The Collaborative International Dictionary
Gentian \Gen"tian\ (j[e^]n"shan or j[e^]n"sh[i^]*an), n. [OE. genciane, F. gentiane, L. gentiana, fr. Gentius, an Illyrian king, said to have discovered its properties.] (Bot.) Any one of a genus ( Gentiana) of herbaceous plants with opposite leaves and a tubular four- or five-lobed corolla, usually blue, but sometimes white, yellow, or red. See Illust. of Capsule.
Note: Many species are found on the highest mountains of Europe, Asia, and America, and some are prized for their beauty, as the Alpine ( Gentiana verna, Gentiana Bavarica, and Gentiana excisa), and the American fringed gentians ( Gentiana crinita and Gentiana detonsa). Several are used as tonics, especially the bitter roots of Gentiana lutea, the officinal gentian of the pharmacopoeias.
Horse gentian, fever root.
Yellow gentian (Bot.), the officinal gentian ( Gentiana lutea). See Bitterwort.
Wikipedia
Yellow gentian is a common name for several plants in the genus Gentiana and may refer to:
- Gentiana alba, native to North America
- Gentiana lutea, native to Europe and used in herbal bitters
Usage examples of "yellow gentian".
When sliced longitudinally they have been put on the market as American Gentian, and when fresh, their properties closely resemble Gentiana Lutea, the European Yellow Gentian.
BITTER ROOT is also a common name of Gentiana lutea, or Yellow Gentian, the wellknown bitter, and of Lewisia rediviva or Spathulum, with a starchy, edible root.