Colchicum

Colchicum, a genus of Liliaceæ, sub-order Melanthaceæ. The species, which are few in number, are stemless, with flowers half subterranean like the crocus, the limb of the perianth and part of the tube only rising above ground. The flowers much resemble crocus-flowers, but are readily distinguished by having six instead of three stamens, and three styles instead of one. The superior ovary does not remain to ripen underground, but after the flowering is over, rises in the form of three little follicles slightly adhering to each other, on a lengthened stalk. The only British species is C. autumnale, the Meadow Saffron, sometimes also, but incorrectly, named Autumn Crocus, which is plentiful in meadows and pastures in some parts of England and of the continent of Europe. The flowers are pale purple; they appear in autumn, unaccompanied by any leaves; the leaves, which are large and broadly lanceolate, appear in spring, when the stalk which bears the ripening fruit arises amongst them. The whole plant is very acrid and poisonous, chiefly owing to the presence of an alkaloid called Colchicine or Colchicia. Cattle are not unfrequently injured by it in pastures where it abounds. It is a valuable medicinal plant, and is administered, in small doses, to allay the pain of gout and rheumatism. Repeated doses produce vomiting, purging, increase of the urinary secretion, and profuse perspiration. The parts chiefly used for medicinal purposes are the corm (popularly called the root) and the seeds. The seeds are round, brown, rather larger than mustard-seed. Other species of colchicum appear to possess similar properties. The hermodactyls of the druggists' shops, which for many centuries have enjoyed an extensive celebrity for soothing pains in the joints, and are brought from the Levant, are believed to be the corms either of C. variegatum or C. bulbocodioides. C. autumnale is not unfrequent in flower-borders, particularly a variety with double flowers.