THE COENEL OR DOGWOOD FAMILY 297 



other rQonoecious plants, the pistillate flowers mature before 

 the staminate ones, and so cross-pollination is inevitable. 



Genus Gunnera. 



Creeping herbs, with small, inconspicuous flowers. Sepals 2 or 3 ; petals 2, 

 3, or ; stamens 2 or 3. Ovule solitary. Fruit a small drupe. The New 

 Zealand species have no petals. (Named after Gunner, a Swedish bishop and 

 botanist). 



Gunner'a monoica {The Solitary Gunnera). 



Tufted, creeping. Leaves J in.-§ in. across, crenate, kidney-shaped. Flowers 

 in slender panicles. Perianth of two narrow segments ; stamens 2. Drupe 

 3^ in. long. Both islands. PL Oct. -Nov. 



Cornaceae. 



The Cornel or Dogwood Family. 



Distribution. — A small and unimportant family, chiefly found in temperate 

 regions. Aucuha japonica, the variegated laurel, and the Cornelian Cherry, 

 Cornus vias, are cultivated in gardens. Two or three of the species are said to 

 possess tonic properties. 



Key to the Genera. 



Leaves white underneath. Flowers perfect. Corokia, p. 297. 



Leaves glossy. Flowers unisexual. Griselinia, p. 298. 



Genus CoroMa. 



Shrubs or trees, wth alternate leaves, silvery beneath. Calyx 5-toothed. 

 Petals, 5, silky, yellow. Stamens, 5. This small genus is peculiar to New 

 Zealand and the Chatham Islands. (Name from the Maori). 8 sp. 



Corokia buddleoides {The Buddleia-like Corokia). 



A small tree, with long narrow leaves, shining above, and downy beneath. 

 Flowers in slender panicles. Corolla Jin. long, yellow. Drupe, orange-red. 



