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Herbs & Plants

Indian Liquorice (Crab’s Eye)

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Botanical Name : Abrus precatorius
Family: Fabaceae
Genus: Abrus
Species: A. precatorius
Kingdom: Plantae
Order: Fabales

Synonyms : Abrus minor and A. pauciflorus Desv.

Common name: Rosary pea, crab’s eye, jequerite, precatory bean, weesboontje, paternoster bean, deadly crab’s eye, wild liquorice, ruti, jequirity bean, coral bean, prayerbead, Ma Liao Tou, Tento Muido, Indian liquorice, Gunja.

English names: Indian liquorice, Crab’s eye.

Sanskrit name: Krishna gunja.

Vernacular names: Asm : Latuwani; Ben: Rati, Kunch; Guj: Gumchi; Hin and Pun: Rati; Kan : Gurgunn, Gulaganji; Ori : Kaincha, Gunja; Mal: Kunnikkura; Tam: Kunthamani; Tel: Gumginja.

Trade names: Rati, Kunch.

Family:Fabaceae / Leguminosae.

Habitat : Occurring throughout greater parts of India, ascending the outer Himalaya up to 1200 m, occasionally planted in gardens.

Ecology and cultivation: Naturalised in tropical countries.

Description:
A small climbing tropical vine with alternately compound leaves, indigenous to Indonesia but also growing in Surinam.
The flowers are small, pale, violet to pink and arranged in clusters.

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The fruit (a pod) is flat and truncate – shaped (1½ – 2″ long).
This seedpod curls back when it opens to reveal the seeds.

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Copiously branched climber with slender branches; leaves alternate, pinnately compound with numerous deciduous leaflets; flowers small, in dense racemes on axillary peduncles or short branches; pods 2.5-3.7 by 1.0-1.25 cm; seeds bright scarlet and black or whitish or black or mixed black and white, large like pea.

The small, hard, brilliant red seeds with a black spot are very toxic due to the phytochemical abrin (consisting of 5 glyco-proteins); a single seed if broken, can cause blindness or even death if ingested.
Abrin is a ribosome – inactivating protein (it blocks protein synthesis) and is one of the most deadly plant toxins known.
Fortunately, the toxin is only released if the seeds are broken (and swallowed) but this is unlikely since they have a hard seed coat!

Phenology: Flowering: August and September; Fruiting : January to March (even up to May).

Hardiness:
USDA zone 9 – 11.
Can be planted in the spring up to zone 7 as an annual.

Propagation:
Seeds.
These seeds germinate more consistantly if scarified; soak overnight in hot water or until they swell. Sow swollen seeds immediately in seeding mix. Don’t overwater or allow to dry out.

Culture:
Full sun / partial shade, well – drained moist soil.
Plant in frost free spots.

Chemical contents: Root and Leaf: glycyrrhizin, isoflavanquinones, abrusquinone A, B & C; leaves taste sweet and roots less so; roots also contain precol, abrol, abrasine and precasine. Seed: poisonous, principal constituents being ‘abrin’; a fat-splitting enzyme, haemaagglutinin, urease; alkaloid (abrin), a glucoside (abralin) and a small quantity of fatty oil have also been isolated from seed. Pharmacologically,abrin is considered to be intensely poisonous. Besides abrin, a seed contains hypaphorine, two steroids­one oily and the other crystalline- β-sitosterol, stigmasterol, 5 B-cholanic acid, abricin, abridin, cholesterol, lectins and toxic proteins.

Medicinal Aplication & Uses:

In Traditional medicinal applications :Leaves, roots and seeds are used.
The seeds are used as a contraceptive, to treat diabetes and chronic nephritis.
The root is used to induce abortion against abdominal discomfort, gonorrhoea, jaundice and haemoglobinuric bile.Also traditionally used to treat tetanus and to prevent rabies.

Jequirity seeds have been used medicinally in the past as a contraceptive, abortifacient, and as a treatment for chronic conjunctivitis.  However, they are so poisonous that even external application is no longer justifiable.  Even small amounts brought into contact with an open wound can prove fatal.  The leaves and roots contain glycyrrhizin and can be substituted for licorice. The leaves have been used in the Ayurvedic tradition in the treatment of asthma, bronchitis, sore throats, dry coughs and other chest conditions.  They have been used in Chinese medicine to treat fever.  Externally the leaves are used for sciatica, hair loss, skin disease, leprosy, nervous debility and the seeds for paralysis.

