1 to 2l/^ feet tall, perennial; leaves oval to cordate, 1 to 2i/^ inches long, round- toothed, opposite, petioled; flowers white or cream, tubular, 2-lipped, 1/2 inch or more long, in clusters of several in the leaf axils. The leaves, or the entire herb, collected. Introduced; infrequent to rare in the vicinity of the earliest settlements in southern Illinois, especially along the Wa- bash and Ohio rivers; June and July. Contains an aromatic oil. Used as an aromatic flavor, diaphoretic, and febrifuge. MENISPERMUM CANADENSE L. Yellow parilla, moonseed, Canada moonseed, Texas sarsaparilla. Meni- spermaceae. — A woody, climbing, left-to- right twisting, usually smooth vine, peren- nial; stems slender, round, 6 to 12 feet long; leaves 7-lobed and maple-like to cordate and without lobes, 4 to 8 inches wide, slender- and long-petioled, alternate ; flowers whitish, small, in loose, axillary panicles ; fruit a blue-black, glaucous berry containing 1 flattened, moon-shaped seed. The rhizome and roots collected. In woods on stream banks, sometimes on fences, throughout the state, infrequent to common. Contains the alkaloids berberine and menispine. Used as a tonic, alterative, and diuretic. Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 79 MENTHA ARVENSIS L. Field mint. Labiatae. — An erect, well-branched pubescent herb up to 2l/^ feet tall, peren- nial; rootstocks creeping; stems 4-angled, retrorsely hairy; leaves ovate, strongly ar- omatic, serrate, 1 to 2 inches long, oppo- site; flowers white to lavender, small, 2- lipped, in rather dense, axillary whorls; seeds minute, smooth, light brown, irreg- ularly lined on the convex side. The herb collected. On moist waste and idle lands throughout the state, frequent northward, becoming infrequent south- ward. Contains an aromatic oil. Used as a car- minative. MENTHA PIPERITA L. Pepper- mint, lammint, lamb mint, brandy mint. Labiatae. . U. S. P. XI, pp. 230, 259.— An erect, branching, smooth herb 1 to 3 feet tall, perennial; rootstocks long, creeping; stems 4-angled, reddish-purple to green; leaves dark green, ovate, aromatic, oppo- site, petioled, serrate, 1 to 2 inches long ; flowers purplish, small, hardly 2-lipped, in dense, oblong, terminal spikes. Leaves and flowering tops collected as soon as the flowers commence opening. In moist places about lakes and streams and along roads and ditches throughout the state. Contains the aromatic oil of peppermint, which contains menthol. Used as an aro- matic, stimulant, and carminative. 80 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 MENTHA SPICATA L. Spearmint, garden mint, brown mint, sage of Bethlehem. Labiatae. U. S. P. XI, pp. 231, 260. — An erect, branching, nearly smooth, aromatic herb 1 to lYi feet tall, perennial; rootstocks creeping; stems 4- angled, reddish toward the base ; leaves pale green, aromatic, ovate-lanceolate, sessile, opposite, serrate ; flowers white to lavender, small, hardly 2-lipped, in slender, dense, terminal spikes; mature seed not produced. The leaves and flowering tops collected before the flowers are fully developed. Introduced; infrequent to frequent in wet places about lakes and streams and along roads and ditches throughout the state. Contains the volatile, aromatic oil of spearmint. Used as an aromatic, stimulant, and carminative. MENYANTHES TRIFOLIATA L. Buckbean, bog bean, bog myrtle, marsh trefoil, moonflower, bitterworm. Gen- tianaceae. — A stemless, marsh-inhabiting herb 2 to 10 inches tall, perennial; root- stock creeping, long, black, scaly; leaves compound, trifoliate, clover-like, on slen- der, sheathing petioles direct from the end of the rootstock; leaflets oval, li/ to 3 inches long, glabrous ; flow^ers white or purplish, about Yz inch long, 10 to 20 in a raceme at the end of a long peduncle arising from the rootstock; fruit an ovoid capsule about 14 ir^ch long. The rhizome collected in the fall, the leaves in the spring. Infrequent to rare in tamarack bogs and sandy marshes in the northeast corner of the state. Contains the bitter principle menyanthin. Used as a tonic and laxative. Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 81 MERTENSIA VIRGINIGA (L.) Link. American lungwort, bluebells, Virginian cowslip. Boraginaceae. — An erect or ascending, unbranched, smooth herb 1 to 2 feet tall, perennial; stem round, rather stout; leaves oval, 2 to 5 inches long, the lower petioled, the upper sessile, alter- nate, entire; flower blue-purple to white, showy, about 1 inch long, trumpet-shaped, numerous in short, terminal racemes; fruit a head of 4 small, wrinkled nutlets. Common to abundant, but localized on wooded stream terraces and flood lands, through most of the state. Used as a tonic. MITGHELLA REPENS L. Squaw vine, partridge berry, twin berry, squaw berry. Rubiaceae. — A trailing, leafy, branched, smooth herb, evergreen and matted on the ground; stems 6 to 12 inches long, rooting at the nodes ; leaves dark green, shining, roundish, Yz inch long, leathery, petioled, opposite; flowers white, about Y2 inch long, trumpet-shaped, borne in pairs at the tips of the branches; fruit a red, fleshy berry containing 8 small, horny nutlets. The herb collected. Common, even abundant, locally through most of the state in woods-covered acid soils. Contains tannin and a bitter principle. Said to be an astringent, diuretic, and parturifacient. MONARDA PUNCTATA L. Horse mint. Labiatae. — An erect, aromatic, white-downy, much-branched herb 2 to 3 feet tall, perennial; leaves lanceolate, 1 to 3 inches long, petioled, opposite, serrate v.'ith low teeth; flowers yellowish, purple- spotted, about 1 inch long, 2-lipped, in dense axillary whorls and terminal clus- ters subtended by conspicuous, showy, white or purplish bracts. The herb (leaves and flowering parts) collected. Common or abundant on open, sandy dunes, small hills, and sand prairies. Contains the volatile oil of monarda, from which thymol can be derived. Used as a stimulant and aromatic, also as a diaphoretic. 82 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 MYRIGA ASPLENIFOLIA L. Sweet fern, fern gale, meadow fern, shrubby fern, sweet bush. Myricaceae. — ^A small, sweet-scented, pubescent herb Xl/y to 3 feet tall; stems and branches erect or spreading; leaves linear oblong, deeply cut into many rounded lobes, alternate, stipu- late, 3 to 6 inches long; male flowers in catkins clustered at the ends of branches; female flowers in short catkins clustered on very short, lateral branches; fruit bur- like, usually 4-seeded. The leaves and top collected. In open places in oak woods on sandy, acid soil in the extreme northeastern corner of Illi- nois; infrequent and local. Contains a volatile oil (oil of sweet fern) and tannin. Used as a stimulant and astrin- gent. NEPETA CATARIA L. Catnip, cat mint, catwort, catrup. Labiatae. — An erect, branched, white-downy, aromatic herb 2 to 3 feet tall, perennial; rootstocks short; stems 4-angled, purplish below; leaves green, cordate-oblong, 1 to 2 inches long, opposite, petioled, round-toothed, w^hite-downy beneath ; flowers w^hitish, purple-spotted, small, 2-lipped, in clusters in the upper leaf axils and in terminal, thick spikes. The herb, leaves, and flow^ering parts collected in full flower. Common as a weed in waste places and about dwellings in all parts of the state. Contains a volatile oil. Used as a stimu- lant. Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 83 NEPETA HEDERAGEA (L.) Tre- visan. Ground ivy, gill-over-the- ground, cat's foot, field balm. Labia- tae. — A creeping and trailing, slightly aromatic, smooth herb, perennial; flower- ing stems numerous, erect, 4-angled ; leaves round, kidney-shaped, 1/ to 1 inch wide, opposite, petioled, crenate, palmately veined; flowers purplish, small, 2-lipped, in axillary clusters or whorls. The herb (leaves and flowering parts) collected. Frequent to common as a weed in waste places and gardens and about dwellings throughout the state. Contains a volatile oil and a bitter sub- stance. Used as a stimulant, carminative, and tonic. ri ? §^ i ^ o^ ^^ sp 4 r^ ^^ NIGOTIANA TABAGUM L. Tobac- co. Solanaceae. The leaves collected. Grown occasional- ly and locally in small fields in many parts of the state, especially near the northern border. Contains the toxic alkaloid nicotine and a volatile oil. Used as an emetic, sedative, and narcotic; nicotine is used extensively as an insecticide. OSTRYA VIRGINIANA (Mill.) K. Koch. Hop hornbeam, ironwood, lever- wood, black hazel, Indian cedar. Bet- ulaceae. — A small, open, and round- topped tree 25 to 40 feet tall; branches slender; bark of the trunk grayish, with narrow, oblong scales loose at the ends, thin; leaves resembling elm leaves, oval, pointed, symmetrically cordate, 3 to 5 inches long, alternate, short-petioled, fine- ly double-toothed; flowers in catkins; fruit a long-stalked, conelike structure resem- bling the fruit of the hop. The bark and inner wood collected. Among oaks and other taller trees on the high banks of streams in all but the most southern counties. Contains tannin. Used as a tonic, altera- tive, and antiperiodic. 84 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 4^ PAEONIA OFFICINALIS L. Peony. Ranunculaceae. Roots, flowers, and seeds collected. Cultivated, but infrequently, as a decora- tive plant; most of the cultivated peonies belong to the species P. albiflora Pallas. Contains an unidentified alkaloid. Used as an emmenagogue, ecbolic, and uterine hemostatic. PANAX QUINQUEFOLIUM L. Ginseng, American ginseng, sang, five fingers, red berry, man root. Aralia- ceae. — An erect, unbranched, smooth herb 8 to 15 inches tall, perennial; taproot spindle-shaped, branched or forked after the second year, deep, 2 to 3 inches long, y^ to 1 inch thick ; stem leafy only at the summit; leaves 3 in number, palmately compound, petioled, each with 5 obovate, pointed, irregularly dentate leaflets 2 to 5 inches long; flowers yellow-green, small, 6 to 20 in a stalked umbel arising with the leaves from the end of the stem; fruit a bright crimson berry. The root is collected only in the fall and dried whole. Rare, or at most infre- quent, in rich woods throughout the state. Contains a glucoside, a saponin, a bitter principle, and a volatile oil. Used as an aromatic bitter, mild stimulant, and sto- machic. PARIETARIA PENNSYLVANICA Muhl. Pellitory, vsall pellitory. Urti- caceae. — A low, weak, reclining or ascend- ing, sparingly branched, pubescent herb, annual; stems very slender, 4 to 15 inches long; leaves lanceolate, acuminate, 1 to 3 inches long, petioled, alternate, entire, 3- nerved; flowers greenish, inconspicuous, in small, axillary clusters surrounded by con- spicuous, leaflike bracts. The herb collected. Infrequent to fre- quent in colonies in dry woods throughout the state. Used as a diuretic, emmenagogue, and deobstruent. Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 85 PARTHENIUM INTEGRIFOLIUM L. Feverfew, American feverfew, prairie dock. Compositae. — An erect, finely hairy, little-branched herb 1 to 4 feet tall, perennial; rootstock tuberous; stem stout, striate, the lower part often glabrous; leaves ovate, firm, rough on both sides, up to 12 inches long, sessile, or the lowest petioled and lyrate, alternate, cre- nate-toothed ; flower heads spherical, small, with only about 5 small, white, marginal rayflowers, numerous in a dense, terminal, flat-topped inflorescence. The herb collected. Infrequent to rare along transportation lines, where original prairie conditions remain undisturbed. PASSIFLORA INGARNATA L. Maypop, passion flower, passion vine. Passifioraceae. — A slender, tendril-bear- ing, climbing, pubescent herbaceous vine, perennial; stems 3 to 30 feet long; leaves 3 to 5 inches w^ide, petioled, alternate, deep- ly divided into 3 oval, pointed, serrate lobes; tendrils axillary; flowers white, with a central, pale purple, long fringe, li/^ to 2 inches wide, solitary on long, jointed, axillary stalks; fruit a yellow, fleshy, edible, man}''-seeded berry about 2 inches long. The flow^ering and fruiting tops are collected, also the roots. Infrequent to rare on wooded rocky slopes, on fences, and in swamps in the extreme southern part of the state. Used as a uterine sedative and hemostatic. {^Passiflora liitea L., yellow passion flower, is also collected. It is a rare to infrequent vine in woods along streams, on rocky slopes, and in orchards from Calhoun and Wabash counties southward.] 