Chamomile

Chamomile, or Camomile (Anthemis nobilis), one of the Compositae, a native of Britain and southern Europe, largely cultivated in Surrey and on the Continent for medicinal purposes. Its leaves are downy and much divided, and under cultivation all the florets tend to become white and strap-shaped. It contains a tonic bitter principle and a pale blue aromatic essential oil, both these substances existing in larger quantities in the yellow central florets of the wild form. An infusion of the flower-heads is used as a stomachic.