Medicinal – not recommended due to extreme toxicity (Abortifacient, Ache(Head), Anodyne, Antidote, Aphrodisiac, Bilious, Bite(Snake,) Bladder, Blennorrhagia, Boil, Cancer, Chest, CNS-Sedative, Cold, Colic, Collyrium, Conjunctivitis, Consumption, Contraceptive, Convulsion, Cough, Diarrhea, Diuretic, Dysuria, Emetic, Emollient, Enteritis, Epithelioma, Expectorant, Expectorant, Eye Fatal, Fatality, Febrifuge, Fever, Fracture(Veterinary), Freckle, Gastritis, Gingivitis, Gonorrhea, Gravel, Heart, Hemostat, Hoarseness, Homicide, Hookworms, Insomnia, Jaundice, Kidney, Laxative, Loin, Malaria, Masticatory, Myalgia, Night-Blindness, Ophthalmia, Ordeal, Pectoral, Poison, Puerperium, Purgative, Refrigerant, Rheumatism, Sedative, Skin, Sprue, Stomach, Styptic, Throat, Trachoma, Urogenital, Venereal, Vermifuge), Sweetener, (like Liquorice),

Traditional use: SANTAL(Indian Tribals): (i) grind the roots, make small pills, encase the pills in molasses and eat the same to treat night-blindedness; (ii) make a plaster by grinding the roots of white-fruited variety and apply the plaster on the painful part of inflammated sections of the gum; (iii) to treat white-coloured urine they drink a mixture made by grinding roots of the following: (a) white-fruited A. precatorius, (b) Indigofera pulchella, (c) Panicum repens and (d) Spatholobus roxburghii; (iv) to treat gravel they drink a mixture made of the following: (a) roots of A. precatorius, (b) the refuse of molasses, (c) exudation from a sapling of Diospyros tomentosa, (d) exudation from Acacia catechu, (e) little saltpeter, and (f) pinch of sulphur; (v) to treat the variety of childbed complaints (usually caused by anaemia) characterized by profuse diarrhoea, roots of A. precatorius are used in preparing two different varieties of mixtures; the ingredients of the mixtures are given below: (a) first variety: roots of A. precatorius, Elaeodendron roxburghii, Coix lachryma-jobi, Piper longum, Ruellia suffruticosa, white onion, rhizome of Zingiber officinale; (b) second variety: roots of A. precatorius, Coix lachryma-jobi, Embelia robusta, Piper longum, bark of Casearea tomentosa, Elaeodendron roxburghii, Gmelina arborea, Emblica officinalis, white onion, leaves of Ocimum sanctum, rhizome of Curcuma angustifolia and Zingiber officinale – all these are ground together, boiled and mixed with the refuse of molasses; (vi)roots as abortifacient and in paralysis; (vii) apply leaf-paste with lime-water (2:1) on swelling of glands; (viii) grind the leaves of white-flowered A. precatorius, warm slightly and plaster on the loins to kill pain there; (ix) grind leaves of A. precatorius along with leaves of Lawsonia alba and Tamarindus indica (1:1:1), add a little salt, boil a little and apply the plaster on the whole body to get relief from muscular pain caused by over­exhaustion; (x) make a paste of leaves of A. precatorius along with roots of Carissa carandas and Gossypium arboreum, warm the paste slightly and plaster the same over the whole body of the patient suffering from stealth convulsions; (xi) leaf-paste in leucoderma; (xii) seed-paste in skin diseases; (xiii) seeds after some processing as contraceptive. MUNDA: Root-paste in gonorrhoea. ORAON: dried root-powder as mild purgative.

AGNI PURANA: (i) husks of A. precatorius along with the same of Vitis vinifera and the decoction of Polyalthia longifolia, Moringa pterigosperma, payomuca and tripha/a (fruits of Terminalia belerica, Terminalia chebula and Emblica officinalis) destroys all intestinal worms; (ii) the mixture of powder of A. precatorius, marine salt and pathya in warm water removes all fevers; (iii) consumption of the seeds of A. precatorius along with the fruits of Melia azadiracta, Holarrhena antidysenterica (leaves). Acorus calamus (young leaves) and Glycyrrhiza glabra (powder of stem) causes vomiting; (iv) regular drinking of A. precatorius along with Acorus calamus, G/oriosa superba, vasa, nisagada, Zingiber officinalis, Glycyrrhiza glabra and marine salt daily in the morning enhances memory of young boys; (v) A. precatorius can enhance the span of a man’s life, if it is eaten with marine salt and some other plants (Tinospora cordifolia, pathya, citraka, dried rhizome of Zingiber officinalis).

Modern use: Roots: emetic and alexiteric; Decoction of roots and leaves: for cough, cold and colic; Seeds: purgative, emetic, tonic, aphrodisiac, used in nervous disorder and cattle poisoning; Poultice of seeds: as suppository to bring about abortion; Paste of seeds: applied locally in sciatica, stiffness of shoulder joints and in paralysis.

In certain parts of India, the boiled seeds are eaten; cooking seems to destroys the poison.The small seeds are used in jewelry (necklaces) and have a uniform weight of 1/10th of a gram.

Click to learn more about->Indian Liquorice  and Some Medical Plants of India

Disclaimer:
The information presented herein is intended for educational purposes only. Individual results may vary, and before using any supplements, it is always advisable to consult with your own health care provider

Resources:
http://www.bsienvis.org/medi.htm#Abrus%20precatorius
http://www.tropilab.com/paternosterbean.html
http://beta.uniprot.org/taxonomy/3816
http://www.b-and-t-world-seeds.com/89.html

http://www.herbnet.com/Herb%20Uses_IJK.htm

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Herbs & Plants

Abroma Augusta – (Devil’s Cotton)

Botanical Name: Sterculiaceae

Syn : Abroma augulata Lam., A. wheeleri Retz., A. fastuosum Gaertn., Theobroma augusta L.

