250 



POISONING. 



a great variet}' of common names, the most important of which are 

 laurel and iv^. The latter name is most commonly used south of Mary- 

 land. Scores of cattle and sheep are poisoned annually by eating the 

 plant. It is pro])a1)ly the most dangerous of all the shrubs belonging 

 to the heath family. 



* Leucothoe catesbaei. — This is the branch ivy, hemlock, or calf-kill, 



Fig. 106. — Staggerbush (Pieris mari- 

 ana), showing flowering branch, 

 one-third natural size. 



Fig. 107. — Great laurel {Ithododcndron maxi- 

 mum). (7, Flowering branch ; b, fruiting 

 capsules — both one-third natural size. 



of the Allegheny Mountains. It is well known in that region to be fatal 

 to all kinds of stock. 



* Leucothoe racemosa. — The swamp Leiicothoi' of the Atlantic and 

 Gulf States has l)een reported from New' Jersey as especially fatal to 

 calves. 



* Pieris mariana. — The stagger bush of the Atlantic Coast region, 

 Tennessee, and Arkansas is commonly know'ii to be poisonous to 

 calves and to sheep. The name stagger bush was applied to the 

 shrub on account of the peculiar intoxicating effect of the leaves. 



* Rhododendron californicum. — The California rhododendron is 



