790 



Sweet Leaf 



the midrib prominent beneath. The fragrant flowers, which appear from March 

 to June, according to situation, are in nearly sessile, 5- to lo-flowered clusters, 

 enclosed in the bud by hairy fringed, orange-colored scales. The calyx is 2 to 2.5 

 mm. high, dark green, hairy and minutely 5-toothed; the corolla is light yellow, 

 6 to 8 mm. long, the 5 petals sHghtly united at the base, obovate or obovate- 

 spatulate, rounded at the apex; stamens many, their filaments united at the base 

 into 5 clusters; anthers orange-colored and exserted; ovary 3-cellcd, glandular, 

 style slender, club-shaped, exserted. The fruit is a drupe, oblong or ovoid, 10 to 

 14 mm. long, smooth and crowned by the persistent calyx-lobes and base of the 

 style; the flesh is thin and dryish; the stone containing a single ovoid pointed seed. 



Fig. 719. Sweet Leaf. 



The wood is soft, close-grained, reddish brown; its specific gravity is about 

 0.52. The leaves are eagerly eaten by cattle, especially in the autumn; the leaves 

 and bark yield a yellow dye. 



The generic name is Greek, in reference to the united filaments of some of the 

 species. The Japanese shrubby species, Symplocos cratcBgoides Buchanan, is 

 sparingly planted in America and Europe on account of its ornamental, bright 

 bluish, fleshy fruits; 5. martinicensis Jacquin of the West Indies is the type of 

 the genus. 