English name: Devil‘s cotton.

Vernacular names: Asm : Bon kopashi; Hin and Ben: Ulat kambal; Tam: Sivapputtutti.

Trade name: Ulat kambal.
Habitat: Widely distributed in hotter parts of India up to 1500 m; Bangladesh, Pakistan and the adjacent countries.
Traditional use: Seed: yields fatty oil, rich in linoleic acid and lowers cholesterol level in blood.

Description:
Abroma augusta, or Devil’s Cotton, is an evergreen tree native from Asia to Australia. They will reach 10 feet (2.5 m) in height with very little spread. The leaves will reach 8 inches (20 cm) across and are 3-5 lobed with very distinct palmate veins. The leaves and stems are covered with soft bristly hairs that are very irritating to the touch. The bark yields a jute-like fiber.

You may click to see the pictures of Abroma Augusta
.devils-cotton-1.jpg.abroma_augusta077_110olgab.jpg..abroma-augusta-ultat-kamba.jpg

The leaves have an oblong shap.The seeds are contained in a cotton-like envelope. Dark, maroon flowers are formed in terminal panicles. The leaves and stems are covered with soft, bristly hairs that are extremely irritating to the touch.
Also placed in Malvaceae.

Blooming Time: In the greenhouse, plants bloom from late spring to early summer. Dark maroon flowers are formed in terminal panicles. Individual flowers are up to 3 inches (7.5 cm) across.

Culture: Abroma augusta need full sun to partial shade with a rich well-drained soil mix. In the greenhouse, we use a soil mix consisting of 2 parts peat moss to 1 part loam to 2 parts sand or perlite. Plants are watered, then allowed to dry slightly before watering again. They are fertilized weekly during the growing season with a balanced fertilizer. They are very fast growing, so repotting should be done when they outgrow their containers. Care should be taken when repotting because of the irritating hairs. Wrapping newspaper around the trunk helps to prevent exposure to the hairs. During the winter months, water should be somewhat restricted, but not to a point where the plant loses its leaves.

Propagation:
Abroma augusta is propagated from seed. Seed germinate in 21-30 days at 72° F (24°C). Ecology and cultivation: Plant prefers hot and moist climate; sometimes planted, occasionally found as an escape.

Chemical contents: Plant: fixed oil, a little resinous matter, alkaloid (minute quantity) and water-soluble bases.
Medicinal Uses:
HOMOEOPATHY
: used to control mind, different ailments of head, heart, eyes, ears, nose, face, mouth, throat, stomach, abdomen, urinary organs, male and female sexual organs, respiratory organs, neck, back and limbs, skin diseases, fever; to regulate appetite and sleep.

Modern use: Fresh and dried root-bark: used as uterine tonic and emmenagogue; regulates menstrual flow; Fresh juice from root- bark: useful in congestive and neuralgic forms of dysmenorrhoea, amenorrhoea, urinary trouble, bronchitis, broncho-pneumonia, carbuncles and poisonous boils; Leaf: used in diabetes, rheumatic pain and sinusitis.

Phytography : Shrub, branches downy; leaf simple, cordate, 10-15 cm by 10-12.5 cm, base 3-7 costate, repand-denticulate while the upper narrower leaves are entire, glabrescent above and tomentose below, petiolate, petioles 1.25-2.5 cm long, stipules linear, as long as the petiole, deciduous; flowers axillary, pedunculate, peduncle 3.5 cm long; capsules 5-angled, 5-winged, obpyramidal, thrice as long as the persistent calyx; seeds albuminous, numerous.

Disclaimer:
The information presented herein is intended for educational purposes only. Individual results may vary, and before using any supplements, it is always advisable to consult with your own health care provider

Resources:
http://www.plantoftheweek.org/week262.shtml
http://www.bsienvis.org/medi.htm#Holarrhena%20pubescence
http://www.toptropicals.com/cgi-bin/garden_catalog/

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Herbs & Plants

Gelsemium

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Botanical Name: Gelsemium nitidum (MICH.)
Family: N.O. Loganiaceae/Gelsemiaceae
Genus: Gelsemium
Species: G. sempervirens
Kingdom: Plantae
Order: Gentianales

Synonyms: Yellow Jasmine. Gelsemium Sempervirens (Pers.). False Jasmine. Wild Woodbine. Carolina Jasmine. Carolina jasmine or jessamine, evening trumpetflower, gelsemium and woodbine.

Part Used: Root.

Habitat: Gelsemium is one of the most beautiful native plants of North America, occurring in rich, moist soils, by the sides of streams, along the seacoast from Virginia to the south of Florida. extending into Mexico.Yellow Jessamine is the state flower of South Carolina.

