59^ TAXACE.E 



acute, leathery, about i in. long, polished above, lighter beneath, 

 in 2 rows on the twigs from a twisting of their bases ; staminate 

 ■flower oval, with 5 — 8 peltate anthers each 4 — 8-chambered, with 

 imbricate scales below; ovule solitary, terminal, erect, green, with 

 some scales below, surrounded later by a bright rose-red, fleshy, 

 cup-shaped aril, about | in. across. — Woods and hillsides, chiefly 

 on calcareous soil; frequent. The wood was formerly much 

 used for bows. The leaves have often proved fatal to cattle and 

 children ; but the aril, though insipid, is harmless. (Name, the 

 Classical Latin name.) — Fl. March, April. Perennial. 



* T. fastigidta (the Irish or Florence Court Yew), originally 

 found at Florence Court, Enniskillen, is a variety with erect, 

 fastigiate branches. 