86 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 PEDIGULARIS CANADENSIS L. Wood betony, head betony, lousewort, snaffles. Scrophulariaceae. — An ascend- ing or erect, unbranched, usually pubescent herb 6 to 18 inches tall, perennial; stems in tufts; leaves oblong-lanceolate, pinnate- ly cut into many toothed lobes, 3 to 5 inches long, mostly alternate, slender- petioled; flowers yellow or reddish, about ^ inch long, 2-lipped and hood-shaped, in short, crowded, terminal spikes; fruit a slender, many-seeded capsule more than Yz inch long. Infrequent to frequent on oak-covered slopes along streams, but rare in the southern third of the state. PETROSELINUM HORTENSE Hoffm. {P. sativum HoflFm.) Parsley. Umbelliferae. The seed and root collected. Grown in gardens; not known to have become estab- lished as an escape. Yields an oily resin (oleoresin of parsley seed) and apiol, the aromatic derivative from the resin. The seed is used as a car- minative, stimulant, and diuretic; apiol is used as an emmenagogue, ecbolic, and anti- pyretic. PHORADENDRON FLAVESCENS (Pursh) Nutt. Mistletoe. Lorantha- ceae. — Succulent, evergreen, parasitic shrubs growing on the branches of trees; stems rarely 3 feet long, with many op- posite branches; leaves obovate, thick, l/j to 2 inches long, opposite, nearly sessile ; flowers small and inconspicuous; fruit a small, globose, white berry. The leaves and young stems collected. Infrequent to common on several species of trees, especially American elm, in the Wabash River valley. Contains the medicinal principle tyramine. LTsed as an emmenagogue and as a hemo- static. Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 87 PHYTOLACCA DECANDRA L. Pokeweed, pokeberry, poke, inkberry, garget, cancer jalap. Phytolaccaceae. — An erect, branched, smooth herb 3 to 10 feet tall, perennial; taproot thick, fleshy, white, very large; stem coarse, succulent, purplish; leaves ovate, smooth, up to 5 inches long, entire, petioled, alternate; flowers white, small, in long racemes at the growing tips and leaf axils; fruit a dark purple, flattened, spherical berry with crimson juice and about 10 seeds. The berries are collected when ripe, the root and leaves in the autumn. Frequent as a weed in waste places, pastures, and open w^oods throughout the state. Contains a bitter, saponin-like substance and, in small amounts, the alkaloid phytolac- cine. Used as an alterative, emetic, and purgative. PINUS STROBUS L. White pine. Pinaceae. — A tall, straight, evergreen tree 90 feet or more in height; bark of the trunk dark gray, divided by shallow fissures into broad, continuous ridges; foliage in the form of needles; needles in bundles of 5 ; fruit a long-stalked, pendant cone 4 to 6 inches long. The inner white bark is collected. Na- tive and localized in Jo Daviess, Ogle, Lake, and La Salle counties; also planted extensively for reforestation. Contains tannin and an oleoresin. Used as a mild expectorant. \_Pinus syl'vestris L., Scotch pine, is grown frequently in the state as an ornamental tree. Its needles are collected.] 88 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 PLANTAGO MAJOR L. Plantain, broad-leaved plantain, dooryard plan- tain. Plantaginaceae. — A low, stemless, broad-leaved herb, perennial; rootstock short, erect, thick; leaves ovate to orbicu- lar, up to 10 inches long, prominently parallel-veined; petiole long, ribbed; flow- ers greenish, small, in dense spikes 2 to 10 inches long at the top of a leafless, flow- ering stem up to 3 feet tall; fruit a tiny, several-seeded capsule. The leaves collected. Rare to infre- quent throughout the state as a weed in waste places. Used as an astringent and diuretic and said to be antiseptic. [^Plantago lanceolata L., snake plantain, with long, lanceolate leaves, is collected especially for its leaves and roots, which are astringent and alterative. As a weed, it is common in fields and waste places through- out the state.] PODOPHYLLUM PELTATUM L. May apple, mandrake, ground lemon, vegetable calomel. Berberidaceae. U. S. P. XL pp. 294, 319.— An erect, un- branched, smooth herb about 1 foot tall, perennial; rootstock horizontal, stout, creeping, smooth, round, dark brown, fi- brous-rooted; leaves 2 in number, um- brella-like, 5- to 9-lobed, the lobes again lobed at the tip, up to 12 inches wide, long- petioled from the top of the naked stem ; flowers white, waxy, up to 2 inches wide, hidden below the leaves, nodding on a stalk from the top of the stem; fruit a yellow, lemon-shaped berry about 2 inches long. The rootstock collected in late Septem- ber or October, or for some purposes throughout the summer. Common to abundant in moist woods throughout the state. Contains several resins, known collectively as podophyllin ; one of them is the poisonous principle podophyllotoxin. Used as a drastic purgative and hydragogue. Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 89 POLYGALA SENEGA L. Seneca snakeroot, senega snakeroot, rattle- snake-root. Polygalaceae. — An erect, bushy, unbranched, smooth herb 6 to 12 inches tall, perennial; rootstock horizontal, woody, with a knotty crown and tortuous branches; stems 15 to 20 or more in a clump, slender, sometimes reddish; leaves lanceolate, 1 to 2 inches long, thin, alter- nate, sessile ; flowers white, small, in dense spikes 1 to 2 inches long at the ends of the stems; fruit a small, membranous capsule. The rootstock collected in the fall; the knotty crown must be removed. Infre- quent in rich, dry woods, especially along streams and about lakes, in the northern half of the state. Contains an acrid principle, senegin, and a sternutatory one, polygalic acid. Used as a diaphoretic, diuretic, expectorant, and emetic. POLYGONATUM BIFLORUM (Walt.) Ell. Solomon's seal, sealwort, conquer-John. Liliaceae. — An ascend- ing, arched, unbranched, smooth herb 1 to 3 feet tall, perennial; rootstocks thick, knotted, horizontal, bearing scars, or seals; stems leafy above, leafless below; leaves ovate-oblong, 2 to 4 inches long, nearly sessile, alternate but appearing in 2 oppo- site ranks, entire, parallel-veined; flowers greenish, tubular, about Yi inch long, 1 to 4, usually 2, at the tip of the drooping, axillary peduncle; fruit a blue-black, glau- cous, pulpy berry. The rhizome and roots collected. Fre- quent to common in moist woods and, in the open, growing along fences and road- sides throughout the state. The medicinally active constituents un- known; contains mucilage. Used to allay irritation of mucous surfaces. iPolygonatum commutatum (R. &: S.) Dietr., smooth or giant Solomon's seal, similar to the species above but reaching a height of 8 feet, is collected without discrimination.] 90 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 POLYGONUM AVIGULARE L. Knotgrass, knotweed, dooryard weed, mat grass. Polygonaceae. — A prostrate or ascending, much-branched, matted herb, annual; stems slender, striate; leaves bluish-green, lanceolate, 14 ^o ^ inch long, alternate, entire; petioles very short, con- nected with a papery sheath at the stem node; flowers pinkish, very small, in axillary clusters; fruit a small, 3-angled, reddish-brown to black, dull achene or seed. The herb collected; also occasionally the root and seeds. Common in waste places throughout the state. Used as an astringent; the seeds are aro- matic, purgative, and emetic. POLYGONUM HYDROPIPER L. Smartweed, w^ater pepper, pepper plant, red shanks. Polygonaceae. — An erect, basally branched, smooth herb 1 to 2 feet tall, annual; stems jointed, reddish, sheathed at the nodes; leaves narrowly lanceolate, 1 to 4 inches long, peppery- tasting, entire, alternate, petioled ; flowers greenish, dark-dotted, small, numerous in nodding, closely flowered, terminal spikes; fruit dull, purple-black, small, lens-shaped or 3-angled. The herb collected. Infrequent to local- ly abundant both as a native plant along streams and as a weed in low, wet fields, pastures, and waste places throughout the state. Contains the acrid principle known as polygenic acid. Used externally as a coun- terirritant, internally as a stimulant and diaphoretic. IPolyffonum punctatum Ell,, water smart- weed, occurring throughout the state, is also collected as an herb.] POPULUS BALSAMIFERA L. Balsam poplar. Salicaceae. The leaf buds collected. Planted as an ornamental tree. For contents and uses, see Populus candi- Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 91 POPULUS GANDIGANS Ait. Balm of Gilead. Salicaceae. The buds are collected. Planted oc- casionally as an ornamental tree. Contains an aromatic, volatile oil, a balsamic resin, and salicin. Used as a tonic, stimulant, and expectorant; used formerly in ointments to prevent their becoming rancid. POPULUS TREMULOIDES Michx. Trembling aspen, aspen, white poplar. Salicaceae. — A small, open, round-topped tree with slender branches drooping at the tips, 30 to 60 feet tall; bark of the trunk black, fissured, with broad, flat ridges or, on young trees, yellow-green to gray and warty-roughened ; leaves broadly ovate, lustrous, pointed, rounded at the base, fine- ly and regularly toothed, trembling in breezes; petioles flattened; catkins li/4 to 2Y2 inches long, in fruit 3 to 4 inches long. The bark collected. Infrequent in low, sandy ground near Lake Michigan; rare westward and southward in the state. The bark contains the crystalline glyco- side populin, which resembles salicin. Used as a bitter tonic and a feeble antiperiodic. A "^ ^/}\7 / ^^ lA^ -=^^ y V f/T \ If /^/ ^ P' 4/ k1 PRUNELLA VULGARIS L. Self- heal, heal-all, carpenter-weed, dragon head. Labiatae. — A prostrate, ascending or erect, branching, pubescent herb up to 18 inches tall, perennial; stems 4-angled, glabrous with age ; leaves ovate-oblong, 1 to 4 inches long, petioled, opposite, irreg- ularly dentate to entire, obtuse, narrowed to the base; flowers purple, 2-lipped, in dense, terminal, conspicuously bracted, nearly sessile spikes 1/ to 1 inch long;' spikes 2 to 4 inches long in fruit. The herb collected. Frequent to com- mon in waste places, pastures, and fields, and about dwellings throughout the state. Contains a volatile oil. 92 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 PRUNUS GERASUS L. Cherry (cul- tivated). Rosaceae. The fruit collected. Grown in home yards and small orchards in all parts of the state. Contains malic acid. Used as a pleasant syrup for disguising acidic medicines. PRUNUS DOMESTIGA L. Prune, plum. Rosaceae. The fruit collected. Grown in yards and in small plantings in many parts of the state. Contains malic acid and citric acid. Used as a laxative and as a nutrient. PRUNUS PERSIGA Sieb. & Zucc. Peach. Rosaceae. Seed of the current year's crop collected, also the bark, leaves, and flowers. Grown in extensive orchards in southern counties, occasionally in small plantings in central and northern counties. Contains amygdalin, which yields hydro- cyanic acid. Used as a flavoring, laxative, and sedative. Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 93 PRUNUS SEROTINA Ehrh. Wild black cherry, wild cherry, rum cherry. Rosaceae. U. S. P. XI, pp. 307, 377.