The important drug Gelsemium, official in the principal Pharmacopoeias, is composed of the dried rhizome and root of Gelsemium nitidum (Michaux), a climbing plant growing in the southern States of North America and there known as Yellow Jasmine, though it is in no way related to the Jasmines, and is best distinguished as Caroline Jasmine, as it belongs to the Loganiaceae, an order that forms a connecting link between the orders Gentianaceae, Apocynaceae, Scrophulariaceae and Rubiaceae. The plant is not to be confounded with the true Yellow Jasmine (Jasminum odoratissimum), of Madeira, which is often planted in the southern States for the sake of its fragrant flowers and has also been known there under the name of Gelseminum; this has only two stamens, while Gelsemium has five.

Description: It can grow to 3-6 m high when given suitable climbing support in trees, with thin stems. The leaves are evergreen, lanceolate, 5-10 cm long and 1-1.5 cm broad, and lustrous, dark green. The flowers are borne in clusters, the individual flowers yellow, sometimes with an orange center, trumpet-shaped, 3 cm long and 2.5-3 cm broad.
Click to  see the pictures

Despite the hazards, this is a popular garden plant in warmer areas, frequently being trained to grow over arbors or to cover walls

Its woody, twining stem often attains great height, its growth depending upon its chosen support, ascending lofty trees and forming festoons from one tree to another. It contains a milky juice and bears opposite, shining and evergreen lanceolate leaves and axillary clusters of from one to five large, funnel-shaped, very fragrant yellow flowers, which during its flowering season, in early spring, scent the atmosphere with their delicious odour. The fruit is composed of two separable, jointed pods containing numerous, flat-winged seeds.

The stem often runs underground for a considerable distance, and these portions (the rhizome) are used indiscriminately with the roots in medicine, and exported from the United States in bales.

The plant was first described in 1640 by John Parkinson, who grew it in his garden from seed sent by Tradescant from Virginia; at the present time it is but rarely seen, even in botanic gardens, in Great Britain, and specimens grown at Kew have not flowered.

Description of the Drug: The drug in commerce mostly consists of the undergroundstem or rhizome, with occasional pieces of the root. The rhizome is easily distinguished by occurring in nearly straight pieces, about 6 to 8 inches long, and 1/4 to 3/4 inch in diameter, having a small dark pith and a purplish-brown, longitudinally fissured bark. The root is smaller, tortuous, and of a uniform yellowish-brown colour, finely wrinkled on the surface.

Both rhizome and root in transverse section exhibit a distinctly radiate appearance, the thin cortex or bark enclosing a large, pale, yellowish-white wood, which consists of narrow bundles with small pores, alternating with straight, whitish, medullary rays about six or eight cells in thickness. In the case of the rhizome, a small pith, frequently divided into four nearly equal parts, is also present, particularly in smaller and younger pieces.

The drug is hard and woody, breaking with an irregular splintery fracture, and frequently exhibits silky fibres in the bast, which are isolated, or occur in groups of two or three and form an interrupted ring, whereas in the aerial stem, they are grouped in bundles.

The drug has a bitter taste, due to the presence of alkaloids, which occur chiefly in the bark. The slight aromatic odour is probably due to the resin in the drug.

Collection: Adulterations. The drug is commonly collected in the autumn and dried.Though consisting usually of the dried rhizomes with only the larger roots attached, sometimes smaller roots are present, and it is often adulterated with the aerial portions of the stem, which can be easily detected by the thinness and dark-purplish colour of the latter. It is stated to be destitute of alkaloid and therefore of no medicinal value.

Similar roots of Jasmine, especially those of Jasminum fruticans, are sometimes intermixed, and can be distinguished by the absence of indurated pith cells, which occur in Gelsemium, by the abundance of thin-walled starch cells in the pith and in the medullary ray cells (those of Gelsemium being thickwalled and destitute of starch), and by the bast fibres round the sieve tubes.

Constituents: Gelsemium contains two potent alkaloids, Gelseminine and Gelsemine.

Gelseminine is a yellowish, bitter andpoisonous amorphous alkaloid, readily soluble in ether and alcohol, forming amorphous salts.

The alkaloid Gelsemine is colourless, odourless, intensely bitter and forms crystalline salts. It is only sparingly soluble inwater, but readily forms a hydrochloride, which is completely so. This alkaloid is not to be confounded with the resinoid known as ‘Gelsemin,’ an eclectic remedy, a mixture of substances obtained by evaporating an alcoholic extract of Gelsemium to dryness.

The rhizome also contains Gelsemic acid a crystalline substance which exhibits an intense bluish-green fluorescence in alkaline solution; it is probably identical with methylaesculatin or chrysatropic acid found in Belladonna root.

There are also present in the root 6 per cent of a volatile oil, 4 per cent of resin and starch.

Poisoning by Gelsemium: The drug is a powerful spinal depressant; its most marked action being on the anterior cornus of grey matter in the spinal cord.

The drug kills by its action on the respiratory centre of the medulla oblongata. Shortly after the administration of even a moderate dose, the respiration is slowed and is ultimately arrested, this being the cause of death.

