THE LIGNEOUS PLANTS OF HAMPSHIRE. 365 



SoLANACE/E. — The Woody Nightshade, or Bitter-Sweet {Sol- 

 arium Dulcamara). — Common in hedges and thickets, climbing 

 amongst the branches. The bright scarlet berries are poisonous, 

 and have frequently been eaten by children with fatal effect. 



Myricace^. — -The Sweet Gale, Bog or Dutch Myrtle {Myrica 

 Gale).— The "Gold Withy" of the New Forest, where.it is 

 plentiful ; also in boggy places in different parts of the county. 

 Formerly used as a substitute for hops, but now of no economic 

 use, although perhaps its agreeably pungent smell may assist in 

 correcting the malaria arising from the bogs which it inhabits. 



LiLiACE.E. — The Butcher's Broom (Ruscus aculeatus) is the 

 " knee-holm " or " knee-holly " of the New Forest, as it seldom 

 rises higher than the knee. Frequent in woods, at the foot of 

 trees, in a gravelly soil. The berry is larger than that of the 

 common holly, and is of a beautiful scarlet. 



CoRNACE^. — The Wild Cornel or Dogwood (Cornus sanguinea). 

 — Widely distributed throughout the county, especially on the 

 chalk. It is of little economic value. 



Caprifoliace^e. — The Common Elder {Samhiicus nigra). — In 

 hedges everywhere, sometimes with yellow berries. 



The Dwarf Elder or Dane- wort (*S'. Ebulus). — Found in waste 

 groimd, not plentiful ; near Lyndhurst in the New Forest, and in 

 a meadow near the old Priory of Wherwell. 



The Wayfaring tree, or "Copse Elder" of Hants {Viburnum 

 Lantana), is frequent by roadsides on the chalk. 



The Guelder-rose (F. Opulus). — Plentiful in coppices and damp 

 moorish pastures. 



The Honeysuckle, or Woodbine {Lonicera Fericlymemiin). — 

 This is common in woods and hedges, ascending trees to a 

 considerable height. It has the sweetest scent of all our wild 

 flowering shrubs, and is the only ppecies found in this county. 



ARALiACEiE. — The Ivy {lledera Helix). — Found everywhere in 

 waste places, hedges, coppices ; on buildings, and ascending to a 

 great height on trees. On a Lombardy poplar I have seen it 

 attaining a height of 90 feet. There are two charges against the 

 ivy — namely, that it induces damp in the walls of houses (this is 

 now admitted not to be the case) ; the other, that it retards, or is 

 destructive of the growth of trees, of which much has been 

 written, but it seems difficult to pronounce either one way or 

 another. Twenty-four years ago, in Queen's Mead Wood, in the 

 New Forest, I measured the stem of an ivy which had ascended a 

 vol. XII., PART II. 2 A 



