THE PEACH. 1113
^ Cii a n.—Fruit tomentose (D. C. )
A small tree. Leaves lanceolate, serratep IG 205 or crenate, with or without glands. Flowers
roseate, large or small (see Loudon, Ency.of Gardening). Both flowers and kernelsexhale the bitter-almond odour.
Two varieties of the peach are usually made.These are admitted by Decandolle:—
o. Melters or Freestones .—Flesh separating fromthe stone.
$. Clingstones or Parties .—Flesh adherent to thestone.
The Nectarine (Persica leertis , Decand.) is distin-guished from the Peach by its smooth fruit. Thistrivial distinction leads many botanists to regardthem as varieties of the same species.
a hd EScription -— Peach leaves (folia persicte) have the peculiar odourf es t f Ste the fitter almond. The kernels (semina persicte ) closelyTh the latter, both in appearance and properties, but are smaller.dtyiif 0Wers [fores persicte) lose the greater part of their odour by
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<li S fn Ml : osiTION -—The leaves have not been analyzed. They yield, bytlia at ^ 0n » a volatile oil ( oleum folii persicte), which is yellow, heavier4 (J 0 > ^ater, and contains hydrocyanic acid (Gmelin, Handb. d. Chem. ii.(Bv ‘^ber eight years a crystalline substance was found on the water^ gnatelli ’ j4ww - Chi™- xcvi. 96). The non-ligneous extremities of thep e j of the peach-tree yielded Gauthier (Journ. de Pharm. xiii. 549) 1 -92B er Ce f t ' of very energetic volatile oil, which was heavier than water,in (Thomson, Org. Chem. 890) analyzed the juice of the peach, both*tj„ e ri Pe and unripe states: the constituents were, colouring matter,gum, vegetable fibre, albumen, malic acid, lime, and water.tlu trif YSl ° 1 ' 0G1CAL Effects. —The highly palatable flesh of the peach is(f ro a 10 . Us (on account of its sugar, gum, &c.), and slightly refrigeranttity . e fee malic acid which it contains). Taken in moderate quan-Tp e , ls wholesome, but if eaten too freely is apt to disorder the bowels.Betti erne ^> the blossoms, the leaves, and the bark, possess poisonous pro-bee^’ The flowers, as well as the leaves, in the form of infusion, have( Co ** to P^ge and destroy intestinal worms, especially in childrenriUpl e et Willemet, quoted by Murray, App. Med. iii. 245); but their(Moment has sometimes been attended with fatal results. Bertrandeigj 1 t Dler » TVirh. d. Arzneim. ii. Gifte. Bd. iv. S. 190) says, that a child,di arr J en months old, experienced convulsions, vomiting, and bloody(Chri s p a ’ ^° m the use of a strong decoction of the flowers; and Coullonha V i n S ° n ’ Treat, on Poisons, p. 726) states, that an elderly gentleman,hmgip h arta hen of a salad of the flowers, was seized with giddiness, violentthe a]; conv ulsions, and stupor, and died in three days. The irritation ofdeath Ttary canal, manifested by vomiting and purging, and the slowc y a nic t?tmguish the operation of peach-flowers from that of hydro-the p e ac / f t- The same author (Wibmer, op. supra cit.) also states, that^mathh^'hark proved injurious to a cock, and caused difficulty ofJ gj and purging.