Poisonous doses of Gelsemium produce a sensation of languor, relaxation and muscular weakness, which may be followed by paralysis if the dose is sufficiently large. The face becomes anxious, the temperature subnormal, the skin cold and clammy and the pulse rapid and feeble. Dropping of the upper eyelid and lower jaw, internal squint, double vision and dilatation of the pupil are prominent symptoms. The respiration becomes slow and feeble, shallow and irregular, and death occurs from centric respiratory failure, the heart stopping almost simultaneously. Consciousness is usually preserved until late in the poisoning, but may be lost soon after the ingestion of a fatal dose. The effects usually begin in half an hour, but sometimes almost immediately. Death has occurred at periods varying from 1 to 7 1/2 hours.

The treatment of Gelsemium poisoning consists in the prompt evacuation of the stomach by an emetic, if the patient’s condition permits; and secondly, and equally important, artificial respiration, aided by the early administration, subcutaneously, of ammonia, strychnine, atropine or digitalis.

An allied species, G. elegans (Benth.) of Upper Burma, is used in China as a criminal poison, its effects are very rapid.

Medicinal Action and Uses: Antispasmodic, sedative, febrifuge, diaphoretic.

The medical history of the plant is quite modern. It is stated to have been brought into notice by a Mississippi planter, for whom, in his illness, the root was gathered in mistake for that of another plant. After partaking of an infusion, serious symptoms arose, but when, contrary to expectations, he recovered, it was clear that the attack of bilious fever from which he had been suffering had disappeared. This accidental error led to the preparation from the plant of a proprietary nostrum called the ‘Electric Febrifuge.’ Later, in 1849, Dr. Porcher, of South Carolina, brought Gelsemium to the notice of the American Medical Association. Dr. Henry, in 1852, and after him many others, made provings of it the chief being that of Dr. E. M. Hale, whose Monograph on Gelsemium was an efficient help to the true knowledge of the new American drug.

All parts of this plant contain the toxic strychnine-related alkaloids gelsemine and gelseminine and should not be consumed. The sap may cause skin irritation in sensitive individuals. Children, mistaking this flower for honeysuckle, have been poisoned by sucking the nectar from the flower. The nectar is also toxic to honeybees, and causes brood death when gathered by the bees.

In America, it was formerly extensively used as an arterial sedative and febrifuge in various fevers, more especially those of an intermittent character, but now it is considered probably of little use for this purpose, for it has no action on the skin and no marked action on the alimentary or circulatory system.

It has been recommended and found useful in the treatment of spasmodic disorders, such as asthma and whooping cough, spasmodic croup and other conditions depending upon localized muscular spasm. In convulsions, its effects have been very satisfactory.

It is, at present, mainly used in the treatment of neuralgic pains, especially those involving the facial nerves, particularly when arising from decaying teeth.

It is said it will suspend and hold in check muscular irritability and nervous excitement with more force and power than any known remedy. While it relaxes all the muscles, it relieves, by its action on the general system, all sense of pain.

The drug is also said to be most useful in the headache and sleeplessness of the drunkard and in sick headache.

It has been used in dysmenorrhoea, hysteria, chorea and epilepsy, and the tincture has been found efficacious in cases of retention of urine.

Some recommend its use in acute rheumatism and pleurisy, in pneumonia and in bronchitis, and it has been advocated, though not accepted by all authorities, as of avail in the early stages of typhoid fever.

Toxics:
All parts of this plant contain the toxic strychnine-related alkaloids gelsemine and gelseminine and should not be consumed. The sap may cause skin irritation in sensitive individuals. Children, mistaking this flower for honeysuckle, have been poisoned by sucking the nectar from the flower.[citation needed] The nectar is also toxic to honeybees, and causes brood death when gathered by the bees.

Despite the hazards, this is a popular garden plant in warmer areas, frequently being trained to grow over arbors or to cover walls.

Yellow Jessamine is the state flower of South Carolina.

Disclaimer:
The information presented herein is intended for educational purposes only. Individual results may vary, and before using any supplements, it is always advisable to consult with your own health care provider

Click to see ->Gelsemium Sempervirens – Homeopathic Remedies

Resources:
http://botanical.com/botanical/mgmh/g/gelsem07.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gelsemium_nitidum
http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/depts/hort/consumer/poison/Gelsese.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gelsemium_sempervirens

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Herbs & Plants

Maple

Botanical Name: Acer

Family: N.O. Aceraceae

Habitat: The Maples, belonging to the genus Acer, natural order Aceraceae, are for the most part trees, inhabitants of the temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere, particularly North America, Northern India and Japan. There are approximately 125 species, most of which are native to Asia, but several species also occur in Europe, northern Africa, and North America.

Description: The leaves are long-stalked, placed opposite to one another, and palmately lobed; the flowers, in fascicles appearing before the leaves as in the Norway Maple, or in racemes appearing with, or later than, the leaves as in the Sycamore Some of the flowers are often imperfect.

CLICK & SEE THE PICTURES

The dry fruit, termed a ‘samara,’ is composed of two one-seeded cells, furnished with wings, which divide when ripe, the winged seeds being borne by the wind to a considerable distance.

