Mandragora
(the old Greek name used by Hippocrates). Mandrake. ORD. Solanaceae. A genus comprising three or four species of hardy perennial, almost stemless, herbs, with large thick roots, inhabiting the Mediterranean region. Flowers pale bluish-violet, whitish or purplish, large, reticulately veined; corolla campanulate, somewhat five-cleft; lobes rather broad, flat, imbricated. Berry globose. Primordial leaves of the stem abbreviated, sub-radical, petiolate, large, undulated or sinuate-toothed; older ones often narrower and entire. The species are chiefly of botanical interest, and scarcely merit a place in the garden. They thrive in a deep, light soil, and in a shady situation. Propagated by seeds, or by divisions of the root. M. autumnalis (autumnal). fl. violet-coloured, on pale purple scapes; corolla spreading. September. l. oblong, pilose, wrinkled, undulated, bristly on the upper surface. h. 6in. to 12in. South Europe, 1548. Supposed to be the Mandrake mentioned in the 30th chapter of Genesis. (S. B. F. G. ser. ii. 325.) M. officinalis (officinal). A synonym of M. vernalis. M. vernalis (spring).* Devil's Apples. fl. white or bluish. May. l. oblong-lanceolate and ovate, acute, 1ft. long, undulated. h. 1ft. South Europe, 1548.