THE MELON AND CUCUMBER FAMILY 399 



Caprifoliaceae. 



The Honeysuckle Family. 



Distribution. — The Caprifoliaceae are natives chiefly of the northern parts 

 •of Europe, Asia, and America. They are more rare in the Southern Hemisphere. 

 Tlieir uses are unimportant, but many of the species are cultivated for the 

 beauty and fragrance of their flowers. The Guelder Rose, the Honeysuckle or 

 Woodbine, the Elder, the Snowberry, the Laurustinus, the Leycesteria, and the 

 Weigelia, all belong to this family. 



The only genus by which the family is represented in New Zealand is that of 

 Alseuosmia, which is endemic. 



Genus Alseuosmia. 



About 4 species, very difificult to determine on account of their variability. 

 Shrubs with alternate leaves, and fragrant, drooping flowers. Calyx 4-5-toothed ; 

 corolla 4-5-lobed ; stamens 4-5. Berry crimson, 2-celled. Minute tufts of 

 reddish hairs are produced in the leaf-axils. (From the Greek for a grove and a 

 sweet-smell, in reference to the delicious odour of the species). 



Alseuosmia macrophylla {The Large-leaved Alseuosmia). 



A shrub, 4 ft. -10 ft. in height. Leaves 3 in.-7-in. long, oblong, often glossy. 

 Flowers drooping, solitary, or in 1-3-flowered fascicles. Corolla 1^ in. long, 

 crimson. Berry Jin. long, crimson. Both islands: rare and local, Fl. 

 Oct. -Nov. 



Alseuosmia quercifolia {The Oak-leaved Alseuosmia). 

 A slender shrub. Leaves 1 in. -4 in. long, oblong or ovate-lanceolate, variable, 

 entire or lobed, almost membranous. Flowers solitary, or in fascicles of 3-6. 

 Corolla i in. -I in. long ; tube red, lobes greenish. Stigma often longer than the 

 petals. Both islands : rare and local. Fl. Oct. -Dec. 



Cucurbitaceae. 



The Melon and Cucumber Family. 



Distribution. — A large family, chiefly tropical. Many of the species 

 furnish fruits and vegetables, such as the Melon, Cucumber, and Pumpkin. The 

 plants contain a strong purgative, which, in some species, is so concentrated as 

 to render them poisonous ; in others, however, this substance is so diffused, 

 especially under cultivation, that the plants become useful as food. 