The leaves of the Maples commonly exhibit varnish-like smears, of sticky consistence, known as honey-dew. This is the excretion of the aphides which live on the leaves; the insect bores holes into the tissues, sucks their juices and ejects a drop of honeydew, on an average once in half an hour. In passing under a tree infested with aphides the drops can be felt like a fine rain. The fluid is rich in sugar. When the dew falls, the honey-dew takes it up and spreads over the leaf; later in the day evaporation reduces it to the state of a varnish on the leaf surface, which aids in checking transpiration. Many other trees exhibit this phenomenon, e.g. lime, beech, oak, etc.
Most of the Maples yield a saccharine juice from the trunk, branches and leaves. The wood of almost all the species is useful for many purposes, especially to the cabinetmaker, the turner and the musical instrument-maker, and for the manufacture of alkali the Maples of North America are of great value.

Many species with finely-cut or variegated leaves have been introduced, especially from Japan, as ornamental shrubs, most of them remarkable for the coppery-purple tint that pervades the leaves and younger growths.

The Common Maple (Acer campestre, Linn.) is the only species indigenous to Great Britain. This and the Sycamore, or Great Maple, were described by Gerard in 1597, the latter as ‘a stranger to England.’

MAPLE, COMMON:
Botanical Name: Acer campestre
Though a native tree, Acer campestre is not often seen growing freely for the sake of its timber, being chiefly looked upon as a valuable hedge-tree, and is therefore frequently found in hedgerows.
When growing alone it is a small tree, seldom attaining more than 20 feet, but the wood is compact, of a fine grain, sometimes beautifully veined and takes a high polish. For this reason, it is highly praised by the cabinet-maker and has always been used much for tables, also for inlaying, and is frequently employed for violin cases. The wood makes excellent fuel and affords very good charcoal.

The wood of the roots is often knotted and is valuable for small objects of cabinet-work.
The young shoots, being flexible and tough, are employed in France as whips.
Sap drawn from the trees in spring yields a certain amount of sug.

MAPLE, BIRD’S EYE :-
Botanical Name:Acer saccharinum (LINN.)
Acer saccharinum (Linn.), the Sugar or Bird’s Eye Maple, is an American species, introduced into Britain in 1735.
It bears a considerable resemblance to the Norway Maple, especially when young, but is not so hardy here as our native Maple and requires a sheltered situation.

So far it has only been grown as an ornamental tree, the vivid colours of its foliage in winter ranging from bright orange to dark crimson. Sometimes it attains a height of 70, or even 100 feet, though more commonly it does not exceed 50 or 60 feet. It is remarkable for the whiteness of its bark.

Where the tree is plentiful in America, the timber is much used for fuel and is extensively employed for house-building and furniture, used instead of Oak when the latter is scarce, being also employed for axletrees and spokes, as well as for Windsor chairs, shoe-lasts, etc. The wood is white, but acquires a rosy tinge after exposure to light. The grain is fine and close and when polished has a silky lustre.

The wood of old trees is valued for inlaying mahogany. The name ‘Bird’s Eye Maple’ refers to the twisting of the silver grain, which produces numerous knots like the eyes of birds. Considerable quantities of this Maple are imported from Canada for cabinetmaking.

The wood forms excellent fuel and charcoal, while the ashes are rich in alkaline principles, furnishing a large proportion of the potash exported from Boston and New York.

Large quantities of sugar are made from the sap of this species of Maple. The sap is boiled and the syrup when reduced to a proper consistence is run into moulds to form cakes. Trees growing in moist and low situations afford the most sap, though the least proportion of sugar.

The trees are tapped in early spring, just before the foliage develops, either by making a notch in the stem, about 3 feet from the ground, with an axe, or by boring a hole about 2 inches deep and introducing a spout of sumach or elder, through which the sap flows into a trough below. The sap is purified and concentrated in a simple manner, the whole work being carried on by farmers, who themselves use much of the product for domestic and culinary purposes.

A cold north-west wind with frosty nights and sunny days tends to incite the flow, which is more abundant during the day than during the night. The flow ceases during a south-west wind and at the approach of a storm, and so sensitive are the trees to aspect and climatic variations that the flow of sap on the south and east sides has been noticed to be earlier than on the north and west sides of the same tree.

The sap continues flowing for five or six weeks, according to the temperature. A tree of average size yields 15 to 30 gallons of sap in a season, 4 gallons of sap giving about 1 Ib. of sugar. The tree is not at all injured by the tapping operation.

The quality of Maple Sugar is superior to that of West Indian cane sugar: it deposits less sediment when dissolved in water and has more the appearance of sugar candy.

The profits of the Sugar Maple do not arise from the sugar alone: it affords good molasses and excellent vinegar. The sap which is suitable for these purposes is obtained after that which supplies the sugar has ceased to flow.

MAPLE, GREAT:-

Botanical Name: Acer pseudo-Platanus (LINN.
Acer pseudo-Platanus (Linn.), the Sycamore or Great Maple (the Plane-tree of the Scotch), grows wild in Switzerland, Germany, Austria and Italy. It is remarkably hardy and will grow with an erect stem, exposed to the highest winds or to the sea-breezes, which it withstands better than most timber trees, being often planted near farmhouses and cottages in exposed localities for the sake of its dense foliage.
Description: It is a handsome tree, of quick growth, attaining a height of 50 or 60 feet in 50 years. Though not a native, it has been cultivated here for four or five centuries, and has become so naturalized that self-sown examples are common.

