Of Staues aker.
The description.
Staues aker hath straight stalkes of a brown colour, with leaues clouen or cut into sundrie sections, almost like the leaues of the wild Vine. The flowers doe growe vpon short stems fashioned like vnto our common Monks hood, of a perfect blew colour; which being past, there succeede welted huskes like those of Wolfsbane, wherein is conteined triangled black seed. The root is of a wooddie substance, and perisheth when it hath perfected his seede. 1 Ricinus, Palma Christi, or Kik, hath a great round hollow stalke fiue cubits high, of a browne colour, died with a blewish purple vpon greene. The leaues are great and large, parted into sundrie sections or diuisions, fashioned like the leaues of a Figge tree, but greater, spred or wide open like the hand of a man; and hath toward the top a bunch of flowers, clustering togither like a bunch of grapes, whereof the lowest are of a pale yellow colour, & wither away without bearing any fruit; and the vppermost are reddish, bringing foorth three cornered huskes, which containe seede as big as a kidney beane, of the colour and shape of a certaine vermine which haunteth cattell, called a Tike. 2 This Palma Christi of America groweth vp to the height and bignes of a small tree, or hedge shrub, of a wooddie substance, whose fruit is expressed by the figure, being of the bignes of a great beane, somewhat long, of a blackish colour, rough and scalie.
The place.
It is with great difficulty preserued in our cold countries, albeit in some milde winters I haue kept it couered ouer with a little ferne to defend it from the iniurie of the March winde, which doth more harme vnto plants that come foorth of hot countries, than doth the greatest frostes. Ricinus or Palma Christi, groweth in my garden, and many other gardens likewise.
The time.
It flowreth in Iune, and the seede is ripe the second yeere of his sowing. Ricinus or Kik must be sowen in Aprill, and the seede is ripe in the end of August. The name, and cause thereof. Ricinus, whereof mention is made in the fourth chapter and sixt verse of the prophecie of Ionas, was called of the Talmudists, קיק Kik, for in the Talmud we reade thus, ולא בשמן קיק Velo beschemen kik: that is in English, And not with the oile of Kik; which oile is called in the Arabian toong Alkerua, as Rabbi Samuel the sonne of Hophni testifieth. Moreouer, a certaine Rabbine mooueth a question, saying, what is Kik? Hereunto Resch Lachish maketh answer in Ghemara, saying, Kik is nothing else but Ionas his Kikajon. And that this is true, it appeereth by that name Kiki, which the ancient Greeke phisicions, and the Aegyptians vsed; which Greeke word commeth of the Hebrew word Kik. Hereby it appeereth, that the old writers long ago, though vnwittingly, called this plant by his true and proper name. But the olde Latine writers knew it by the name Cucurbita, which euidently is manifested by an historie, which Saint Augustine recordeth in his Epistle to Saint Ierome, where in effect he writeth thus; That name Kikajon is of small moment, yet so small a matter caused a great tumult in Africa. For on a time a certaine Bishop hauing occasion to intreat of this which is mentioned in the fourth chapter of Ionas his prophecie (in a collation or sermon, which he made in his cathedrall church or place of assemblie) said, that this plant was called Cucurbita, a Gourde, bicause it increased vnto so great a quantitie in so short a space, or else (faith he) it is called Hedera. Vpon the noueltie and vntruth of his doctrine, the people were greatly offended, and thereof suddenly arose a great tumult and hurly burly; so that the Bishop was inforced to go to the Iewes, to aske their iudgement as touching the name of this plant. And when he had receiued of them the true name, which was Kikajon: he made his open recantation, and confessed his error, and was iustly accused for a falsifier of the holy scripture.
The names.
It is called in Greeke σταφὶς ἀγρία: in Latine Herba Pedicularis, and peduncularia, as Marcellus reporteth. Plinie in his 26. booke, 13. chap. seemeth to name it Vua Taminia: of some Pituitaria, and Passula montana: in shops Staphisagria: in Spanish Yerua piojenta: in French Herbe aux poux.
The temperature.
The seede of Palma Christi, or rather Kik, is hot and drie in the third degree.
The vertues.
A Ricinus his seede taken inwardly, openeth the bellie, and causeth vomit, drawing flimie flegm and choler from the places possessed therewith. B The broth of the meate supped vp, wherein the seede hath been sodden, is good for the collick and the gowte, and against the paine in the hips called Sciatica, it preuaileth also against the iaundise and dropsie. C The oile that is made or drawen from the seede, is called Oleum Cicinum: in shops it is called Oleum de Cherua: it heateth and drieth, as was said before, and is good to annoint and rub all rough hardnes and scuruineffe gotten by itch. D This oile, as Rabbi Dauid Chimchi writeth, is good against extreme coldnes of the bodie.
Text in Gerard's own spelling (the long s is printed as s), transcribed by the Source Library (CC BY-SA 4.0). A chapter may run onto pages not yet transcribed. Gerard wrote within Galenic medicine; nothing here is advice.