190 AMONG THE WILD FLOWERS. 
Mercurialis, and the Box, Buxus, complete the 
Order. In Euphorbia the flowers are collected 
into moncecious heads surrounded by an invol- 
ucre with several divisions, between which are 
produced yellowish glands; in this involucre are 
contained one female and many male flowers ; 
the ovary of the female, with its 3 styles and 
bifid stigmas, hangs upon a long peduncle ; 
the males consist each of a single stamen upon 
a minute pedicel, mingled with scales; there is 
no perianth; the stamens do not attain ma- 
turity all at once, but in succession. In our 
plants the flowers are produced in umbels, 
except in Euphorbia Peplis, which has solitary 
flowers ; Au. /Telzoscopia, Sun Spurge, and Zu. 
Peplus, Petty Spurge, are garden weeds; £z. 
Exigua, Dwarf Spurge, is plentiful in corn- 
fields; Eu. Amygdalotdes, Wood-Spurge, fre- 
quent in woods and thickets; Au. Paratas, 
Sea Spurge, is found on shores, leaves cort- 
aceous, leathery, and closely imbricated; Zz. 
Lathyris, the Caper Spurge, is a handsome 
plant, frequently admitted into gardens, its 
capsules like Capers; there are in all 14 
species of Spurge; the plants abound in milky 
juice. The common Box-tree, Buus semper- 