The timber was formerly much used by the turner for cups, bowls and pattern blocks; and is still in repute by the saddlemakers and the millwright, being soft, light and tough.

In spring and autumn, if the trunk is pierced, it yields an abundance of juice, from which a good wine has been made in the Highlands of Scotland. Sugar is to a certain extent procured from it by evaporation, but 1 ounce to 1 quart of sap is the largest amount of sugar obtainable.

The leaves may be dried and given to sheep in winter.

The lobed shape of its leaf and its dense foliage caused it to be confounded with the True Sycamore (Ficus sycamorus) of Scripture.

MAPLE, NORWAY:-
Botanical Name: Acer Platanoides

Acer Platanoides, the Norway Maple, grows on the mountains of the northern countries of Europe, descending in some parts of Norway to the seashore. It abounds in the north of Poland and Lithuania, and is common through Germany, Switzerland, and Savoy.
It was introduced into Great Britain in 1683. It is a quick grower and on a tolerable soil it attains a large size (from 40 to 70 feet).

Description: The leaves are smooth and of a shining green, as large or larger than those of the Sycamore, and are seldom eaten or defaced, because the tree is full of a sharp, milky juice disliked by insects. In the spring, when the flowers, which are of a fine yellow colour, are out, this tree has great beauty.

The wood is used for the same purposes as that of the Sycamore.

Sugar has been made from the sap in Norway and Sweden.

MAPLE, RED :-

Botanical: Acer rubrum (LINN.)
Synonyms:
Swamp Maple. Curled Maple.

Acer rubrum (Linn.), the Red or Swamp Maple, is another American species, a middle-sized tree, introduced here in 1656, but so far only cultivated in England as an ornamental tree, for the sake of its striking bright scarlet flowers, which appear before the leaves in March and April, its red fruit and leaves rendering it very attractive also in autumn.
The wood is applicable to many purposes, such as the seats of Windsor chairs, turnery, etc. The grain of very old trees is sometimes undulated, which has suggested the name of ‘Curled Maple’: this gives beautiful effects of light and shade on polished surfaces.

The most constant use of Curled Maple is for the stocks of fowling pieces and rifles, as it affords toughness and strength, combined with lightness and elegance, but on the whole the wood is considered inferior to that of the Bird’s Eye Maple, both in strength and as fuel.

Sugar has been made from the sap by the French Canadians, and also molasses, but the yield is only half as great as that from the Sugar Maple.

The inner bark is dusky red: on boiling, it yields a purple colour, which with sulphate of lead affords a black dye. It makes a good black ink.


Medicinal Action and Uses: The bark has astringent properties and has been used medicinally as an application for sore eyes, a use which the early settlers learnt from the Red Indians.

It occurs in long quilled pieces 6 to 12 inches or more in length, 1/4 to 3/4 inch wide, externally blackish brown, slightly polished, with innumerable fine transverse lines and scattered, brownish, warts. The inner bark is in very tough and fibrous layers, pale reddish brown or buff. The bark has an astringent and slightly bitter taste.

The CHINESE SUGAR MAPLE is Sorghum saccharatum (known also asAndropogon arundinaceus, var. saccharatus), a cane-like plant containing sugary sap, belonging to the Grass family Graminaceae.

It somewhat resembles Indian corn, or maize, from which it is distinguished by producing large heads of small grains.

It is cultivated in the United States to some extent as a forage crop, but is not used in the manufacture of sugar, owing to the difficulty of effecting its crystallization.

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Resources:
http://botanical.com/botanical/mgmh/m/maples14.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maple

http://www.supersodtrees.com/trees/maple/

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Fruits & Vegetables Herbs & Plants

Beetroot

Botanical Name::Beta vulgaris
Family: Amaranthaceae
Subfamily:Betoideae
Genus: Beta
Species: B. vulgaris
Kingdom: Plantae
Order: Caryophyllales

Synonyms: Spinach Beet. Sea Beet. Garden Beet. White Beet. Mangel Wurzel.
Parts Used: Leaves, root.
Habitat:Coasts of Europe, North Africa and Asia, as far as India, and is found in muddy maritime marshes in many parts of England,

Description: Beta vulgaris (Linn.) is a native of South Europe, extensively cultivated as an article of food and especially for the production of sugar, and presents many varieties.The plant is a tall & succulent plant, about 2 feet high, with large, fleshy, glossy leaves, angular stems and numerous leafy spikes of green flowers.foot.

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It is derived from the Sea Beet (B. maritima, Linn.), which grows wild on the coasts of Europe, North Africa and Asia, as far as India, and is found in muddy maritime marshes in many parts of England, a tall, succulent plant, about 2 feet high, with large, fleshy, glossy leaves, angular stems and numerous leafy spikes of green flowers, much like those of the Stinking Goosefoot.

