Asparagus, sperage, vulgarly, sparrow-grass; a genus of plants. That which is cultivated in gardens, has an upright herbaceous stalk, bristly leaves, and equal stipulas. The roots have a bitterish mucilaginous taste; and the stalk is, in some degree, aperient and deobstruent, but not very efficacious.
Word of the Day: Catachrestical
1. A genus of perennial plants belonging to the natural order Liliaceae, and having erect much branched stems, and very slender branchlets which are sometimes mistaken for leaves. Asparagus racemosus is a shrubby climbing plant with fragrant flowers. Specifically: The Asparagus officinalis, a species cultivated in gardens.
2. The young and tender shoots of A. officinalis, which form a valuable and well-known article of food.
Asparagus
Encyclopedia Britannica
ASPARAGUS. The young shoots of Asparagus officinalis (Nat. Ord. Liliace<x) have from very remote times been in high repute as a culinary vegetable, owing to their delicate flavour and diuretic virtues. The plant grows wild on the south coast of England; and on the waste steppes of Russia it is so abundant that it is eaten by cattle like grass. In common with the marsh-mallow and some other plants, it contains a chemical principle called asparagin, to which it owes its medicinal qualities. The roots of asparagus were formerly used as an aperient medicine, and the fruits were likewise employed as a diuretic. Under the name of Prussian asparagus, the spikes of an allied plant, Ornitho-galuĻn pyrenaicum, are used in some places.
9th ed. Encyclopædia Britannica, vol. 2, p. 714
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[126 words — estimated reading time: 1 minute]
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