Richard Folkard

Richard Folkard the younger gathered his material, by his own preface, while associated in the conduct of a journal of horticulture, and published it in London in 1884 as Plant Lore, Legends, and Lyrics: the myths, traditions, superstitions, and folk-lore of the plant kingdom, plant by plant. Read here in the Project Gutenberg text.

43 Entries in the Materia Medica

1. A
   AloeHere the aloe of John 19:39, with which, mixed with myrrh, Nicodemus anointed Christ’s bod
2. a
   The amulet herbsSee each above.
3. A
   Apples, syrup ofA syrup of sweet apples.
4. B
   BorageBorago officinalis.
5. C
   Cassia woodThe bark of Chinese cassia, Cinnamomum aromaticum (long known as Cinnamomum cassia); disti
6. C
   Cassia, flower ofThe sweet black pulp of the pods of Cassia fistula, the Indian laburnum; not the bark spic
7. C
   CinchonaThe bark of Cinchona trees of the Andes.
8. C
   CinquefoilPotentilla reptans.
9. C
   CorianderCoriandrum sativum, seed and leaf.
10. C
    CuminCuminum cyminum.
11. C
    Cyclamen, greaterSowbread, Cyclamen purpurascens or C. hederifolium, eaten by pigs, hence the name.
12. D
    DillAnethum graveolens.
13. D
    DittanyDittany of Crete, Origanum dictamnus, famous in antiquity for drawing out arrows.
14. E
    ElecampaneThe root of Inula helenium.
15. E
    EndiveCichorium endivia, the salad plant.
16. E
    EyebrightEuphrasia officinalis and relatives.
17. F
    FennelFoeniculum vulgare, seed and water.
18. F
    FigFicus carica.
19. G
    Gum arabicThe dried sap of Senegalia senegal and related acacias.
20. L
    LabdanumThe resin of the rockrose, Cistus ladanifer and C. creticus.
21. L
    Lesser bean-trefoilStinking bean trefoil, Anagyris foetida, a Mediterranean shrub. “Female bean trefoil” in t
22. M
    Mallow and marshmallowMalva sylvestris and Althaea officinalis.
23. M
    Masterwort and angelicaPeucedanum ostruthium and Angelica archangelica.
24. M
    Mint, oil ofOil of garden or spear mint.
25. M
    MotherwortLeonurus cardiaca, of the mint family, a tall, prickly-calyxed herb of waste ground.
26. M
    Mustard seedThe English follows the 1674 text as “mustard”; the 1660 printing, whose Italian is given
27. M
    MyrobalansThe dried fruits of Terminalia chebula, T. bellirica, and Phyllanthus emblica.
28. N
    Nasturtium, that is, garden cressGarden cress, Lepidium sativum. Not the flowering nasturtium (Tropaeolum) of modern garden
29. O
    Olive oil and holy waterFine olive oil; water blessed by the Church.
30. O
    Olive-wood ash lyeLye made by steeping the ash of olive wood in river water.
31. O
    Oxymel, and oxymel of squillHoney boiled with vinegar; the squill version adds the bulb of sea squill.
32. P
    PurslanePortulaca oleracea, a succulent, creeping herb of warm gardens.
33. R
    RadishGarden radish, Raphanus sativus (now classed by Kew as Raphanus raphanistrum subsp. sativu
34. R
    Round birthwortAristolochia rotunda.
35. S
    SavinJuniperus sabina, a low juniper.
36. S
    SpikenardThe root of Nardostachys jatamansi, a Himalayan valerian.
37. S
    Storax calamiteThe resin of Styrax officinalis, packed in reeds (calami) for export.
38. S
    Sweet almond, oil ofOil pressed from sweet almonds.
39. S
    Sweet flagAcorus calamus.
40. T
    TurpentineThe oleoresin of the larch (“Venice” turpentine) or of the terebinth (“Chian” turpentine).
41. V
    Violet, lettuce, sow-thistleSweet violet (Viola odorata), garden lettuce (Lactuca sativa), sow-thistle (Sonchus olerac
42. W
    White helleboreVeratrum album, false hellebore, of the family Melanthiaceae, unrelated to black hellebore
43. W
    Wild rueEither the wild form of Ruta graveolens or Syrian rue, Peganum harmala.

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