— A moderate to large tree up to 80 feet or more high; baric of the trunk dark red- brown, plated; inner bark aromatic; leaves dark green, leathery, oblong-ovate, long- pointed, 2 to 4 inches long, short-petioled, alternate, finely serrate; flowers white, ]/^ to 1/2 inch wide, in racemes 4 to 6 inches long; fruit a nearly black, fleshy drupe of pleasant flavor. The bark of the stem is collected in autumn and carefully dried. If borke (rough outer bark) is present, it should be removed. Fruit is collected when ripe. Frequent to abundant in open woods and as a weed tree along fences and roads throughout the state. Contains the glucoside amygdalin, which yields hydrocyanic (prussic) acid when acted on by the enzyme emulsin ; contains also tannic and gallic acids, a resin, and a bitter principle. Used as a tonic, astringent, and sedative. PTELEA TRIFOLIATA L. Hop tree, wafer ash, wing seed, ague bark, stink- ing ash, quinine tree. Rutaceae. — An erect, few-stemmed, ill-scented, smooth shrub 6 to 8 feet tall; bark of the stems gray to gray-brown, smooth or, w^hen old, roughened ; leaves dark green, long-peti- oled, alternate, compound; leaflets 3, shaped like those of an ash, 11,2 to 6 inches long, short-pointed, entire to coarsely serrulate, lateral leaflets two-thirds as large as the terminal one; flowers green- ish-white, small, in terminal, branched clusters; fruit round, flat, broadly winged, strongly veiny. The fruit, leaves, and bark of the root collected. Infrequent in shady woods, especially on the flats and lower banks along streams; throughout the state. The bark of the root contains a resin and berberine, the fruit a resin, the leaves tannic and gallic acids. Used as a tonic. 94 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 PYRUS MALUS L. Apple (culti- vated). Rosaceae. Bark and fruit collected. Grown in yards and in small and large orchards, in all parts of the state. The bark contains tannin, the glucoside phloridzin, and malic acid; the fruit juice contains malic acid, sugar, and pectin, f sed as a mild laxative and refrigerant. QUERGUS ALBA L. White oak, stave oak, stone oak. Fagaceae. — A moderate to very large tree 60 to 100 feet or more high, narrowly crowned with stout branches; bark of the trunk gray to whitish, shallowly fissured into irregular, long, thin scales; leaves bright green, deep- ly 7- to 9-lobed, the lobes shouldered and rounded at their tips, stout-petioled, alter- nate; flowers inconspicuous; acorn oval, shiny, light brown, % inch long, in shal- low, scaly cups. The bark, with the corky layer removed, is collected from trunks and branches 10 to 25 years old. Common to abundant as a constituent of woods and forests through- out the state. Contains tannin and the glucoside quercit- rin. Used as an astringent and tonic. l^Quercus rubra L., red oak, and Ouercus velutina Lam., black oak, are also sought for their barks. In the collecting, drying, and shipping, barks of the white, red, and black oaks should be kept separate.] RADIGULA ARMORAGIA (L.) Rob. Horseradish. Cruciferae. The root collected. Cultivated in gar- dens throughout the state and grown com- mercially in the vicinity of large cities. Contains the glucosides sinigrin and myr- osin ; these react in the presence of water to form volatile oil of mustard. Used as a condiment, emetic, and rubefacient. Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 95 RADIGULA NASTURTIUM- AQUATIGUM (L.) Britten & Rendle. Water cress, nasturtium. Cruciferae. — A floating or creeping, much-branched, smooth herb with stems rooting from the nodes, biennial; leaves alternate, deeply lobed into 3 to 9 segments, the terminal segment nearly round and larger than the lateral ovate segments; flowers white, small, 4-parted, in terminal racemes; fruit a slender, forward-pointing pod ]/^ to I14 inches long, with seeds in 2 rows. The herb collected. Common, locally abundant, in the clear w^aters of springs, creeks, and other streams in the northern half of the state. Yields a volatile oil similar to oil of mustard, when distilled with water. Used as an antiscorbutic and "blood purifier." RHUS CANADENSIS Marsh. Fra- grant sumac. Anacardiaceae . — A spread- ing, much-branched, diffuse shrub about 3 feet tall; leaves compound, petioled, alternate; leaflets 3, ovate, coarsely cre- nate-toothed, pubescent on both surfaces, the terminal one 1 to 4 inches long, the lateral ones noticeably smaller; flowers greenish-yellow, small, in dense clusters at the tips of twigs before the leaves ap- pear ; fruit a red, globose, densely hairy, 1-seeded drupe. The bark collected. Widely distributed and locally abundant in wooded sandy re- gions, along rocky stream and ravine banks, and dry hilltops throughout the state. Yields rhus aromatic bark. 96 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 RHUS GLABRA L. Smooth sumac, scarlet sumac, vinegar tree. Anacar- diaceae. — An upright, upwardly spread- ing, smooth shrub up to 12 feet tall; bark of the stems brownish gray, smooth; branches coarse, spreading, armlike, with large pith; leaves bright green above, white beneath, pinnately compound, 1 to 3 feet long, leaflets 11 to 31 in number, lanceo- late, pointed, sharply serrate, 2 to 4 inches long; flowers greenish-yellow, small, in large, dense, terminal clusters; fruit a round, bright red or green, hairy drupe in dense, large, terminal, club-shaped clusters. The leaves, fruit, and bark of the stem and root collected. Frequent to common or locally abundant throughout the state as a weed along fences, in abandoned fields, and at the edges of woods. The berries contain acid malates equiv- alent to 6 to 8 per cent of malic acid ; the leaves and bark contain tannin and gallic acid. Used as an astringent, refrigerant, and gargle. {Rhus typhina L., staghorn sumac, and Rhus copallina L., dwarf sumac, are collected, the former for fruit, the latter for bark.] RHUS TOXICODENDRON L. Poi- son ivy, poison oak. Anacardiaceae. — A low shrub or climbing vine ; stems un- derground or clinging by multitudes of fibrous roots, very long; leaves compound, alternate, long-petioled ; leaflets 3, the terminal one stalked, ovate, pointed, 2 to 6 inches long, the lateral two nearly ses- sile, asymmetrical, of about the same size, all three variable in size, coarsely dentate or entire; flowers greenish, inconspicuous, in small, axillary panicles; fruit a pale, greenish-white, nearly pulpless, flattened, smooth drupe. The leaves are collected and sold fresh or dry. Common to abundant throughout the state as a vine on tree trunks and fences and as a shrub in woods, along fencerows, and in wasteland. Contains only the poisonous, volatile oil urushiol. Supposed to have value in the treatment of cutaneous eruptions. Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 97 RHUS VERNIX L. Poison sumac, poison elder. Anacardiaceae. — An erect, upwardly branched, treelike shrub up to 25 feet tall, with a spreading crown; leaves dark green, pinnately compound, alternate, 6 to 15 inches long; leaflets oval, pointed, 7 to 13 in number, 2 to 4 inches long, en- tire, short-stalked ; flowers greenish-yel- low, small, in large, compound, loose, axillary panicles; fruit a pale green, small, smooth, flattened drupe. The leaves collected. Found only in the cold bogs of Lake and McHenry counties. Contains urushiol. Used as an antigen for poison ivy and poison oak poisoning. ^ ^ t^^l ^^^ ^© Z^<:^^>^ ^^N^;:^ \^-» X \ ^ w^ d^^ RIBES NIGRUM L. Black currant. Saxifragaceae . The leaves collected. Grown in gar- dens throughout the state. Used as a diuretic. RIGINUS COMMUNIS L. Castor bean. Euphorbiaceae. The seed collected. Frequently grown in gardens as a decorative plant; occa- sionally escapes from cultivation but does not persist. Contains castor oil, also the phytotoxin ricin. Used as a cathartic and purgative. 98 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 ROSA GALLIGA L., var. OFFICI- NALIS Thory. French rose, apothe- cary rose. Rosaceae. U. S. P. XI, p. 266. Flowers collected fresh and distilled with steam. Cultivated in gardens in many parts of the state but not known to have become established as an escape. Yields a volatile oil and the glucoside quercitrin. Used as an aromatic flavoring and mild astringent. RUBUS ALLEGHENIENSIS Por- ter. Blackberry, Allegheny blackberry. Rosaceae. — An erect, prickly-armed, glan- dular-hairy shrub 3 to 6 feet tall; stems round below, angled above, recurving at the ends; leaves compound, petioled, alter- nate; leaflets 5 (on fruiting branches 3), ovate, acuminate, doubly serrate, up to 5 inches long; flowers white, 1/ to 1 inch wide, numerous in terminal, bracted (not leafy), hairy, glandular racemes 5 to 10 inches long; fruit black, hemispheric to oval, up to Yz inch long, acid-sweet. The fruit, root, and bark of the root collected. Common to abundant through- out the state along roads and fences and in open woods. Contains tannin and the glucoside villosin. Used as a mild astringent; the fruit syrup is used as a vehicle for other drugs. [Rubus idaeiis L., red raspberry (including cultivated forms), and R. occidentalis L. The fruit collected, as raspberry fruit; "rasp- berry" bark taken chiefly not from these species but from the roots of blackberry species.] Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 99 RUMEX GRISPUS L. Sour dock, narrow dock, yellow dock, curled dock. Polygonaceae. — An erect, upwardly branched, dark green, smooth herb 1 to 31/ feet tall, perennial; taproot large, fleshy, 8 to 12 inches long; stems slender, furrowed, angular; basal leaves oblong, 6 to 12 inches long, wavy and crisped on the margins, long-petioled ; stem leaves smaller, short-petioled, alternate; flowers green, small, on slender, drooping stalks, numerous in whorls on branches forming a panicle; fruit dry, brown, 3-winged, con- taining a dark brown, shining, 3-angled seed. The root is collected in summer or fall, after the seeding tops have turned brown. Frequent to common in waste places, along roads and ditches, and in low, damp ground throughout the state. Contains rumicin (this is isomeric with chrysophanic acid), tannin, and other prin- ciples. Used as tonic, astringent, and laxa- tive. RUTA GRAVEOLENS L. Rue, com- mon rue. Rutaceae. — ^An erect, aro- matic, smooth, glaucous herb 1 to 3 feet high, perennial; leaves aromatic, pinnate- ly divided or compound, alternate ; leaf- lets oblong to spatulate, entire ; flowers yellow, Y2 inch wide, in terminal clusters; fruit a lobed capsule. The leaves collected. Grown formerly in herb gardens but not known to have escaped and persisted in the state. Contains the glucoside rutin. Used as a stimulant, antispasmodic, and eramenagogue. 00 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 SAB ATI A ANGULARIS (L.) Pursh. American centaury, rose pink, bitter bloom. Gentianaceae. — An erect, much- branched, smooth herb 1 to 2 feet high, biennial; stem stout, 4-angled, with oppo- site branches; leaves ovate, ^ to lYi inches long, opposite, sessile, cordate-clasp- ing, entire; flowers rose-pink, fragrant, with a central greenish star, showy, 1 to XYz inches wide, solitary on long peduncles arising from the upper axils; fruit an ob- long, many-seeded capsule. The herb collected. Infrequent to fre- quent in old fields and on dry, open, or openly wooded hillsides throughout the state. Contains the bitter principle erythrocen- taurin, a volatile oil, and a greenish resin. Used as a bitter tonic. SALIX NIGRA Marsh. Black willow, swamp willow. Salicaceae. — A large, often very tall tree with an open crown of ascending large branches and drooping twigs ; bark of the trunk brown to nearly black, deeply furrowed into narrow, con- necting ridges; buds sharp-pointed, up to 1/8 inch long, covered by 1 reddish-brown scale; leaves narrowly lanceolate, 3 to 6 inches long, alternate, petioled, long-point- ed, finely serrate; flowers in catkins. The bark and buds collected; the buds are described as "blooms." On low, al- luvial ground, especially along streams, throughout the state. The bark contains salicin and tannin ; the wood is made into charcoal. Used as a tonic and antiperiodic ; also in rheumatism. SALVIA OFFICINALIS L. Sage, garden sage. Labiatoe. The leaves collected. Now infrequent- ly grown in the state as a garden herb. Contains the volatile, aromatic oil cineol, thujone, and other principles. Used as an aromatic flavor, tonic, mild astringent, and antiseptic. Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 101 SAMBUGUS CANADENSIS L. Elderberry, sweet elder, American elder. Caprifoliaceae. — An erect, many- stemmed, smooth shrub 5 to 10 feet tall; bark gray; stems and branches with large pith; leaves pinnately compound, 6 to 10 inches long, opposite ; leaflets ovate, point- ed, serrate, generally 5 or 7 in number, up to 5 inches long; flowers white, small, 5- parted, numerous in a large, terminal, branched inflorescence; fruit a black, glo- bose, 3- to 5-seeded berry with crimson juice. The flowers, the berries when ripe, the inner bark of the stem, and the bark of the root collected. Frequent to common along streams and in moist, open soil throughout the state. The berries contain malic acid ; the flowers contain a volatile butyraceous oil, tannin, and mucilage ; the bark contains valerianic acid ; all parts contain a bitter alkaloid and a glucoside which can yield prussic acid. The bark is used as a cathartic, the berries are used in cooling drinks, the flowers as a mild astringent in eye lotions. SANGUINARIA CANADENSIS L. Bloodroot, red-root, puccoon root, red puccoon, pauson. Papaveraceae. — A low, stemless, 1-leafed, glaucous, smooth herb V^ to li/^ feet tall, perennial; root- stock horizontal, fleshy, l/^ to 1 inch thick, 1 to 3 inches long, fibrous-rooted, contain- ing a blood-red juice; leaf palmately 5- to 9-lobed, at first 2 to 3 inches wide and raised on its petiole to about the height of the blossom, later 6 to 12 inches long and raised to a height of 12 to 14 inches; flowers white, waxy, 1 to \Yi inches wide, solitary on a stalk about 6 inches tall ; fruit an oblong, many-seeded capsule, 1 inch long. The rootstock is collected in the fall. Frequent, locally common, in rich woods throughout the state. Contains a resinous acid and several toxic alkaloids, among the latter sanguinarine. Used as a stimulating expectorant, sternuta- tory, and emetic. 102 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 SANIGULA MARILANDIGA L. Sanicle, black snakeroot. U m belli f- erae. — An erect, usually unbranched, smooth herb 2 to 3 feet tall, perennial; stems rather stout, round, grooved; leaves bluish green, alternate, digitately com- pound, the lowest long-petioled ; leaflets 5 to 7 in number, 2 to 6 inches long, obo- vate, irregularly and sharply dentate; flowers greenish- or yellowish-white, small, numerous in small clusters at the ends of the branches of few-rayed umbels; fruit oval, small, covered with stout, hooked bristles. The root collected. Infrequent in oak woods from Jackson and Johnson counties northward. Medicinally active constituents unknown. Used as an astringent, anodyne, and nervine. [Sanicula canadensis L., with 3- to 5- fingered leaves and globose fruit, is much more common than the above species and oc- curs in woods throughout the state. Its roots are collected.] SAPONARIA OFFICINALIS L. Bouncing Bet, soapw^ort, fuller's herb, old maid's pink. Caryophyllaceae. — An erect, unbranched, smooth herb 1 to 2 feet tall, perennial; rootstock stout, short; stem stout, jointed; leaves ovate-lanceo- late, pointed, opposite, sessile, 2 to 3 inches long, entire, 3-ribbed; flowers pink, rose, or white, trumpet-shaped, 1 inch wide, in dense, terminal, many-bracted corymbs ; fruit an oblong, many-seeded capsule. The rootstock collected. Frequent to common, especially as a weed along trans- portation routes and in waste places, throughout the state. Contains mucilage and a saponin. Used as an alterative. Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 103 SARRAGENIA PURPUREA L. Pitcher-plant, side-saddle flower. Sar- raceniaceae. — A low, stemless, marsh- inhabiting herb, perennial; with leaves modified to resemble a pitcher; rootstock (rhizome) short, fibrous-rooted; flowers deep purple, nearly globose, 2 inches wide, solitary, and nodding at the end of a leaf- less stalk 1 to 2 feet tall. The rhizome and roots collected. In- frequent to rare in the cold bogs and tamarack swamps of Cook, Lake, and IVIcHenry counties. Contains the bitter alkaloid sarracenine. Used as a bitter tonic and stomachic. SASSAFRAS VARIIFOLIUM (Sa- lisb.) Ktze. Sassafras, ague tree, saxi- frax, smelling stick. Lauraceae. U. S. P. XI, p. 268. — A tall shrub or low tree w^ith bright green branches, aromatic when crushed ; leaves dark green, leathery, usual- ly lobed at the tip and mitten- or double mitten-shaped, wedge-shaped at the base, petioled, alternate, 3-ribbed; flowers yel- lowish-green, small, in racemes just below the leaves; fruit a dark blue, 1-seeded drupe held in the bright red, thickened calyx. The bark of the root and trunk collected in spring or fall, also the pith of young branches. Common to abundant as a weed tree in woods, abandoned fields, and waste places southward from the Rock River. The root bark yields an aromatic volatile oil (oil of sassafras), the pith a mucilage. The oil is used as an aromatic stimulant and flavoring agent, the mucilage as a demul- cent. SATUREJA HORTENSIS L. Sum- mer savory. Labiatae. The herb collected. Formerly grown extensively in gardens ; not known to have escaped and become established in the state. Contains a volatile, aromatic oil. Used as an aromatic flavoring. 104 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 SCROPHULARIA MARILANDIGA L. Carpenter's square, figwort, heal- all, pilewort. Scrophulariaceae. — An erect, Avidely branched, glandular-pubes- cent herb 3 to 10 feet high, perennial; stems smooth below, glandular-hairy above, 4- angled, and grooved; leaves ovate, acumi- nate, 3 to 12 inches long, petioled, opposite, thin, sharply serrate, finely hairy beneath; flowers greenish-purple, about ]/^ inch long, 2-lipped, nearly globose, numerous in open panicles; fruit a globose, many- seeded capsule. Leaves, the herb, and the root collected. Frequent, locally common, in open woods throughout the state. Contains the principle scrophularin. Sup- posed, formerly, to be effective in scrofula. SCUTELLARIA CANESCENS L. Western skullcap, downy skullcap. Labiatae. — An upright, little-branched, w^hite-downy herb 2 to 4 feet tall, peren- nial; leaves oval, 3 to 4 inches long, acute, crenate-toothed, petioled, opposite; flowers blue to violet, about ^ inch long, downy, 2-lipped, in several- or many-flowered axillary and terminal panicles. The herb, also leaves and tops, collected. Infrequent to rare in woods and thickets, Menard and Vermilion counties south- ward. For contents and uses, see Scutellaria lateriflora. SCUTELLARIA LATERIFLORA L. Blue pimpernel, mad-dog skullcap, madweed, mad dog, hoodwort. Labia- tae. — An erect or ascending, widely branched, nearly smooth herb 4 to 30 inches tall, perennial; stem slender, 4- sided, finely hairy above ; leaves thin, ovate, pointed, 1 to 3 inches long, coarsely serrate, slender-petioled, opposite; flowers blue, I/4 to 1^ inch long, equally 2-lipped, in axil- lary, one-sided racemes. The herb (leaves and tops) collected. Frequent in wet soil by streams, lakes, ditches, and swamps throughout the state. Contains a bitter principle, the glucoside scutellarin. Used as a tonic, nervine, and antispasmodic. Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 105 SEMPERVIVUM TEGTORUM L. Houseleek, hen-and-chickens, healing blade, Jupiter's beard. Crassulaceae. Frequently grown in gardens; not known to have escaped and become established in the state. Entire plant taken. SENEGIO AUREUS L. Life root, golden groundsel, swamp squaw-weed, golden ragwort. Compositae. — An erect, unbranched, often tufted, smooth herb 1 to 2\^ feet high, perennial; rootstock slen- der, strong-scented; stems slender; basal leaves oval to kidney-shaped, obtuse, cor- date, 1 to 6 inches long, on long, slender petioles, often purplish beneath, crenate ; stem leaves lanceolate, deeply cut into nar- row lobes; uppermost leaves small, sessile, eared, clasping; flower heads golden yel- low, nearly 1 inch wide, 8- to 12-rayed, in an open, terminal corymb. The plant, including the rootstock and roots but not the flowers, collected. Fre- quent in wet soil about marshes, small and large bodies of water, and streams through- out the state. Contains a volatile oil. Used as a dia- phoretic, diuretic, tonic, and emmenagogue. SENEGIO VULGARIS L. Gommon groundsel, grinsel, chicken weed, sim- son, birdseed. Compositae. — An ascend- ing or erect, much-branched, finely hairy herb 6 to 15 inches high, annual; stem hollow; leaves spatulate to oblong, pinnate- ly deeply lobed, dentate, 2 to 6 inches long, the lowest petioled, the upper sessile and clasping, alternate; flower heads yellow, rayless, about ]/4 inch wide, some of their bracts beak-tipped. The entire plant collected. Introduced and probably established locally in various parts of the state. Contains a volatile oil and a mixture of alkaloids. For uses, see Senecio aureus. 06 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 SILPHIUM LAGINIATUM L. Com- pass plant, rosin-weed, turpentine weed, polar plant, pilot weed. Compositae. — An erect, coarse, resinous, rough herb 6 to 12 feet tall, annual; with its pinnately divided leaves turned on edge and pointing north-south; stems coarse, hispid, little branched; leaves deeply divided into nar- row, widely separated, cut lobes, alternate, the basal 1 foot or more long; flower heads yellow, 2 to 5 inches wide, several to many toward the top of the plant. Frequent along railroads and wherever else original prairie land remains undis- turbed. Leaves and flower heads collected. \_Silphium perfoliatum L., Indian cup plant, is collected for its gum and its root. The gum is said to have styptic and anti- spasmodic properties, while the root is used as a stimulant, diuretic, and diaphoretic] SMILAX BONA-NOX L. Green brier, American china root, false china root. Liliaceae. — A long, prickle-armed, woody vine climbing by tendrils; under- ground stem long, with many spiny knots as large as an egg, from which above- ground stems arise; stem crooked, round- ish but with one prominent angle, with usually 3 to 8 spines per internode ; leaves ovate but variable and some at least so constricted as to have 2 large, rounded basal lobes, parallel-veined, alternate, 2 to 8 inches long, petioled; flowers greenish- yellow, small, in stalked, axillary umbels; fruit a black, glaucous, red-seeded, small berry. The root (underground stem) collected. Infrequent or rare in dry woodlands in the Ozark region and southward. Contains the glucosides phytosteroHn and sarsasaponin. Used as a substitute for true sarsaparilla, as an alterative and diuretic. Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 107 SOLANUM GAROLINENSE L. Horse nettle, bull nettle, sand brier, tread-softly, apple of Sodom. Solana- ceae. — An ascending to erect, branched, spiny, hairy herb up to 4 feet tall, peren- nial; rootstock deep, spreading; stem and branches set with stout, yellowish spines; leaves ovate, irregularly wavy-margined or lobed, 2 to 6 inches long, alternate, petioled, spiny beneath on the large veins and on the petiole; flowers violet to white, wheel-shaped, about 1 inch wide; fruit a yellow to orange, globose berry Yi inch or more in diameter, containing a juicy pulp and many small seeds. The berries, when ripe, and the root- stock collected. Frequent in waste places, fields, orchards, and gardens throughout the state. Contains the alkaloids solanine, solaneine, and solanidine. Used as a sedative and antispasmodic. SOLANUM DULCAMARA L. Bit- tersweet, bitter nightshade, fever twig, scarlet berry. Solanaceae. — A long, climbing and twining, half-woody, nearly smooth vine, perennial; stems 2 to 8 feet long, branching; leaves ovate, pointed, 2 to 4 inches long, petioled, alternate, some en- tire but most deeply lobed at the base so as to have 2 small, lateral, leaflike divisions below the large, terminal part; flowers blue, purplish, or white, about Y? inch wide, wheel-shaped ; fruit a red, globose to oval, juicy, many-seeded berry. The young branches are collected from plants 1 or 2 years old after the leaves have fallen, not from older plants. Infre- quent to frequent in the northern third ot the state in low, wet soils. Contains the alkaloid solanine, the sap- onin dulcamarin, and an atropine-like alka- loid. Acts as a sedative and hypnotic; used chiefly in muscular rheumatism and chronic bronchial and pulmonary affections, also as a nauseant. 