OLEACEAE 



245 



become spinelike. The leaves are ovate to oblong, acuminate 

 or acute at both ends, finely toothed on the margins, 1 to 4 

 inches long by 1/^ to 2 inches wide, and stand on slender petioles 

 one-third to two-thirds inch long. 



The flowers are of two kinds, the staminate occurring in 

 fascicles and the pistillate in short panicles. There usually is 



FIG. 64 

 Forestiera acuminata 



no calyx and no corolla, but in the staminate flowers there are 

 4 stamens with bright yellow anthers, which are seldom present 

 in the fertile flowers. The flowering period is from late April 

 into May, and the dark blue to purple fruit ripens in June and 

 July and falls as soon as it is mature. It is oblong to ovoid, 

 acute at the tip, crowned with the remnants of the style, and 

 1 to 1 14 inches long by about 1/; inch thick, with thin dry flesh 

 covering a single striated seed. 



Distribution. — The Swamp Privet inhabits the borders of 

 streams and swamps in low, moist soil from southern Indiana 

 to Arkansas and south to Georgia and Texas. In Illinois, its 

 distribution follows the tributary and large river valleys around 

 the southern part of the state from Lawrence County in the 

 east to Pike County in the west and up the Illinois River at 



