PLUMBAGO FAMILY 167 



Vaccinium Msrrsinites. Similar to above species. 1-3 ft. 

 tall. Berries blue. Fla. to N. C. and La. 



Vacciniimi formosmn. Flowers rose-color, H in. long, ap- 

 pearing before the leaves. Berries black. Shrub 1-4 ft. 

 tall. Leaves elliptic or oblong, entire, 1-2 in. long. Swampy 

 places. Blooming in late winter and spring. Fla and Ga. 



Sparkleberry. Faekleberry {Batodendron arloreum 



{Vacdnium)) 



This shrub or small tree is very ornamental in bloom, 

 as the small white flowers are borne in a profusion of 

 racemes that suggest those of lily-of-the-valley. The nu- 

 merous evergreen leaves, one to two inches long, are entire, 

 and are usually broadest near the apex. The berries are 

 black. It blooms in thickets and woods in the peninsula 

 in early spring, and is especially abundant in northern 

 Florida. 



BucKBERRY (Polycodium caesium (Vaccinium)) 



Buckberry, locally called gooseberry, a shrub two to five 

 feet tall, is frequently seen in thickets. It bears in spring 

 leafy-bracted racemes of white blossoms in which the 

 corolla is so very short that the ten stamens are left naked, 

 and with their long anthers protrude in a cluster from the 

 flower, instead of being included in the corolla as in other 

 species of the family. The thin oblong or oval leaves are 

 about an inch in length. The berries are greenish. 



PLUMBAGO FAMILY {Plumlagimceae) 



The cultivated plumbago is often seen about Florida 

 homes, but southern Florida has a wild plumbago. Plum- 

 bago scandens, which, though less showy, is similar to it. 