108 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 SPIGELIA MARILANDIGA L. In- dian pink, pink-root, worm-grass. American worm root, Carolina pink, star bloom. Loganiaceae. — An erect, unbranched, smooth herb l/^ to 2 feet high, perennial; rootstock (rhizome) small, short, dark, rough, fibrous-rooted, pleas- antly aromatic; stems usually several, 4- angled; leaves opposite, sessile, ovate, acuminate; flowers scarlet or crimson, yel- low within, funnel-shaped, 1 to 2 inches long, in solitary (sometimes 2 or 3), termi- nal, 1-sided, stalked spikes; fruit a double, few-seeded capsule, each part globular and small. The rhizome and roots collected after the plant has flowered. Locally abun- dant but scattered in woods through the Ozark region of Illinois and south to the Ohio River, Contains a volatile oil, resin, tannin, the alkaloid spigeline, and a bitter principle. Used as a vermifuge. \Ruellia ciliosa Pursh, Tennessee pink- root, is often confused with true pink-root by collectors. Care should be taken to avoid collecting Tennessee pink-root, as buyers de- mand true pink-root.] SPIRAEA TOMENTOSA L. Hard- hack, woolly meadow-sweet, steeple bush, silverweed. Rosaceae. — An erect, unbranched, white-hairy shrub up to 6 feet high; stems stiff, woolly or hairy, leafy; leaves oblanceolate to oval, 1 to 2 inches long, sharply serrate, crowded, al- ternate, short-petioled, green above, white- woolly beneath; flowers white or pink, small, very numerous in large, dense, ter- minal panicles. Bark of stem and root, also the leaves, collected. Infrequent, or locally common or abundant, in sand barrens and sandy woods in the northeastern quarter of the state. Contains tannic and gallic acids. Used as an internal and topical astringent. Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 109 STELLARIA MEDIA (L.) Gyrill. Ghickweed, tongue grass, satin flower, white bird's-eye. Caryophyllaceae. — A weak, creeping or ascending, much- branched herb 4 to 16 inches high, annual; stems slender, rooting at the nodes, with a line of hairs along one side; leaves ovate, acute, one-sixth to \Yi inches long, entire, opposite, the lower petioled, the uppermost sessile ; flowers white, small, with sepals longer than the 2-parted petals, on slender, axillary stalks and in terminal, leafy cymes; fruit a many-seeded, small capsule. The herb collected. Frequent as a weed in gardens, fields, and lawns throughout the state. *^ %u ^^ \[^Jr^ \r^ ^ '^^ K^ ^^^m^^ / ^^u 3^ /A i ^7 Ml /^ '^XmJ' "w^ ^^ SYMPHYTUM OFFICINALE L. Gomfrey, healing herb, bruisewort, slippery root, backwort. Boraginaceae. — An erect, coarse, hairy, branched herb 2 to 3 feet high, perennial; root thick, mucilaginous, coated with thin, black bark; stem coarse, winged below the upper leaves; leaves ovate, up to 10 inches long, entire, alternate, the lowest wing-petioled, the upper sessile and decurrent; flowers yellowish white, tubular, about yi to ]/? inch long, in nodding racemes from the upper leaf axils. The root is collected in the fall or early spring. Grown in gardens by early settlers ; occasionally escaped and rarely persisting in scattered localities, especially in southern counties. Contains mucilage. Used as a demulcent. 1 10 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 Aff\ /Yiv^ 1 ^/^^ // 11/ x'Ml /V^ / ' wl7 ? tmS/ SYMPLOCARPUS FOETIDUS (L.) Nutt. Skunk cabbage, skunk weed, polecat weed, fetid hellebore. Araceae. — A stemless, offensive-smelling plant 1 to 3 feet tall, perennial; rootstock thick; straight, descending, with whorls of fleshy fibers; leaves 1 to 3 feet long, up to 1 foot wide, ovate, petioled, veiny; flowers minute, spiked inside a purple-brown to greenish, leaflike spathe, appearing before the leaves. The rhizome with root collected in spring after flowering or after the seeds have ripened. Frequent to abundant in wet, deeply shaded, marshy, and springy places throughout the northern half of the state. Contains an acrid principle, a volatile oil, and a resin. Used as an antispasmodic. TANAGETUM VULGARE L. Tansy, bitter buttons, parsley fern, scented fern, ginger plant. Compositae. — An erect, upwardly branching, aromatic, usually smooth herb ll/^ to 3 feet high, per- ennial; stem stout, reddish; leaves pinnately divided into about 7 pairs of narrow, wide- ly spaced, toothed, or cut segments, fern- like, basal one up to 1 foot long, stem leaves about 6 inches long, alternate ; flower heads yellow, button-like, with in- conspicuous ray flowers, several in clusters at the ends of usually branched stalks arising from the upper leaf axils and terminal. The leaves and flowering tops collected. Distributed widely through the state but localized near old settlements, where it has escaped from old gardens. Contains the bitter principle tanacetin and a toxic volatile oil (oil of tansy) yielding thujone. Used as a stimulant, abortifacient, and anthelmintic. Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 111 TARAXACUM OFFICINALE We- ber. Dandelion, fortune teller, horse gowan, cankerwort, blowball. Compost- tae. — ^A low, stemless, milky-juicy herb up to 1 foot high, perennial; taproot fleshy, often a foot or more long; leaves numerous in a spreading cluster, oblong, pinnately lobed, sinuate-toothed, pubescent when young, up to 1 foot long; flower heads yel- low, 1 to 2 inches broad, solitary at the ends of hollow flower stalks; fruit a small achene with a long, slender beak termi- nated by a quantity of spreading floss. The root is collected in late summer and fall, also the leaves. Common to abundant throughout the state as a weed in all waste places, fields, lawns, and gardens. Contains inulin, resin, the bitter principle taraxacin, and taraxacerin. Used as a tonic, simple bitter, diuretic, and aperient, especially in dyspepsia arising from a torpid liver. TEPHROSIA VIRGINIANA (L.) Pers. Devil's shoestring, goat's rue, catgut, rabbit pea. Leguminosae. — An ascending to erect, unbranched, silky, white-hairy herb 1 to 2 feet high, peren- nial; root fibrous, long, tough; stems slen- der, usually numerous, leafy above; leaves pinnately compound, alternate; leaflets 7 to 25 in number, ^ to 1 inch long, the terminal obovate, the lateral oblong; flow- ers yellowish-purple, sweet-pea-like, |/2 to ^ inch long, numerous in a dense, termi- nal raceme. The roots collected. Infrequent in dry, rocky, or sandy woods in the northern, western, and southern parts of the state, rare or absent in the east-central part. Medicinally effective constituents un- known. Said to be useful as a vermifuge; used also as an insecticide. 112 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 TEUGRIUM CANADENSE L. Ger- mander. Labiatae. — An erect, usually unbranched, hoary herb 1 to 3 feet high, perennial; stem slender, 4-sided; leaves lanceolate, acute, 2 to 5 inches long, irreg- ularly dentate, short-petioled, opposite ; flowers purple to white, 1/^ to ^ inch long, apparently 1 -lipped, in few-flowered whorls crowded in a dense, terminal spike ; spike 6 to 12 inches long in fruit. The herb collected. Infrequent but occurring throughout the state in moist soil, along streams, and in open woods ; also as a weed along roads and in fields and pastures. Contains a volatile oil, tannin, and a bit- ter principle. Used as an aromatic, stimu- lant, diaphoretic, diuretic, and emmenagogue. THUJA OGGIDENTALIS L. Arbor vitae, white cedar, 3^ellow cedar, feath- er-leaf cedar. Pinaceae. — A small to moderate, densely branched, evergreen tree; bark of the trunk red-tinted, shal- lowly fissured into narrow ridges; trunk usually divided into 2 or 3 stout^ upright, secondary stems; branches and branchlets slender; the tw^igs covered with small, flat- tened, pointed, overlapping, 4-ranked, scale- like leaves; frondlike; fruit a small, woody cone. The leaves and branchlets (leafy tw^igs) collected. Native but rare in the north- eastern quarter of the state; extensively used as a decorative tree in all parts of the state. Contains a volatile oil and the crj-stalllne principle thujone. Acts as a stimulant and Is used also as a diuretic and carminative ; the volatile oil Is an emmenagogue. THYMUS SERPYLLUM L. Modier- of-thyme, creeping thyme. Labiatae. The herb collected. Formerly planted in herb and flower gardens, occasionally escaped and persisting as colonies. Contains a volatile oil (oil of thyme) which yields thymol. Used as an anti- spasmodic In whooping cough; the oil Is used as a carminative, antiseptic, and rubefacient. I Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 113 TIARELLA GORDIFOLIA L. Cool- wort, false miterwort, foam flower. Saxifragaceae. — ^A stemless, erect, pubes- cent herb 6 to 12 inches high, perennial; leaves broad, 3- to 7-lobed, cordate, crenate or dentate, 2 to 4 inches long, on slender, long petioles from the rootstock or summer runners; flowers white, about 14 ir>ch wide, with 10 stamens, in an open raceme at the end of the leafless flower stalk; fruit a small, membranous, reflexed cap- sule. Exceedingly rare in the extreme north- eastern corner of the state. Used as a diuretic. TILIA AMERICANA L. Linden, basswood, whitewood, American linden. Tiliaceae. — ^A moderatel)' large, broadly crowned tree 60 feet or more tall; bark of the trunk brown, deeply furrowed, thick; leaves broadly oval, sharp-pointed, asymmetrically cordate, sharply serrate, 5 to 6 inches long, petioled, alternate; flowers yellowish, small, fragrant, in clus- ters at the ends of a branched stalk ex- tending from the middle of an oblong, leaflike axillary bract; fruit globular, woody, about 1/2 inch in diameter, densely hairy. The flowers, and flowers with leaves, collected and dried in shade; also the bark. Infrequent to frequent on wooded slopes and stream banks and in ravines through- out the state; May and early June. The bark contains mucilage. The flowers and leaves used as a stimulant or sedative, the bark as an emollient. TRIFOLIUM PRATENSE L. Red clover. Legutninosae. The blossom heads collected when in full flower. Grown in large and small acre- ages; escaped and, presumably, established throughout the state. Contains a fragrant, volatile oil, salicylic acid, and several glucosides. Used "as an alterative and sedative. l^Trifolium repens L., white clover, blos- som heads are collected. Clover blossoms must contain no leaves or stems when offered for sale.] 114 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 TRILLIUM EREGTUM L. Bethroot, purple trillium, red trillium, birthroot, purple wake robin, Indian balm, nose- bleed. Liliaceae. — A single-stemmed, 3- leaved, erect, smooth herb 8 to 18 inches high, perennial; rootstock short, thick; leaves in a whorl at the top of the stem, broadly ovate, acuminate, 3 to 7 inches long; flower dark purple, ill-scented, 1 to 3 inches wide, 3-parted, terminal on a peduncle up to 4 inches long which rises, with the leaves, from the top of the stem ; fruit a red, many-seeded berry. The root is collected in late summer. Frequent to common in woods throughout the state. Contains the acrid saponin trillin and tannin. Used as an astringent, tonic, altera- tive, and emetic. [Other species of Trillium may be col- lected also.] TRIOSTEUM PERFOLIATUM L. Tinker's weed, wild coflFee, feverroot, horse gentian. C aprif oliaceae . — An erect, coarse, unbranched, pubescent herb 2 to 4 feet high, perennial; root thick, fleshy; stem stout; leaves oval, 4 to 9 inches long, opposite, grown together around the stem, entire; flowers purplish-brown, tu- bular, I/ to ^ inch long, sessile, in small cluster in the leaf axils; fruit an orange- yellow, pubescent drupe up to Yz inch long. The root collected. Infrequent to fre- quent in dry oak woods throughout the state. Medicinally effective constituents un- known ; has a disagreeable odor and a bit- ter, nauseous taste. Used as a cathartic and emetic. Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 115 ULMUS FULVA Michx. Slippery elm, red elm, sweet elm, moose elm. Urticaceae. — A moderate, open-crowned tree 60 to 70 feet tall; bark of the trunk red-tinted, dark brown, shallowly fissured but rough; inner bark mucilaginous; twigs rough-hairy; leaves oblong-ovatc, long- pointed, unequilateral at the base, doubly serrate, 4 to 8 inches long, alternate, rough above, softly downy beneath; petioles short, stout, hairy; fruit round, flat, winged, about ]/?, inch wide. The inner, white bark of the trunk col- lected. Frequent in all the wooded and forested regions of the state. Contains a high percentage of mucilage. Used as a demulcent. URTIGA DIOIGA L. Nettle, sting- ing nettle, great nettle. Urticaceae. — An erect, little-branched herb 2 to 4 feet tall, abundantly armed w^th stinging hairs, perennial; stem stout; leaves ovate, acute, cordate, coarsely serrate, petioled, oppo- site, 3- to 5-nerved; flowers greenish, very small, numerous in large, compound, axil- lary cymes. The leaves, tops, and seed collected. In- troduced and very rare, if it occurs at all, in the state. Contains formic acid, an enzyme, a glu- coside, and tannin. A powerful diuretic; used as a counterirritant, an antihemorrhagic, and in catharrhal affections. URTIGA GRAGILIS Ait. Nettle, slender nettle, tall nettle. Urticaceae. — An erect, little-branched, stinging herb 2 to 7 feet high, perennial; stems slender, sparingly set with stinging hairs; leaves lanceolate, long-pointed, sharply serrate, 3 to 6 inches long, 3- to 5-nerved, petioled, opposite ; flowers green, very small, crowd- ed on branched, axillary stalks as long as the petioles. Infrequent to rare on alluvial land along the large streams of the state. Collected and used as the species above. 116 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 USTILAGO ZEAE. Corn smut. Usti- laginaceae. — A fungus parasite on Indian corn {Zea mays L.) appearing as large masses or galls of black, sooty powder on the ears, stem nodes, and tassels, and small to large pustules on all other parts of the plant. The large galls from the ears, stems, and tassels are collected. Abundant in cornfields throughout the state. Contains resins, mazenic acid, and the alkaloid ustalagine. Used as an ecbolic and antihemorrhagic. VALERIANA OFFICINALIS L. Heliotrope, common valerian, garden heliotrope. Valerianaceae. U. S. P. XL pp. 408. 428. Rhizomes and roots collected. Grown as an ornamental herb in gardens through- out the state. Contains a volatile oil yielding isovaleric acid, an alkaloid, a glucoside, and a resin. Used as a sedative, antispasmodic, and nerv- ine. VERBASGUM THAPSUS L. Mul- lein, great mullein, velvet dock, flannel leaf, cowl's lungwort. Scrophiilaria- ceae. — An erect, coarse, stiff, unbranched. felty-hairy herb up to 7 feet tall, biennial; stem thick, winged below the leaves; leaves forming a ground rosette the first year, on stems the second year, lanceolate or oblong, acute, winged along the petiole, up to 6 or 10 inches long, alternate, entire or some- what toothed; flowers yellow, ^ to 1 inch wide, densely crowded in large, clublike, terminal spikes; fruit a many-seeded cap- sule about 14 iitich long. The leaves and, when fully open, the flowers collected. Frequent to common, as a weed, in all open, waste places through- out the state. Contains mucilage ; the flowers yield also a yellow volatile oil. Used as a demulcent; the oil as an embrocation. Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 117 VERBENA HASTATA L. Blue ver- vain, verbain, w^ild hyssop, simpler's joy, ironweed. Verbenaceae. — An erect, upwardly branched, pubescent herb 2 to 6 feet high, perennial; stem angled and grooved, rough ; leaves lanceolate, long- pointed, short-petioled, opposite, doubly serrate, strongly veined, gray-pubescent beneath, 3 to 6 inches long; flowers blue, small, densely crowded in numerous slen- der spikes 2 to 6 inches long. The herb collected. Frequent to com- mon in pastures and open, moist soil. Contains the glucoside verbenalin, a bit- ter principle, and tannin. Used as a tonic, expectorant, and emetic. VERONICA ARVENSIS L. Corn speedwell, rock speedwell, wall speed- well. Scrophulariaceae. — An erect, often diffusely branched, hairy herb 2 to 16 inches high, annual; leaves ovate, obtuse, 14 to Yi inch long, opposite, the lowest petioled, crenate ; flowers blue, small, soli- tary on short pedicels in the leaf axils, 4- parted; fruit a heart-shaped capsule. The herb collected. Frequent to com- mon in waste places, pastures, and fields and about dwellings throughout the state; April to early June. Contains a bitter principle of unknown composition. Said to be a diaphoretic, diuret- ic, and expectorant. VERONICA OFFICINALIS L. Speedwell, ground heal, gypsy weed, Paul's betony. Scrophulariaceae. — A prostrate, creeping, erectly branched, pu- bescent herb, perennial; branches stout, 3 to 10 inches high; leaves obovate, obtuse, 1/2 to 2 inches long, opposite, short-petioled, serrate; flowers pale blue, about 14 ir^ch wnde, 4-parted, crowded in dense, axillary, stalked spikes; fruit a minute, somewhat heart-shaped, many-seeded capsule. The herb collected. Introduced; infre- quent to rare in abandoned fields, pastures, and open woods throughout the state. Contains a bitter principle that is possibly leptandrin. Used as a diaphoretic, diuretic, and expectorant. 118 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 VERONICA VIRGINIGA L. Black root, Gulver's-root, Culver's physic, Bowman's root, tall speedwell. Scroph- ulariaceae. — An erect, unbranched, mostly smooth herb 2 to 7 feet high, perennial; rhizome (rootstock) thick, bent, branched, fibrous-rooted; stem slender; leaves nar- rowly lanceolate, acuminate, 3 to 6 inches long, in whorls of 3 to 9 at each node, sharply serrate, short-petioled; flowers white to bluish, very small but very nu- merous and crowded in, usually, several dense spikes 3 to 9 inches long at the top of the plant. The rhizomes and roots collected in the fall of the second year. Frequent, in- frequent, or rare but in all parts of the state; for the most part on prairie soils but also in many other situations. Contains the intensely bitter and nauseous substance leptandrin, a volatile oil, and tannin. Used as a laxative and cholagogue and emetic. VIBURNUM OPULUS L., var. AMERICANUM (Mill.) Ait. Ameri- can cranberry bush, cramp bark tree, high-bush cranberry, wild guelder rose, red elder, squaw bush. Caprifolia- ceae. — An erect, moderately branched shrub 8 to 10 feet tall, with ascending, gray, smooth branches ; leaves 3-lobed and maple-like, 2 to 4 inches long, opposite, coarsely and irregularly dentate; flowers snowy white, some as much as 1 inch wide, numerous in terminal and axillary, stalked clusters ; fruit a red, translucent, round, sour drupe. The bark collected in the autumn. Rare in low woods in the northern third of the state. Contains principles similar to those of the following species. Used as a uterine seda- tive and hemostatic. Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 119 VIBURNUM PRUNIFOLIUM L. Black haw, shonny, sloe, sloe-leaved viburnum, stagbush. Caprifoliaceae. — An erect, spreading-branched, smooth shrub or small tree 10 to 20 feet tall; leaves bright green, broadly ovate, obtuse to acute, 1 to 3 inches long, finely serrate, opposite, petioled; flowers white, small, numerous in short-stalked, or sessile, branched clusters; fruit a blue-black, glau- cous, oval drupe about Y2 i^^ch long. The bark of the root and stem collected in the autumn. Frequent in moist woods along streams throughout the state. Contains two resins, one brown and very bitter, the other greenish-yellow, the bitter principle viburnin, valerianic acid, and tan- nin. Used as an antispasmodic, nervine, astringent, tonic, and uterine sedative, \_Fiburnum acerifolium L., arrow-wood, yields arrow-wood bark ; Viburnum rufidu- lum Raf. yields southern black haw bark; Viburnum cassinoides L, and Viburnum Len- tago L. are other Illinois species from which bark may sometimes be collected,] VIOLA ODORATA L. Violet, sw^eet violet, garden violet. Violaceae. The flowers are collected. Cultivated in many gardens as a decorative plant. Contains the alkaloid violine. Used as a cathartic, emetic, and expectorant, also in the manufacture of a colored vehicular syrup. VIOLA PEDATA L. Birdfoot violet, crowfoot violet. Violaceae. — An erect, stemless, low, nearly smooth herb, peren- nial; rootstock (rhizome) short, erect; leaves digitately 3-parted, the parts again deeply 3- to 5-cleft, on slender, erect peti- oles ; flowers dark violet and lilac-purple, with conspicuous orange-tipped stamens, solitary and nodding at the tops of slender, 1-bracted peduncles. The leaves and rhizome collected. Fre- quent on gravelly and sandy soils in the northern half of the state; rare in the Ozark region. Medicinally effective constituents un- known. Used as a cathartic, emetic, and expectorant. 120 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 VIOLA TRICOLOR L. Pansy, heart's-ease. Violaceae. The herb (leaves and flowers), and the flowers alone, collected. Grown in gar- dens throughout the state. Contains mucilage, probably the alkaloid violine, and (in the flower petals) the gly- coside rutin. Used as an emetic, cathartic, and expectorant. VITIS, cultivated species. Grape. Vi- taceae. The fruit collected. Grown in vine- yards in some parts of the state and in gardens in all parts. Yields grape juice, wine, brandy, and raisins. Grape juice is a nutritive and re- frigerant; wine and brandy are stimulants; raisins are a nutritive and mild laxative. ZANTHOXYLUM AMERIGANUM Mill. Prickly ash, toothache-tree, yel- low^ wood, pellitory bark. Rutaceae. — A moderate, hardly ever large, armed shrub 5 to 10 feet tall; bark slate-gray, pungent, bitter ; stems and branches with a pair of spines at the base of each leaf ; leaves pinnately compound, 3 to 8 inches long, alternate; leaflets 5 to 11 in num- ber, ovate, 1 to 2Y2 inches long; flowers greenish-white, small, inconspicuous ; fruit a reddish, globose to elliptic, aromatic cap- sule containing 1 seed. The berries (capsules) collected when ripe, and the bark of the stems. Frequent to common in low woods through the northern half of the state, infrequent southward. Contains fixed and volatile oils, resin, gum, coloring matter, and the alkaloid berberine. Used as a stimulant and diaphoretic, also as a simple bitter. Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 121 ZEA MAYS L. Corn, Indian corn, maize. Gramineae. U. S. P. XI, pp. 56, 258. The grain and the silk from the ears when brown collected. Grown in large acreages throughout the state. Yields cornstarch, corn oil, dextrose and glucose, and corn silk. The starch used as a demulcent, the oil as a laxative, the silk as a mild diuretic. INDEX Absinthe, 26 Achillea Millefolium, 14 Aconite, 14 Aconitum Napellus, 14 Acorus Calamus, 15 Adam-and-Eve root, 21 Adder's-tongue, yellow, 53 Adiantum pedatum, 15 Aesculus Hippocastanum, 15 Agrimonia Eupatoria, 16 gryposepala, 16 mollis, 16 striata, 16 Agrimony, 16 Agropyron repens, 16 Ague bark, 93 grass, 17 tree, 103 weed, 53 Alder, black, 17, 67 false, 67 red, 17 smooth, 17 striped, 62 tag, 17 Aletris farinosa, 17, 37 Alfalfa, 77 Allegheny blackberry, 98 Alnus rugosa, 17 serrulata, 17 Alpine strawberry, 56 Althaea rosea, 17 Alum root, 60, 64 Amaranth, 18 rough green, 18 Amaranthus retroflexus, 18 Ambrosia artemisiifolia, 18 trifida, 19 American bittersweet, 3 5 centaury, 100 china root, 106 columbo, 56 cranberry bush, 118 elder, 101 feverfew, 85 ginseng, 84 ipecac, 60 larch, 71 linden, 113 lungwort, 81 sanicle, 64 sarsaparilla, 23 senna, 33 storax, 73 valerian. 46 worm root, 108 Amy root, 22 AnagalHs arvensis, 19 Anemone patens, 19 Anethum graveolens, 20 Angelica atropurpurea, 20 great, 20 Annual larkspur, 47 sunflower, 63 Anthemis nobilis, 20 Apium graveolens, 21 Aplectrum hyemale, 21 Apocynum androsaemifolium, 21 cannabinum, 22 Apothecary rose, 93 Apple (cultivated), 94 May, 88 of Sodom, 107 purple thorn, 46 thorn, 46 Aralia nudicaulis, 22 racemosa, 23 spinosa, 23 Arbor vitae, 112 Arbutus, trailing, 50 Archangel, 20 Arctium Lappa, 24 minus, 24 Arctostaphylos Uva-ursi, 24 Arisaema triphyllum, 25 Aristolochia Serpentaria, 25 Arrow-wood, 119 Indian, 55 Artemisia Absinthium, 26 Asarum canadense, 26 Asclepias incarnata, 27 syriaca, 27 tuberosa, 27 Ash, black, 57 prickly, 120 stinking, 93 wafer, 93 white, 57 Ashy hydrangea, 65 Asparagus, 28 officinalis, 28 Aspen, 91 trembling, 91 Aspidium Filix-nias. 28 marginale, 28 Asthma weed, 74 Aunt Jerichos, 20 Avena sativa, 28 Bachelor's button, 35 Backwort, 109 Balm, 78 field. 