ROSE TRIBE. 179 



are now included the three following varieties, which 

 were formerly considered to be distinct species. P. 

 spinosa (Sloe, or Blackthorn). Branches very thorny ; 

 leaves narrow, elliptical, smooth above, slightly downy 

 near the midrib below ; flowers mostly solitary. "Woods 

 and hedges; abundant. A well-known thorny bush, 

 which probably derived its name Blackthorn from the 

 hue of its bark, which is much darker than that of the 

 Hawthorn. The flowers appear in March and April, and 

 usually before the leaves have begun to expand. The 

 latter are used to adulterate tea. The fruit is small, 

 nearly round, and so austere that a single drop of its 

 juice placed on the tongue will produce a roughness on 

 the throat and palate which is perceptible for a long 

 time. It enters largely into the composition of spurious 

 port wine. Fl. March May. Shrub : P. insititia 

 (Bullace). Branches ending in a thorn ; leaves elliptical, 

 downy beneath ; flowers in pairs. Woods and hedges. 

 Larger than the last, and producing a more palatable 

 fruit. In P. domestica (Wild Plum), the branches are 

 thornless, and the fruit oblong. From one or other of 

 these three all the cultivated varieties of Plum are sup- 

 posed to have originated. Fl. April, May. Small tree, 



** Fruit without bloom ; young leaf with the halves 

 folded together. 



2. P. Padus (Bird-Cherry). Flowers in clusters ; 

 leaves narrow egg-shaped ; fruit oblong. A handsome 

 shrub, or small tree, not uncommon in the north of 

 England in a wild state, and very generally admitted 

 into gardens and shrubberies elsewhere. The clusters 

 of flowers and drupes are not unlike those of the Por- 

 tugal Laurel, but the leaves are not evergreen. Fl. 

 white, May. Small tree. 



3. P. dvium (Wild Cherry). Flowers in umbels; 

 leaves drooping, suddenly pointed, downy beneath ; 

 calyx-tube contracted above ; fruit heart-shaped. 



ft 2 



