DROPWORT  , in

botany, the common name for a species of Spiraea, S. filipendula (nat. ord . Rosaceae) , found in dry pastures . It is a perennial herb, with much divided radical leaves and an erect stem 2 to 3 ft. high bearing a loose terminal inflorescence of small white flowers, closely resembling those of the nearly allied species S . Ulmaria, or meadowsweet . Water Dropwort, Oenanthe crocata (nat. ord . Umbelliferae), is a tall herbaceous plant growing in marshes and ditches . The stem, which springs from a cluster of thickened roots, is stout, branched, hollow and 2 to 5 ft. high; the leaves are large and pinnately divided, and the flowers are borne in a compound umbel, the long rays bearing dense partial umbels of small white flowers . The plant, which is very poisonous, is often mistaken for celery .