Sium. Sium cicutaefolium.
Sium.—Sium cicutaefolium Schrank (Fam. Umbelliferae), which grows in British America and the United States, particularly along the water courses of the valleys of the Pacific slope, and is the hemlock water parsnip of this country, is positively asserted to be poisonous. A. R. Porter and N. Rogers (A. J. P., 1876, 348, 483) found in it an active resinous body, toxic to animals. Oil of Sium cicutaefolium is stated by Rabak to be found in the plant in the proportion of 0.5 per cent. It is yellow and has an odor resembling that of caraway. (Mid. Druggist, 1905, 5.) S. Sisarum L., or skirret, a plant of Chinese origin, cultivated in Europe, has a sweetish, somewhat aromatic root. The latter is used in much the same manner as the oyster plant and parsnip. It is supposed to be a useful diet in chest complaints.
