A nievve herball, or historie of plantes wherin is contayned the vvhole discourse and perfect description of all sortes of herbes and plantes: their diuers [and] sundry kindes: their straunge figures, fashions, and shapes: their names, natures, operations, and vertues: and that not onely of those whiche are here growyng in this our countrie of Englande, but of all others also of forrayne realmes, commonly vsed in physicke. First set foorth in the Doutche or Almaigne tongue, by that learned D. Rembert Dodoens, physition to the Emperour: and nowe first translated out of French into English, by Henry Lyte Esquyer.

Of Horminum / wilde Clarey / or Oculus Christi. Chap. lxxx.

❀ The Kindes.

THere be two sortes of Horminum, as Dioscorides writeth, the garden and wilde Horminum.

[illustration]

Horminum satiuum. Dubble Clarey.

[illustration]

Horminum syluestre. Oculus Christi.

❀ The Description.

THe garden Horminum hath leaues in a maner rounde, and somewhat ouerlayde with a softe Cotton, almost like Horehounde. The stalkes be square and hearie of the heigth of a foote, bearing all aboue at the top, fiue or sixe fayre small leaues of a blewish purple colour: the leaues stand at euery ioynte, one against an other, amongst the whiche there commeth forth little huskes, that bring forth purplish blew floures. The which whan the seede beginneth to waxe ripe, they turne towardes the grounde, and hang downe∣wardes, hauing in them blacke seede and somewhat long, the whiche whan it is a little while soked or steeped in any licour, it waxeth clammy or slimie, al∣most like to the kernelles of Quinces.

The wilde Horminum beareth great, broade leaues, gasht, or natched roūd

aboute. The stalkes also be square, and somewhat hearie, but yet they be lon∣ger and bigger than the stalkes of the garden Horminum. The floures be of a deepe blew colour, and do also grow by certayne spaces aboute the stemme like to whorles or Crownettes, out of little huskes, whiche do also turne downe∣wardes whan the seede is ripe, the seede is of a dunne or blackishe colour, round, & also slymie whan it is steeped or sooked. The roote is of wooddie sub∣stance, and blacke.

These twoo herbes haue no speciall sauour, especially the garden kinde: for the floures of the wilde kinde do sauour somewhat like to Clarey.

❀ The Place.

These two kindes are founde in this countrie, sowen in the gardens of Her∣boristes.

❧ The Tyme.

They yeelde their floures in Iune, Iuly and August, in the whiche season their seede is also ripe.

❀ The Names.

This herbe is called in Greeke 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉: in Latine Horminum and Geminalis.

[ 1] The first is called Horminum satiuum, and Hortense. The seconde Hormi∣num syluestre: they may be both called wilde Clarie, some call thē dubble Cla∣rey, and some Oculi Christi.

❀ The Nature.

Horminum is of complexion hoate and dry.

❧ The Vertues.

[ A] The seede of Horminum mengled with Hony driueth away the dimnesse of the sight, and clarifieth the eyes.

[ B] The same seede with water stamped and tempered togither, draweth out thornes and splinters, and resolueth or scattereth all sortes of swellings, being layde or applied thereto. The same vertue hath the greene herbe whan it is stamped or brused and layde vpon.

[ C] The same seede dronken with wine stirreth vp bodely luste, especially the seede of the wilde kinde, which is of greater efficacie, than the seede of garden Horminum.