The lower leaves, when boiled, are quite equal in taste to Spinach, and the leaf-stalks and midrib of a cultivated form, the Spinach Beet (B. vulgaris, var. cicla), are sometimes stewed, under the name of Swiss Chard (being the Poirée à Carde of the French, with whom it is served as Sea Kale or Asparagus). This white-rooted Beet is also cultivated for its leaves, which are put into soups, or used as spinach, and in France are often mixed with sorrel, to lessen its acidity. It is also largely used as a decorative plant for its large handsome leaves, blood red or variegated in colour. Its root, thoughcontaining almost as much sugar as the red Garden Beet, neither looks so appetizing nor tastes so well.

The Mangel Wurzel, or Mangold, also a variety of the Beet, too coarse for table use, is good for cattle, who thrive excellently upon this diet, both its leaves and roots affording an abundance of valuable and nutritious food.

In its uncultivated form, the root of the Sea Beet is coarse and unfit for food, nor has any use been made of the plant medicinally, but the Garden Beet has been cultivated from very remote times as a salad plant and for general use as a vegetable. It was so appreciated by the ancients, that it is recorded that it was offered on silver to Apollo in his temple at Delphi.

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Constituents:Contains Sodium benzoate, methylparaben, sorbic acid. The root contains about a tenth portion of pure sugar, which is one of the glucoses or fruit sugars and is very wholesome. It is softer than cane sugar and does not crystallize as well as the latter. There is a treacle principle in it, but this renders it all the more nutritious. Canesugar has to be converted by the digestive juices into fruit sugar, before the body can absorb it, but the sugar present in the Beetroot is already in the more easily assimilated form, thus making the Beet a valuable food. Its sugar is a force-giver and an energy creator, a source of vitality to the human body. Besides its tenth portion of pure sugar, Beetroot has as much as a third of its weight in starch and gum.

The Beet makes an appetizing vegetable, plain boiled, stewed, or baked and a good pickle, and in Russia forms an appetizing soup – called Bortsch – the red root in this case being made to exude all its juice into a rich, white stock.

A pleasant wine can be made from the roots and an equally good domestic ale has also been brewed from Mangolds. A considerable amount of alcohol can be obtained by distillation.

Although modern medicine disregards the Beet, of old it was considered to have distinct remedial properties.

Benefits of Beet Root:

*Beetroot provides a good source of anthocyanadins, a natural antioxidant that contributes to its deep red colour

*Extract is a natural source of vitamins and minerals

*Beetroot is used traditionally as a blood building food

*Beetroot may aid the natural process of elimination and support detoxification processes

*Beetroot has liver, spleen, gall bladder and kidney cleansing properties

*Beetroot is particularly rich in Vitamin C, calcium, phosphorus and iron

*The iron contained in beetroot is organic and non-irritating and will not cause constipation

*Beetroot is useful in acidosis due to it being rich in alkaline elements

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Medicinal Action and Uses: The juice of the White Beet was stated to be ‘of a cleansing, digestive quality,’ to open obstructions of the liver and spleen, and, says Culpepper, ‘good for the headache and swimmings therein and all affections of the brain.’ Also,’effectual against all venomous creatures and applied upon the temples, it stayeth inflammations in the eyes, it helpeth burnings, being used without oil and with a little alum put to it is good for St. Anthonys Fire. It is good for all weals, pushes, blisters and blains in the skin: the decoction in water and vinegar healeth the itch if bathed therewith and cleanseth the head of dandriff, scurf and dry scabs and relieves running sores and ulcers and is much commended against baldness and shedding the hair.’
The juice of the Red Beetroot was recommended ‘to stay the bloody flux’ and ‘to help the yellow jaundice,’ also the juice ‘put into the nostrils, purgeth the head, helpeth the noise in the ears and the toothache.’

The Sugar Beet, or White Beet, is a selected form of the ordinary red-rooted Garden Beet and is now the chief source of our sugar; as food for animals, it has been preferred to turnips and carrots.

The root contains about a 10% fructose and about 30% by weight of starch and gum. The juice of the red beetroot was traditionally used for its astringent and antiseptic properties.

Primary chemical constituents of Beet Root include saponiside, phytosterol, betaine, leucine, tyrosine, betacyanin, beta carotene, manganese, potassium, and iron.
Beet Root powder is a very popular colouring agent for use in soaps and cosmetic products. The colour is due to Betanin.

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Augaherb Beetroot AG:
In addition to its use as a colouring agent the rich antioxidant and silicon content of beetroot helps strengthen connective tissue and supports overall skin health.
Carrier: Monopropylene glycol/ water.

About 1760, the Berlin apothecary Marggraff obtained in his laboratory by means of alcohol, 6.2 per cent. of sugar from a white variety of Beet and 4.5 per cent. from a red variety. At the present day, as a result of careful study of many years, improvement of cultivation, careful selection of seed and suitable manuring, especially with nitrate of soda, the average Beet worked up contains 7 per cent. of fibre and 92 per cent. of juice. The average yield of its weight in sugar was stated in 1910 to be 12.79 per cent. in Germany and 11.6 per cent. in France.

Resources:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beetroot

http://botanical.com/botanical/mgmh/b/beetro28.html
http://www.augustus-oils.ltd.uk/products/herb%20monographs.htm

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