83 garden, 78 horse, 42 Indian, 114 [123] 124 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 Balm — continued lemon, 78 of Gilead, 91 Balomy, 37 Balsam poplar, 90 sweet, 61 Baptisia australis, 29 bracteata, 29 leucantha, 29 tinctoria, 29 Barberry, common, 29 Bark, ague, 93 pellitory, 120 seven, 65 Barley, 65 Basswood, 113 Bean, bog, 80 castor, 97 Bearberry, 24 Beard, Jupiter's, 105 Bedstraw, sweet-scented, 58 Beech, 55 Beet, sugar, 29 Beggar-ticks, 16 Berberis vulgaris, 29 Berry, partridge, 81 red, 84 scarlet, 107 squaw, 81 twin, 81 Bet, bouncing, 102 Beta vulgaris, 29 Bethlehem, sage of, 80 Bethroot, 114 Betony, head, 86 Paul's, 117 wood, 75, 86 Betula lenta, 30 Big shell-bark hickory, 33 Birch, black, 30 cherr}'-, 30 spice, 30 sweet, 30 Birdfoot violet, 119 Birdseed, 105 Bird's nest, 47 Bird's-eye, white, 109 Birthroot, 114 Bit, devil's, 37, 72 Bitter bloom, 100 buttons, 110 herb, 36 nightshade, 107 Bittersweet, 35, 107 American, 35 false, 35 true, 35 Bitter-weed, 18, 52 Bitterworm, 80 Black alder, 17, 67 ash, 57 birch, 30 cherry, wild, 93 cohosh, 40 currant, 97 haw, 119 haw, southern, 119 hazel, 83 Indian hemp, 22 malva, 17 mustard, 31 oak, 94 root, 118 Sampson, 31 snakeroot, 40, 102 walnut, 69 willow, 100 Blackberry, 98 Allegheny, 98 Blade, healing, 105 Blazing star, 37 Blessed thistle, 41 Bloodroot, 101 Bloodwort, 36 Bloom, bitter, 100 star, 108 Blowball, 111 Blue cohosh, 34 flag, 68 gentian, 59 pimpernel, 104 sailors, 39 vervain, 117 Bluebells, 81 Blueberry root, 34 Bog bean, 80 club moss, 75 myrtle, 80 Bones, devil's, 49 Boneset, 53 purple, 54 Bouncing Bet, 102 Bowman's root, 118 Brandy mint, 79 Brassica alba, 30 nigra, 31 Brauneria angustifolia, 31 pallida, 31 purpurea, 31 Brier, green, 106 sand, 107 Broad-leaved plantain, 88 Broom corn, 64 yellow, 29 Brown mint, 80 Bruisewort, 109 Buckbean, 80 Bugle weed, 75 Buglewort, 75 Bull nettle, 107 Burdock, 24 great, 24 smaller. 24 Burning bush, 55 Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 125 Bush, American cranberry, 118 burning, 55 fever, 67 squaw, 118 steeple, 108 sweet, 82 Butter and eggs, 73 Butterfly-weed, 27 Butternut, 69 Button, bachelor's, 35 cuckoo, 24 snakeroot, 52, 72 Buttonbush, 36 Buttons, bitter, 110 Cabbage, skunk, 110 Calamus, 15 Calendula, 32 officinalis, 32 Calomel, vegetable, 88 Calumba, 56 Canada fleabane, 52 moonseed, 78 snakeroot, 26 thistle, 40 Cancer jalap, 87 Cankerwort, 111 Cannabis sativa, 32 Capsella Bursa-pastoris, 32 Carolina larkspur, 47 pink, 108 Carpenter's herb, 75 square, 104 Carpenter-weed, 91 Carrot, 47 wild, 47 Carya laciniosa, 33 ovata, 33 Case weed, 32 Cassia marilandica, 33 Castalia odorata, 34 Castanea dentata, 34 Castor bean, 97 Cat mint, 82 Catgut, 111 Catnip, 82 Catrup, 82 Cat's foot, 83 Catwort, 82 Caulophyllum thalictroides, 34 Ceanothus americanus, 35 Cedar, feather-leaf, 112 Indian, 83 red, 70 white, 112 yellow, 112 Celastrus scandens, 35 Celery, 21 Centaurea Cyanus, 35 Centaurium umbellatum, 36 Centaury, 36 American, 100 Cephalanthus occidentalis, 36 Chamaelirium luteum, 37 Chamomile, 20 German, 77 Roman, 20 wild, 77 Charlock, 30 Cheeses, 76 Chelone glabra, 37 Chenopodium album, 38 ambrosioides, var. anthelminticum, 38 Cherry (cultivated), 92 rum, 93 wild, 93 wild black, 93 Cherry birch, 30 Chestnut, 34 Chicken weed, 105 Chickweed, 109 red, 19 Chicory, 39 China root, American, 106 false, 106 Chionanthus virginica, 38 Choctaw root, 22 Cichorium Int^'bus, 39 Cicuta maculata, 39 Cimicifuga racemosa, 40 Cirsium arvense, 40 Citronella, 42 CitruUus vulgaris, 40 Claviceps purpurea, 41 Cleavers, 58 Cleaver's herb, 58 Clotbur, 24 Clover, red, 113 sweet, 78 white, 113 yellow sweet, 78 Club, Hercules', 23 moss, bog, 75 Cnicus benedictus, 41 Coff^ee weed, 39 wild, 114 Cohosh, black, 40 blue, 34 Colic-root, 17, 49, 72 Collinsonia canadensis, 42 Columbo, American, 56 Common barberry, 29 everlasting, 61 groundsel, 105 juniper, 70 ragweed, 18 rue, 99 sunflower, 63 valerian, 116 winterberrv, 67 Comfrev, 109 wild, 45 Compass plant, 71, 106 126 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 Cone-flower, narrow-leaved purple, 31 purple, 31 Conium maculatum, 42 Conquer-John, h9 Convallaria majalis, 43 Coolwort, 113 Coral root, 43 Corallorrhiza odontorhiza, 43 Corn, 121 broom, 64 Indian, 121 smut, 116 snakeroot, 52 speedwell, 117 squirrel, 48 turkey, 48 Corn-flower, 35 Cornus Amomum, 44 circinata, 44 florida, 44 Cotton, 61 weed, 27 Couch grass, 16 Cowslip, Virginian, 81 Cow's lungwort, 116 Cramp bark tree, 118 Cranberry bush, American, 118 high-bush, 118 Cranesbill, 60 Crataegus monogyna, 44 Oxyacantha, 44 Crawley root. 43 Creeping thyme, 112 Cress, water, 95 Crowfoot violet, 119 Cuckoo button, 24 Cucumber tree, 76 Cucurbita Pepo, 44 Cudweed, marsh, 61 sweet, 61 Culver's physic, 118 Culver's-root, 118 Cunila origanoides, 45 Cup plant, Indian, 106 Curled dock, 99 Currant, black, 97 Cydonia vulgaris, 45 Cynoglossum officinale, 45 Cypripedium parviflorum, 46 var. pubescens, 46 Daisy fleabane, 52 Dandelion, 111 Datura Stramonium, 46 Tatula, 46 Daucus Carota, 47 Deadly hemlock, 42 Delphinium Ajacis, 47 carolinianum, 47 Devil's bit, 37, 72 bones, 49 plague, 47 shoestring. 111 Dicentra canadensis, 48 Cucullaria, 48 Digitalis, 48 purpurea, 48 Dill, 20 Dioscorea villosa, 49 Diospyros virginiana, 49 Dipsacus sylvestris, 50 Dittany, 45 Dock, curled, 99 narrow, 99 prairie, 85 sour, 99 velvet, 116 yellow, 99 Dog grass, 16 mad, 104 Dogbane, 21 spreading, 21 Dog's-tooth violet, 53 Dogwood, flowering, 44 round-leaved, 44 silky, 44 Dooryard plantain, 88 weed, 90 Downy skullcap, 104 Dragon head, 91 Drosera rotundifolia, 50 Dutchman's breeches, 48 Dwarf sumac, 96 Elder, American, 101 poison, 97 prickly, 23 red, 118 sweet, 101 Elderberry, 101 Elecampane, 67 Elm, moose, 115 red, 115 slippery, 115 sweet, 115 English hawthorn, 44 Epigaea repens, 50 Epilobium angustifolium, 51 Equisetum hyemale, 51 Ergot, 41 Erigeron annuus, 51 canadensis, 52 philadelphicus, 52 Erj^ngium aquaticum, 52 Eryngo, 52 Erythraea Centaurium, 36 Er\^thronium americanum. 53 Eupatorium perfoliatum, 53 purpureum, 54 Euphorbia corollata, 54 Everlasting, common, 61 life, 61 Evonymus atropurpureus, 55 Fagus grandifolia, 55 False alder, 67 bittersweet, 35 Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 127 False — continued china root, 106 miterwort, 113 unicorn root, 37 Feather-leaf cedar, 112 Fennel, 55 Fern gale, 82 leatherwood, 28 maidenhair, 15 male, 28 meadow, 82 parsley, 110 scented, 110 shield, 28 shrubby, 82 sweet, 82 Fetid hellebore, 110 Fever bush, 67 twig, 107 Feverfew, 16, 85 American, 85 Feverroot, 114 Feverwort, 53 Field balm, 83 mint, 79 Figwort, 104 Fingers, five, 84 Five fingers, 84 Flag, blue, 68 lily, 68 poison, 68 root, 15 sweet, 15 Flannel leaf, 116 Flax, 73 Flaxweed, 73 Fleabane, 51 Canada, 52 daisy, 52 Flower, foam, 113 pasque, 19 passion, 85 satin, 109 side-saddle, 103 yellow passion, 85 Flowering dogwood, 44 spurge, 54 Foam flower, 113 Foeniculum vulgare, 55 Foot, cat's, 83 Fortune teller. 111 Foxglove, 48 Fragaria vesca, 56 virginiana, 56 Fragrant sumac, 95 Frasera carolinensis, 56 Fraxinus americana, 57 nigra, 57 French rose, 98 Fringe-tree, 38 Frostweed, 63 Fuller's herb, 102 Gag root, 74 Gale, fern, 82 Galium Aparine, 58 triflorum, 58 Gallow grass, 32 Garden balm, 78 heliotrope, 116 lettuce, 70 mint, 80 sage, 100 violet, 119 Garget, 87 Ciaultheria procumbens, 59 Gentian, blue, 59 horse, 114 soapwort, 59 Gentiana Saponaria, 59 Geranium maculatum, 60 wild, 60 German chamomile, 77 Germander, 112 Giant ragweed, 19 Solomon's seal, 89 Gilead, balm of, 91 Gillenia stipulata, 60 Gill-over-the-ground, 83 Ginger, Indian, 26 plant, 110 wild, 26 Ginseng, 84 American, 84 Gnaphalium polycephalum, 61 uliginosura, 61 Goat's rue, 111 Golden groundsel, 105 ragwort, 105 seal, 66 Goose grass, 58 Gorst. 70 Gossypium herbaceum, 61 hirsutum, 61 Gowan. horse, 77, 111 Grape, 120 Grass, ague, 17 couch, 16 dog, 16 gallow, 32 goose, 58 mat, 90 quack, 16 star, 17. 37 tongue, 109 wheat, 16 Gravel plant, 50 root, 54 Great angelica, 20 burdock, 24 mullein, 116 nettle, 115 willow herb, 51 Green brier, 106 Grindelia robusta, 62 squarrosa, 62 128 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 Grinsel, 105 Ground heal, 117 ivy, 83 laurel, 50 lemon, 88 Groundsel, common, 105 golden, 105 Grub root, 37 Guelder rose, wild, 118 Gum, sweet, 73 weed, 62 Gum-plant, 62 Gypsy weed, 75, 117 Hackmatack, 70, 71 Hamaraelis virginiana, 62 Hardback, 108 Haw, black, 119 southern black, 119 Hawthorn, 44 English, 44 Hazel, black, 83 snapping, 62 Head betony, 86 dragon, 91 Headache-plant, 19 Heal, ground, 117 Heal-all, 91, 104 Healing blade, 105 herb, 109 Heart's-ease, 120 Hedeoma pulegioides, 63 Helianthemum canadense, 63 Helianthus annuus, 63 Heliotrope, 116 garden, 116 Hellebore, fetid, 110 Helmet pod, 69 Hemlock, 39 deadly, 42 poison, 42 water, 39 Hemp, 32 black Indian, 22 Indian, 32 Hen-and-chickens, 105 Hepatica, 64 acutiloba, 64 round-leaved, 64 triloba, 64 Herb, bitter, 36 carpenter's, 75 cleaver's, 58 fuller's, 102 great willow, 51 healing, 109 Hercules' club, 23 Heuchera americana, 64 Hickory, big shell-bark, 33 shag-bark, 33 High-bush cranberry, 118 High mallow, 76 Hog-weed, 18, 52 Holcus Sorghum, var. technicus, 64 Hollyhock, 17 Honey plant, 78 Hoodwort, 104 Hop, 65 hornbeam, 83 tree, 93 Hordeum vulgare, 65 Horehound, 77 water, 75 Hornbeam, hop, 83 Horse balm, 42 gentian, 114 gowan, 77, 111 mint, 81 nettle, 107 savin, 70 weed, 19, 52 Horse-chestnut, 15 Horseradish, 94 Horse-weed, 19, 52 Horsetail, rough, 51 Houndsbane, 77 Hound's tongue, 45 Houseleek, 105 Humulus Lupulus, 65 Hydrangea, 65 arborescens, 65 ashy, 65 cinerea, 65 wild, 65 Hydrastis canadensis, 66 Hypericum perforatum, 66 Hyssop, wild, 117 Ilex verticillata, 67 Indian arrow-wood, 55 balm, 114 cedar, 83 corn, 121 cup plant, 106 ginger, 26 hemp, 32 hemp, black, 22 physic, 22, 60 pink, 108 shoe, yellow, 46 tobacco, 74 turmeric, 66 turnip, 25 Indigo, wild, 29 wild white, 29 Inkberry, 87 Inula, 67 Helenium, 67 Ipecac, American, 60 wild, 21 Ipomoea pandurata, 68 Iris (cultivated), 68 florentina, 68 germanica, 68 pallida, 68 versicolor, 68 wild, 68 Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 129 Ironweed, 117 Ironwood, 83 Ivy, ground, 83 poison, 96 Jack-in-the-pulpit, 25 Jalap, cancer, 87 Jamestown weed, 46 Jeffersonia diphylla, 69 Jimson weed, 46 Joe-Pye weed, 54 Joy, simpler's, 117 Juglans cinerea, 69 nigra, 69 Juniper, 70 common, 70 Juniperus, 70 communis, 70 virginiana, 70 Jupiter's beard, 105 Kansas snakeroot, 31 Kedlock, 30 King nut, 33 Klamath weed, 66 Knotgrass, 90 Knotweed, 90 Lace, Queen Anne's, 47 Lactuca sativa, 70 scariola, 71 virosa, 71 Lady's slipper, large yellow, 46 yellow, 46 Lamb mint, 79 Lamb's quarters, 38 Lammint, 79 Larch, 71 American, 71 Large yellow lady's slipper, 46 Larix laricina, 71 Larkspur, annual, 47 Carolina, 47 rocket, 47 Laurel, ground, 50 Leaf, flannel, 116 Leatherwood fern, 28 Leek, house, 105 Lemon balm, 78 ground, 88 Leonurus Cardiaca, 72 Lettuce, 70 garden, 70 prickly, 71 wild, 71 Leverwood, 83 Liatris spicata, 72 Life everlasting, 61 root, 105 Lily, flag. 68 sweet-scented water, 34 white pond, 34 Lily of the valley, 43 Linaria vulgaris, 73 Linden, 113 American, 113 Linum usitatissimum, 73 Lion's-ear, 72 Lion's-tail, 72 Liquidambar Styraciflua, 73 Liriodendron I'ulipifera, 74 Liverleaf, 64 Liverwort, 64 Lobelia, 74 inflata, 74 Lousewort, 86 Low mallow, 76 Lungwort, American, 81 cow's, 116 Lycopodium inundatum, 75 Lycopus virginicus, 75 Mad dog, 104 Mad-dog skullcap, 104 Madweed, 104 Magnolia acuminata, 76 Maidenhair fern, 15 Maize, 121 Majorana hortensis, 76 Male fern, 28 Mallow, high, 76 low, 76 round-leaved, 76 Malva, black, 17 rotundifolia, 76 sylvestris, 76 Man root, 84 Mandrake, 88 Man-of-the-earth, 68 Mare's-tail, 52 Marigold, 32 pot, 32 Marijuana, 32 Marjoram, 76 sweet, 76 Marrub, 77 Marrubium vulgare, 77 Marsh cudweed, 61 Marsh trefoil, 80 Marvel, 77 Mary, sweet, 78 Master, rattlesnake, 52 Mat grass, 90 Matricaria Chamomilla, 77 May apple, 88 Mayflower, 50 Maypop. 