Orobanchaceæ

Orobanchaceæ, or OROBANCHACEÆ, a natural order of parasitical herbs, generally with simple stems clothed with brown, purplish, yellow, or blue, but never green scales, instead of true leaves; terminating in a spike of flowers each in the axil of a scale or bract similar in colour and character to those of the stem. The species known considerably exceed one hundred in number, and are spread over the greater part of the globe, chiefly in temperate climates, but more abundant in the Old World than in the New. Eight species are natives of Britain, seven of which belong to the genus Orobancha (Broomrapes), and one species to Lathraea (Toothwort). In Britain they are all rather rare or purely local plants. High medicinal virtues formerly were ascribed to some of the species, especially to Epiphegus virginiana (see CANCER-ROOT), which are now discredited. With Phelipaea lutea the Egyptians dye the ropes made of the palm Hyphene thebaica black.