Quassia
(a name applied by Linnaeus to a tree of Surinam, in honour of a negro, Quassi or Coissi, who employed its bark as a remedy for fever). ORD. Simarubeae. A monotypic genus, the species being a lofty, stove tree, more curious than beautiful, and in appearance similar to the common Ash. It thrives in a compost of rich, sandy loam and leaf mould. Propagated by cuttings, made of ripe shoots, and inserted in sand, under a bell glass, in heat.
Q. amara (bitter). fl. scarlet, large, tubulose, arranged in terminal clusters. l. alternate, impari-pinnate; petioles winged; leaflets opposite, entire. h. 20ft. Tropical America, 1790. The wood of this tree is destitute of smell, but has an intensely bitter taste, on which account it was used as a tonic; the root and the bark have also been considered valuable remedies in dysentery. (B. M. 497.)