85 Meadow fern, 82 Meadow, Queen of the, 54 Meadow-sweet, woolly, 108 Medicago sativa. 77 Melilot. 78 Melilotus oflicinalis, 78 Melissa officinalis, 78 130 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 Menisperraum canadense, 78 Mentha arvensis, 79 piperita, 79 spicata, 80 Menyanthes trifoliata, 80 Mertensia virginica, 81 Milfoil, 14 Milkweed, 27 orange, 27 swamp, 27 white-flowered, 54 Mint, brandy, 79 brown, 80 cat, 82 field, 79 garden, 80 horse, 81 lamb, 79 squaw, 63 stone, 45 Mistletoe, 86 Mitchella repens, 81 Miterwort, false, 113 Monarda punctata, 81 Monkshood, 14 Moonflower, 80 Moonseed, 78 Canada, 78 Moose elm, 115 Moss, bog club, 75 Mother-of-thyme, 112 Motherwort, 72 Mouse-ear, 61 Mullein, 116 great, 116 Musquash root, 39 Mustard, black, 31 white, 30 yellow, 30 Myrica asplenifolia, 82 Myrtle, bog, 80 Narrow dock, 99 Narrow-leaved purple cone-flower, 31 Nasturtium, 95 Nepeta Cataria, 82 hederacea, 83 Nerve root, 46 Nest, bird's, 47 Nettle, 115 bull, 107 great, 115 horse, 107 slender, 115 stinging, 115 tall, 115 New Jersey tea, 35 Nicotiana Tabacum, 83 Nightshade, bitter, 107 Nosebleed, 114 Nut, king, 33 Oak, black, 94 poison, 96 red, 94 stave, 94 stone, 94 white, 94 Oats, 28 Old maid's pink, 102 Old man's root, 23 Opium, wild, 71 Orange milkweed, 27 Ostrya virginiana, 83 Paeonia officinalis, 84 Panax quinquefolium, 84 Pansy, 120 Parietaria pennsylvanica, 84 Parilla, yellow, 78 Parsley, 86 fern, 110 poison, 42 Parthenium integrifolium, 85 Partridge berry, 81 Pasque flower, 19 Passiflora incarnata, 85 lutea, 85 Passion flower, 85 vine, 85 yellow, 85 Paul's betony, 117 Pauson, 101 Pea, rabbit. 111 Peach, 92 Pedicularis canadensis, 86 Pegwood, 55 Pellitory, 84 bark, 120 wall, 84 Pennyroyal, 63 Peony, 84 Pepper plant, 32, 90 water, 90 Peppermint, 79 Persimmon, 49 Petroselinum hortense, 86 sativum, 86 Phoradendron flavescens, 86 Physic, Culver's, 118 Indian, 22, 60 Phytolacca decandra, 87 Pigweed, 18, 38 Pilewort, 104 Pilot weed, 106 Pimpernel, blue, 104 scarlet, 19 Pine, Scotch, 87 white, 87 Pink, Carolina, 108 Indian, 108 old maid's, 102 rose, 100 Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 131 Pink-root, 108 Tennessee, 108 true, 108 Pinus Strobus, 87 sylvestris, 87 Pitcher-plant, 103 Plague, devil's, 47 Plant, compass, 71, 106 ginger, 110 gravel, 50 honey, 78 Indian cup, 106 ■pepper, 32, 90 polar, 106 sweating, 53 Plantago lanceolata, 88 major, 88 Plantain, 88 broad-leaved, 88 dooryard, 88 snake, 88 Pleurisy-root, 27 Plum, 92 Pod. helmet, 69 Podophyllum peltatum, 88 Poison elder, 97 flag, 68 hemlock, 42 ivy, 96 oak, 96 parsley, 42 sumac, 97 Poke, 87 Pokeberry, 87 Pokeweed, 87 Polar plant, 106 Polecat weed, 110 Polygala Senega, 89 Polygonatum biflorum, 89 commutatum, 89 Polygonum aviculare, 90 Hydropiper, 90 punctatum, 90 Pond lily, white, 34 Poplar, balsam, 90 white, 91 Populus balsamifera, 90 candicans, 91 tremuloides, 91 Pot marigold, 32 Potato-vine, wild, 68 Prairie dock, 85 Pricklv ash, 120 elder, 23 lettuce, 71 Prune. 92 Prunella vulgaris, 91 Prunus Cerasus. 92 domestica, 92 Persica, 92 serotina, 93 Pteiea trifoliata, 93 Puccoon, red, 101 root, 101 yellow, 66 Pulsatilla, 19 Pumpkin, 44 Purple boneset, 54 cone-flower, 31 thorn apple, 46 trillium, 114 wake robin, 114 Purse, shepherd's, 32 Putty-root, 21 Pyrus Malus, 94 Quack grass, 16 Quarters, lamb's, 38 Queen Anne's lace, 47 Queen of the meadow, 54 Quercus alba, 94 rubra, 94 velutina, 94 Quince, 45 Quinine tree, 93 Rabbit pea. 111 Radicula Armoracia, 94 Nasturtium-aquaticum, 94 Ragweed, common, 18 giant, 19 Ragwort, golden, 105 Raspberry, red, 98 Rattle root, 40 Rattlebush, 29 Rattlesnake master, 52 Rattlesnake-root, 89 Red alder, 17 berry, 84 cedar, 70 chickweed, 19 clover, 113 elder, 118 elm, 115 oak, 94 puccoon, 101 raspberrv. 98 shanks, 90 trillium, 114 Red-root, 18, 32, 101 Rheumatism root, 22, 49, 69 wood, 21 Rhus canadensis, 95 copallina, 96 glabra, 96 Toxicodendron, 96 typhina, 96 Vernix, 97 Ribes nigrum, 97 Ricinus communis. 97 Rock speedwell, 117 Rocket larkspur. 47 Rockrose, 63 Roman chamomile, 20 132 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 Root, Adam-and-Eve, 21 alum, 60, 64 American china, 106 American worm, 108 Amy, 22 black, 118 blueberry, 34 Bowman's, 118 Choctaw, 22 coral, 43 Crawley, 43 false china, 106 false unicorn, 37 flag, 15 gag, 74 grub, 37 life, 105 man, 84 musquash, 39 nerve, 46 old man's, 23 puccoon, 101 rattle, 40 rheumatism, 22, 49 slippery, 109 star, 37 true unicorn, 17 Rosa gallica, var. officinalis, 98 Rose, apothecary, 98 French, 98 pink, 100 rosin, 66 wild guelder, 118 Rosin rose, 66 Rosin-weed, 62, 106 Rough green amaranth, 18 horsetail, 51 Round-leaved dogwood, 44 hepatica, 64 mallow, 76 sundew, 50 Rubus allegheniensis, 98 idaeus, 98 occidentalis, 98 Rue, 99 common, 99 goat's, HI Ruellia ciliosa, 108 Rum cherry, 93 Rumex crispus, 99 Rush, scouring, 51 tall scouring, 51 Ruta graveolens, 99 Sabatia angularis, 100 Sage, 26, 100 garden, 100 of Bethlehem, 80 Sailors, blue, 39 St. John's-wort, 66 Salix nigra, 100 Salvia officinalis, 100 Sambucus canadensis, 101 Sampson, black, 31 Sand brier, 107 Sang, 84 Sanguinaria canadensis, 101 Sanicle, 102 American, 64 Sanicula canadensis, 102 marilandica, 102 Saponaria officinalis, 102 Sarracenia purpurea, 103 Sarsaparilla, 22 American, 23 Texas, 78 wild, 22 Sassafras, 103 variifolium, 103 Satin flower, 109 Satureja hortensis, 103 Savin, horse, 70 Savory, summer, 103 Saxifrax, 103 Scabious, sweet, 51 Scabwort, 67 Scarlet berry, 107 pimpernel, 19 sumac, 96 Scented fern, 110 Scotch pine, 87 Scouring rush, 51 tall, 51 Scrophularia marilandica, 104 Scutellaria canescens, 104 lateriflora, 104 Seal, giant Solomon's, 89 golden, 66 smooth Solomon's, 89 Solomon's, 89 Sealwort, 89 Seed, wing, 93 Self-heal, 91 Sempervivum tectorum, 105 Seneca snakeroot, 89 Senecio aureus, 105 vulgaris, 105 Senega snakeroot, 89 Senna, American, 33 Senvre, 30 Serpentaria, 25 Seven bark, 65 Shag-bark hickory, 33 Shanks, red, 90 Shepherd's purse, 32 Shield fern, 28 Shoe, yellow Indian, 46 Shoestring, devil's. 111 Shonny, 119 Shrubby fern, 82 Side-saddle flower, 103 Silkweed, 27 Silky dogwood, 44 Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 133 Silphium laciniatum, 106 perfoliatum, 106 Silverweed, 108 Simpler's joy, 117 Simson, 105 Sinapis alba, 30 Skullcap, downy, 104 mad-dog, 104 western, 104 Skunk cabbage, 110 weed, 110 Slender nettle, 115 Slippery elm, 115 root, 109 Sloe, 119 Sloe-leaved viburnum, 119 Small spikenard, 22 Smaller burdock, 24 Smartweed, 90 water, 90 Smelling stick, 103 Smilax Bona-nox, 106 Smooth alder, 17 Solomon's seal, 89 sumac, 96 Smut, corn, 116 Snaffles, 86 Snake plantain, 88 Snakehead, true, 37 Snakeroot, black, 40, 102 button, 52, 72 Canada, 26 corn, 52 Kansas, 31 Seneca, 89 senega, 89 Virginia, 25 Snapdragon, wild, 73 Snapping hazel, 62 Soapwort, 102 gentian, 59 Sodom, apple of, 107 Solanum carolinense, 107 Dulcamara, 35, 107 Solomon's seal, 89 giant, 89 smooth, 89 Sour dock, 99 Southern black haw, 119 Spearmint, 80 Speedwell, 117 corn, 117 rock, 117 tall, 118 wall, 117 Spice birch, 30 Spigelia marilandica, 108 Spikenard, 23 small, 22 Spindle tree, 55 Spiraea tomentosa, 108 Spreading dogbane, 21 Spurge, flowering, 54 Square, carpenter's, 104 Squaw berry, 81 bush, 118 mint, 63 vine, 81 Squaw-root, 34, 40 Squaw-weed, swamp, 105 Squirrel corn, 48 Stagbush, 119 Staghorn sumac, 96 Star, blazing, 37 bloom, 108 grass, 17, 37 root, 37 Starwort, 37 yellow, 67 Stave oak, 94 Steeple bush, 108 Stellaria media, 109 Stick, smelling, 103 Stinging nettle, 115 Stinking ash, 93 Stone mint, 45 oak, 94 Stone-root, 42 Storax, American, 73 Strawberry, 56 Alpine, 56 Virginia, 56 Striped alder, 62 Succory, 39 Sugar beet, 29 Sumac, dwarf, 96 fragrant, 95 poison, 97 scarlet, 96 smooth, 96 staghorn, 96 Summer savory, 103 Sundew, 50 round-leaved, 50 Sunflower, 63 annual, 63 common, 63 Swamp milkweed, 27 squaw-weed, 105 willow, 100 Sweating plant, 53 Sweet balsam, 61 birch, 30 bush, 82 clover, 78 clover, yellow, 78 cudweed, 61 elder, 101 elm, 115 fern, 82 flag, 15 gum, 73 marjoram, 76 Mary, 78 scabious, 51 violet, 119 34 ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY Circular 44 Sweet-scented bedstraw, 58 water lily, 34 Symphytum officinale, 109 Symplocarpus foetidus, 110 Tag alder, 17 Tall nettle, 115 scouring rush, 51 speedwell, 118 Tamarack, 71 Tanacetum vulgare, 110 Tansy, 110 Taraxacum officinale, 111 Tar-weed, 62 Tea, New Jersey, 35 Teaberry, 59 Teasel, 50 Teller, fortune. 111 Tennessee pink-root, 108 Tephrosia virginiana. 111 Teucrium canadense, 112 Texas sarsaparilla, 78 Thistle, blessed, 41 Canada, 40 Thorn apple, 46 purple, 46 Thoroughwort, 53 Thuja occidentalis, 112 Thyme, creeping, 112 Thymus Serpyllum, 112 Tiarella cordifolia, 113 Tilia americana, 113 Tinker's weed, 114 Tipton weed, 66 Toadflax, yellow, 73 Tobacco, 83 Indian, 74 wood, 62 Tongue grass, 109 hound's, 45 Top, white, 51 Toothache-tree, 120 Trailing arbutus, 50 Tread-softly, 107 Tree, ague, 103 cramp bark, 118 cucumber, 76 hop, 93 quinine, 93 spindle, 55 tulip, 74 vinegar, 96 Trefoil, marsh, 80 Trembling aspen, 91 Trifolium pratense, 113 repens, 113 Trillium erectum, 114 purple, 114 red, 114 Triosteum perfoliatum, 114 Triticum, 16 True bittersweet, 35 pink-root, 108 snakehead, 37 unicorn root, 17 Tulip tree, 74 Turkey corn, 48 Turmeric, Indian, 66 Turnip, Indian, 25 Turpentine weed, 106 Turtlehead, 37 Twig, fever, 107 Twin berry, 81 Twinleaf, 69 Ulmus fulva, 115 Unicorn root, false, 37 true, 17 Urtica dioica, 115 gracilis, 115 Ustilago Zeae, 116 Uva-ursi, 24 Valerian, American, 46 common, 116 Valeriana officinalis, 116 Vegetable calomel, 88 Velvet dock, 116 Verbain, 117 Verbascum Thapsus, 116 Verbena hastata, 117 Veronica arvensis, 117 officinalis, 117 virginica, 118 Vervain, blue, 117 Viburnum acerifolium, 119 cassinoides, 119 Lentago, 119 Opulus, var. americanum, 118 prunifolium, 119 rufidulum, 119 sloe-leaved, 119 Vine, passion, 85 squaw, 81 Vinegar tree, 96 Viola odorata, 119 pedata, 119 tricolor, 120 Violet, 119 birdfoot, 119 crowfoot, 119 dog's-tooth, 53 garden, 119 sweet, 119 Virginia snakeroot, 25 strawberry, 56 Virginian cowslip, 81 Vitae, arbor, 112 Vitis, cultivated spp., 120 Waahoo, 55 Wafer ash, 93 ^^'^ake robin, purple, 114 Wall pelHtory, 84 speedwell, 117 Tehon THE DRUG PLANTS OF ILLINOIS 135 Walnut, black, 69 white, 69 Water cress, 95 hemlock, 39 horehound, 75 lily, sweet-scented, 34 pepper, 90 smartweed, 90 Watermelon, 40 Weed, ague, 53 asthma, 74 bugle, 75 case, 32 chicken, 105 coffee, 39 cotton, 27 dooryard, 90 gum, 62 gypsy, 75, 117 Jamestown, 46 Jimson, 46 Joe-Pye, 54 Klamath, 66 pilot, 106 polecat, 110 skunk, 110 tinker's, 114 Tipton, 66 turpentine, 106 Western skullcap, 104 Wheat grass, 16 White ash, 57 bird's-eye, 109 cedar, 112 clover, 113 mustard, 30 oak, 94 pine, 87 pond lily, 34 poplar, 91 top, 51 walnut, 69 wild indigo, 29 White-flowered milkweed, 54 Whitewood, 113 Wild black cherry, 93 carrot, 47 chamomile, 77 cherry, 93 coffee, 114 comfrey, 45 geranium, 60 ginger, 26 guelder rose, 118 hydrangea, 65 hyssop, 117 indigo, 29 indigo, white, 29 ipecac, 21 iris, 68 lettuce, 71 opium, 71 potato-vine, 68 sarsaparilla, 22 snapdragon, 73 yam, 49 Willow, black, 100 herb, great, 51 swamp, 100 Wing seed, 93 Winterberry, common, 67 Wintergreen, 59 Witch-hazel, 62 Wolfsbane, 14 Wood betony, 75, 86 rheumatism, 21 tobacco, 62 yellow, 120 Woolly meadow-sweet, 108 Worm root, American, 108 Worm-grass, 108 Wormseed, 38 Wormwood, 26 Yam, wild, 49 Yarrow, 14 Yellow adder's-tongue, 53 broom, 29 cedar, 112 dock, 99 Indian shoe, 46 lady's slipper, 46 lady's slipper, large, 46 mustard, 30 parilla, 78 passion flower, 85 puccoon, 66 starwort, 67 sweet clover, 78 toadflax, 73 wood, 120 Yellow-root, 29, 66, 69 Zanthoxylum americanum, 120 Zea mays, 121