sida

[ Gr.side =(1) a pomegranate tree, (2) a water plant, perhaps a water lily.] Bot. The typical genus of Sidere (q. v.). Calyx cup-shaped, five-cleft, valvate; petals five; stamens and styles many, the former in a columnar tube, the latter more or le united at the base; capsule few or many-celled, each cell with one roundish, flattened, suspended seed. It contains about 200 herbs and shrubs, from the warmer parts of the world. Sida rhombi folia , S. rhomboidea , S. cord i folia , S. carp in i folia , S. abutila , S. til iæfolia , ., have delicate fibers, which may be used as a substitute for hemp and flax. The last species is cultivated for this purpose in China. The roots of S. cord i folia and S. acuta , mixed with rice, are given in India in dysentery; that of S. carp in i folia is prescribed in intermittent fevers, stomach complaints, .; those of S. lanceolata and S. spinosa are also medicinal. The leaves of S. acuta , S. retusa , and S. mauri tan i a are made into poultices, and the chewed leaves of S. carp in i folia are applied in Brazil to wasp-stings. sid-dow, adj. [Etym. doubtful.) Soft, pulpy. ( Prov.)