Author: Monjauze, A.
Title: Le groupement à micocoulier (Celtis australis L.) en Algérie.
Description: Alger, Mémoires de la Société d'histoire naturelle de l'Afrique du Nord, 1958. 8vo. 75 pp., folded chart, seven photographic plates. Original printed wrappers. = A detailed, and well-illustrated treatise on the European nettle tree, also known as Mediterranean hackberry, lote tree, or honeyberry. "The tree can grow to 25 m in height, though 10 m is more common in cooler climates. The bark is smooth and grey, almost elephantine. The alternate leaves are narrow and sharp-toothed, rugose above and tomentose below, 5-15 cm long and dark grey/green throughout the year, fading to a pale yellow before falling in autumn. The apetalous wind-pollinated flowers are perfect hermaphrodite, having both male and female organs), small and green, either singly or in small clusters. The fruit is a small, dark-purple berry-like drupe, 1 cm wide, hanging in short clusters, and are extremely popular with birds and other wildlife...It is often planted as an ornamental as it is resistant to air pollution and long-living. The fruit of this tree is sweet and edible, and can be eaten raw or cooked. The leaves and fruit are astringent, lenitive and stomachic. Decoction of both leaves and fruit is used in the treatment of amenorrhoea, heavy menstrual and inter-menstrual bleeding and colic. The decoction can also be used to astringe the mucous membranes in the treatment of diarrhoea, dysentery and peptic ulcers. A yellow dye is obtained from the bark. The wood is very tough, pliable, durable and widely used by turners; the flexible thin shoots are used as walking sticks...Celtis australis is supposed to have been the Lotus of the ancients, whose fruit Herodotus, Dioscorides, and Theophrastus describe as sweet, pleasant, and wholesome. Homer has Ulysses refer to the "Lotus-eaters" and the "lotus" in Odyssey, Book IX. The fruit and its effects are described in Tennyson's poem The Lotos-Eaters." (Wikipedia). Uncut. Vague stamp on front wrapper and first text page lower margin, otherwise clean. A very good copy.

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