Mesembryanthemum Crystallinum
The ice plant, so called in consequence of every part of the plant being covered with small watery pustules, which glisten in the sun like fragments of ice. Large quantities of this plant are collecte...
The ice plant, so called in
consequence of every part of the plant being covered with small
watery pustules, which glisten in the sun like fragments of ice.
Large quantities of this plant are collected in the Canaries and
burned, the ashes being sent to Spain for the use of glass makers.
_M. edule_ is called the Hottentot's fig, its fruit being about
the size of a small fig, and having a pleasant, acid taste when
ripe. _M. tortuosum_ possesses narcotic properties, and is chewed
by the Hottentots to induce intoxication. The fruits possess
hygrometric properties, the dried, shriveled, capsules swelling
out and opening so as to allow of the escape of the seeds when
moistened by rain, which at the same time fits the soil for their
germination.
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