Asparagus officinalis
N.O. Liliacae
Asparagus
This
well-known table delicacy may be found wild on the sea-coast in the
South-west of England, especially near the Lizard, in the Isle of
Anglesea, otherwise it is a rare native. In the southern parts of
Russia and Poland the waste steppes are covered with this plant, which
is eaten by horses and cattle as grass. It is also common in Greece,
and was formerly much esteemed as a vegetable by the Greeks and Romans.
It
appears to have been cultivated in the time of Cato the Elder, 200
years B.C., and Pliny mentions a species that grew near Ravenna, of
which three heads would weigh a pound.
Asparagus is noticed by Gerard in 1597, and in 1670 forced Asparagus was supplied to the London market.
Medicinal Action and Uses.
The virtues of Asparagus are well known as a diuretic and laxative; and
for those of sedentary habits who suffer from symptoms of gravel, it
has been found very beneficial, as well as in cases of dropsy. The
fresh expressed juice is taken medicinally in tablespoonful doses.
Prussian
Asparagus, which is brought to some English markets, is not a species
of Asparagus at all, but consists of the spikes of Ornithogalum pyrenaicum, which grows abundantly in hedges and pastures (especially in the locality of Bath).
Culpepper tells us,
'The
decoction of the roots (Asparagus) boiled in wine, and taken is good to
clear the sight, and being held in the mouth easeth the toothache.' He
also tells us it helps those sinews that 'are shrunk by cramps and
convulsions, and helpeth the sciatica.'
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