Part 22

Echinacea is said to be an alterative, and to promote perspiration and induce a flow of saliva. The Indians used the freshly scraped roots for the cure of snake bites.

BURDOCK.

Arctium lappa L.

Synonym.—Lappa major Gaertn.

Pharmacopœial name.—Lappa.

Other common names.—Cockle-button, cuckold-dock, beggar’s-buttons, hurr-bur, stick-button, hardock, bardane. (Fig. 25.)

Habitat and range.—Burdock, one of our most common weeds, was introduced from the Old World. It grows along roadsides, in fields, pastures, and waste places, being very abundant in the Eastern and Central States and in some scattered localities in the West.

Description of plant.—Farmers are only too well acquainted with this coarse, unsightly weed. During the first year of its growth this plant, which is a biennial belonging to the aster family (Asteraceæ), produces only a rosette of large, thin leaves from a long tapering root. In the second year a round, fleshy, and branched stem is produced, the plant when full grown measuring from 3 to 7 feet in height. This stem is branched, grooved, and hairy, bearing very large leaves, the lower ones often measuring 18 inches in length. The leaves are placed alternately on the stem, on long, solid, deeply furrowed leafstalks; they are thin in texture, smooth on the upper surface, pale and woolly underneath; usually heart shaped, but sometimes roundish or oval, with even, wavy, or toothed margins.

The flowers are not produced until the second year, appearing from July until frost. Burdock flowers are purple, in small, clustered heads armed with hooked tips, and the spiny burs thus formed are a great pest, attaching themselves to clothing and to the wool and hair of animals. Burdock is a very prolific seed producer, one plant bearing as many as 400,000 seeds.

Description of root.—Burdock has a large, fleshy taproot (fig. 25), which, when dry, becomes scaly and wrinkled lengthwise and has a blackish brown or grayish brown color on the outside, hard, breaking with a short, somewhat fleshy fracture, and showing the yellowish wood with a whitish spongy center. Sometimes there is a small, white, silky tuft at the top of the root, which is formed by the remains of the bases of the leafstalks. The odor of the root is weak and unpleasant, the taste mucilaginous, sweetish, and somewhat bitter.

While the root is met with in commerce in its entire state, it is more frequently in broken pieces or in lengthwise slices, the edges of which are turned inward. The roots of other species of Arctium are also employed.

Collection, prices, and uses.—Burdock root is official, and the United States Pharmacopœia directs that it be collected from plants of the first year’s growth, either of Arctium lappa or of other species of Arctium. As burdock has a rather large, fleshy root, it is difficult to dry and is apt to become moldy, and for this reason it is better to slice the root lengthwise, which will facilitate the drying process. The price ranges from 5 to 10 cents a pound. The best root is said to come from Belgium, where great care is exercised in its collection and curing.

Burdock root is used as an alterative in blood and skin diseases. The seeds and fresh leaves are also used medicinally to a limited extent.

PLATES.

EXPLANATION OF PLATES.

PLATE I. Fig. 1.—Marginal-fruited shield-fern (Dryopteris marginalis), showing upper surface of leaf, the lower surface with the “sori,” or “fruit dots,” arranged on the margins, and the erect, chaffy rootstock. Fig. 2.—Skunk-cabbage (Spathyema foetida), showing flowering plant with thick rootstock and whorl of crowded roots; unfolded leaf and spathe laid open to show rounded spadix; also seedling, and transverse section of rootstock. Fig. 3.—Sweet-flag (Acorus calamus), showing swordlike leaves, flowering head produced from the side of the stalk, and long, creeping rootstock. Fig. 4.—Bethroot (Trillium erectum), showing leaves, various views of the flower, and root. Arrangement of the different parts of the plant is in threes.

PLATE II. Fig. 1.—Chamaelirium (Chamaelirium luteum), showing the male plant. Note the arrangement of the long-stemmed leaves along the entire stem and the graceful spike of feathery flowers, as compared with the grasslike basal leaves and the erect flowering spikes of Aletris (fig. 2), with which it is often confused. The rootstock of Chamaelirium, with the slightly curved upward end, is also shown. Fig. 2.—Aletris (Aletris farinosa). Note the grasslike leaves at the base of the stem and the erect spikes of urn-shaped flowers, as compared with the arrangement of the leaves all along the stem and the drooping plumelike spikes of Chamaelirium (fig. 1), with which Aletris is frequently confused. The rootstock of Aletris, which is rough and scaly and almost completely hidden by the fibrous roots, is, unfortunately, not well shown in the illustration. Fig. 3.—Wild yam (Dioscorea villosa), showing part of the vine, with its drooping clusters of flowers and 3-winged seed capsules; also the long, horizontal rootstock. Fig. 4.—Blue flag (Iris versicolor), showing sword-shaped leaves, the flowers, and part of the rootstock.

PLATE III. Fig. 1.—Large yellow lady’s-slipper (Cypripedium hirsutum), showing plant with its broad, parallel-veined leaves, and curious, baglike flower, and also rootstock with wavy roots. Fig. 2.—Canada snakeroot (Asarum canadense), showing, to the right, the flowering plant, and to the left the fruiting plant, together with the creeping rootstocks. Fig. 3.—Virginia serpentaria (Aristolochia serpentaria), plant showing seed capsules and rootstock. Fig. 4.—Soapwort (Saponaria officinalis), showing the upper flowering portion and seed pods; also the runners and roots.

PLATE IV. Fig. 1.—Oregon grape (Berberis aquifolium), showing a branch with the leathery, holly-like leaves, and clusters of berries. Fig. 2.—Blue cohosh (Caulophyllum thalictroides), showing upper portion of the plant, with flowering head. Fig. 3.—Canada moonseed (Menispermum canadense), showing a portion of the vine in flower. Fig. 4.—Hydrangea (Hydrangea arborescens), showing a flowering and fruiting branch.

PLATE V. Fig. 1.—Indian-physic (Porteranthus trifoliatus), showing upper flowering portion, and base of stem with root. Fig. 2.—Wild sarsaparilla (Aralia nudicaulis), showing flowering plant with rootstock, and to the left a fruiting head. Fig. 3.—Ginseng (Panax quinquefolium), showing the upper portion in flower, and the root. Fig. 4.—Water-eryngo (Eryngium yuccifolium), showing the long, grasslike leaves, stout-stemmed flowering heads, and rootstock.

PLATE VI. Fig. 1.—American angelica (Angelica atropurpurea), showing leaves, fruiting head, and to the right a portion of the stem with broad, expanded leafstalk. Fig. 2.—Pinkroot (Spigelia marilandica), showing flowering top and seed capsules. Fig. 3.—Pleurisy-root (Asclepias tuberosa), showing flowering top, pods with escaping hairy seeds, and root. Fig. 4.—Comfrey (Symphytum officinale), showing the thick, rough leaves, the clusters of flowers, lower portion of plant with root, and sections of root.

PLATE VII. Fig. 1.—Stoneroot (Collinsonia canadensis), showing flowering top and base of stem with root. Fig. 2.—Queen-of-the-meadow (Eupatorium purpureum), showing leaves and flowers. Fig. 3.—Elecampane (Inula helenium), showing leaves, flowers, and root. Fig. 4.—Echinacea (Brauneria angustifolia), showing flowering plant.

PLATE I.

PLATE II.

PLATE III.

PLATE IV.

PLATE V.

PLATE VI.