[OE. fléawyrt, f. FLEA sb. + WORT.] A name given to various plants.
Amongst the plants that have been so called from their supposed virtues in destroying fleas are Inula Conyza and some species of Cineraria and Erigeron. Turner and many subsequent writers apply the name to Plantago Psyllium, the Lat. and Gr. names of which (Pulicaria, ψύλλιον) refer to the resemblance of the seeds to fleas.
c. 1000. Ags. Voc., in Wr.-Wülcker, 273/24. Parirus [? papirus], fleawyrt.
1548. Turner, Names of Herbes (1881), 65. It [Psyllium] may be called in english Flewurte.
1550. H. Llwyd, The Treasury of Health (1585), M vij b. A bath made of the decoction of flewort taketh away all goutes.
1597. Gerard, Herball, II. cxxiv. § 1. 390. Conyza maior, Great Fleawoort.
1601. Holland, Pliny, II. 239. Psyllium, Fleawort, is good for the vlcers thereof.
1756. Sir J. Hill, Herbal, 159. Fleawort, Psyllium, the flower is composed of four small oval petals.
1820. T. Green, Univ. Herbal, I. 304. Cineraria Integrifolia; Mountain Cineraria, or Fleawort. Ibid., I. 512. The old name of this plant [Erigeron Viscosum] is great sweet fleabane, or great fleawort.
1825. J. E. Smith, Eng. Flora, III. 443. Cineraria palustris, Marsh Flea-wort.
attrib. 1600. Surflet, Countrie Farme, I. xii. 61. For tumours vnder the eare, you must make a cataplasme of the flower of barlie, boyled in honied water, and putting thereto the muscilage of fleawort-seede and the oile of lillies.
