Holly, Yew and Box 



- . . 



folium ; the curious five or seven spined leaves 

 of I. cornuta ; the tiny, crenate leaves of 

 I. crenata ; the large, ornamental foliage of I. 

 latifolia ; the long, narrow leaves of I. dipyrena ; 

 the spineless foliage of I. integra, and so on. 

 Neither is this difference in form, shape and spiny- 

 ness noticeable between species only, for varieties 

 of some species show quite as much variation as 

 do the typical species above mentioned. 



The flowers do not exhibit any great difference 

 in the various species. They are borne from the 

 leaf axils, are white or cream in colour, usually 

 fragrant, and may be monoecious, dioecious, or 

 hermaphrodite. The flowering period is from 

 April to June, though it is not unusual for a very 

 light, second crop of bloom to be produced during 

 July or even later. 



The fruits are more or less globose, often 

 bright red in colour, though sometimes deep red, 

 purple, black or yellow, and they usually contain 

 three or four triangular, hard coated, deeply 

 furrowed seeds. The normal number of seeds in 

 most of the evergreen Hollies is four in each 

 fruit, though in one or two species this number 

 is reduced to from one to three. In the deciduous, 

 or Prinos set, six seeds are usually found in each 

 fruit. Although the normal number is four in 

 the " Common Holly," it not unfrequently happens 

 that some are undeveloped, whilst many of those 

 that appear fully matured are unfertile. On 



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