Catalogue of Economic Plants in the Collection of the U. S. Department of Agriculture   By: William Saunders (1822-1900)

CATALOGUE

OF

ECONOMIC PLANTS

IN THE COLLECTION OF THE

U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE.

BY WILLIAM SAUNDERS.

PUBLISHED BY AUTHORITY OF THE SECRETARY OF AGRICULTURE.

WASHINGTON: GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE. 1891.

Transcriber's Note

Variant and obsolete spellings remain as printed. Minor typographical errors have been corrected without note, whilst more significant amendments have been listed at the end of the text. The oe ligature is shown as [oe].

CATALOGUE OF ECONOMIC PLANTS IN THE COLLECTION OF THE U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE.

U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE, Washington, D. C., June 5, 1891.

SIR: I have duly prepared by your direction a descriptive list of the more important economic plants at present contained in the collection of the Department, in such a form as will, in my opinion, most satisfactorily meet the wants of the numerous visitors and others interested in the work performed by the Department in this direction, and I beg to submit the same herewith for publication.

WILLIAM SAUNDERS, Superintendent of Gardens and Grounds. Hon. J. M. RUSK, Secretary of Agriculture.

DESCRIPTIVE CATALOGUE OF PLANTS.

1. ABELMOSCHUS MOSCHATUS. This plant is a native of Bengal. Its seeds were formerly mixed with hair powder, and are still used to perfume pomatum. The Arabs mix them with their coffee berries. In the West Indies the bruised seeds, steeped in rum, are used, both externally and internally, as a cure for snake bites.

2. ABRUS PRECATORIUS. Wild liquorice. This twining, leguminous plant is a native of the East, but is now found in the West Indies and other tropical regions. It is chiefly remarkable for its small oval seeds, which are of a brilliant scarlet color, with a black scar at the place where they are attached to the pods. These seeds are much used for necklaces and other ornamental purposes, and are employed in India as a standard of weight, under the name of Rati. The weight of the famous Kohinoor diamond is known to have been ascertained in this way. The roots afford liquorice, which is extracted in the same manner as that from the true Spanish liquorice plant, the Glycyrrhiza glabra . Recently the claim was made that the weather could be foretold by certain movements of the leaves of this plant, but experimental tests have proved its fallacy.

3. ABUTILON INDICUM. This plant furnishes fiber fit for the manufacture of ropes. Its leaves contain a large quantity of mucilage.

4. ABUTILON VENOSUM. This malvaceous plant is common in collections, as are others of the genus. They are mostly fiber producing species. The flowers of A. esculentum are used as a vegetable in Brazil.

5. ACACIA BRASILIENSIS. This plant furnishes the Brazil wood, which yields a red or crimson dye, and is used for dyeing silks. The best quality is that received from Pernambuco.