39 ILICACEAE. [VOL. II. 



Family 64. ILICACEAE Lowe, Fl. Mad. 2: n. 1868. 

 HOLLY FAMILY. 



Shrubs or trees, with watery sap, and alternate petioled simple often coriaceous 

 leaves. Flowers axillary, small, clustered or solitary, white, mainly polygamo- 

 dioecious, regular. Stipules minute and deciduous, or none. Calyx 3-6-parted, 

 generally persistent. Petals 4-6 (rarely more), separate, or slightly united at 

 the base, hypogynous, deciduous, imbricated. Stamens hypogynous, as many 

 as the petals, or sometimes more; anthers oblong, cordate. Disk none. Ovary 

 i, superior, 3-several-celled; stigma discoid or capitate; style short or none; 

 ovules i or 2 in each cavity of the ovary. Fruit a small berry-like drupe, enclos- 

 ing several nutlets. Seed pendulous; endosperm fleshy; embryo straight. 



Five genera and about 170 species, natives of temperate and tropical regions. 



Petals oblong or obovate, slightly united. i. Ilex. 



Petals linear, distinct. 2. Ilicioides. 



i. ILEX L. Sp. PI. 125. 1753. 



Shrubs or trees, with entire dentate or spiny-toothed, minutely stipulate leaves, and 

 axillary cymose or solitary, perfect or polygamous flowers. Calyx small, 4~5-cleft or toothed. 

 Petals 4-9, somewhat united at the base, oblong, obtuse. Stamens of the same number, ad- 

 nate to the base of the corolla. Berry-like drupe globose, with 4-8 bony or crustaceous 

 nutlets. [Ancient name of the Holly Oak.] 



About 160 species, mostly natives of America, some in Asia, Africa and Australia. In addition 

 to the following, some 5 others occur in the southeastern United States. 



leaves, thick evergreen, persistent. 

 Nutlets ribbed. 



Leaves spiny-toothed. 



Leaves dentate or entire, not spiny. 



Leaves entire or few-toothed; calyx-lobes acute. 

 Leaves coarsely crenate; calyx-lobes obtuse. 

 Nutlets not ribbed; leaves dotted beneath. 

 Leaves thin, deciduous. 



Nutlets ribbed; peduncles i-flowered. 



Leaves small, obovate or spatulate, crenate. 

 Leaves large, ovate or lanceolate, sharply serrate. 

 Nutlets not ribbed. 



Flowers all short-pedicelled. 



Staminate Sowers on long and slender pedicels. 



1. /. opaca. 



2. /. Cassinf. 



3. I. vomiloria. 



4. I.glabra. 



5. /. decidua. 



6. /. monticola. 



7. /. verticillata. 



8. /. lanrigata. 



i. Ilex opaca Ait. American Holly. (Fig. 2356.) 



Ilex opaca Ait. Hort. Kew. x: 169. 1789. 



A tree of slow growth, sometimes 50 

 high, and with a trunk diameter of 

 3#- Young twigs sparingly pubes- 

 cent; leaves elliptical or obovate, 2'-4 x 

 long, I'-iJ^' wide, evergreen, glabrous 

 on both sides, obtuse or acutish at the 

 apex, spiny-tipped, spinose-dentate, at 

 least toward the apex, rarely nearly or 

 quite entire; petioles 2 // -4 // long.some- 

 times puberulent; peduncles 2-bracted; 

 staminate cymes 3-io-flowered, j'- 

 i' long; fertile flowers mostly scat- 

 tered and solitary; calyx-lobes acute, 

 ciliate; stigma sessile; drupe globose 

 or globose-oblong, red, rarely yellow, 

 4 // -5 // in diameter; nutlets ribbed. 



In moist woods.southern Maine to Flor- 

 ida, west to Pennsylvania, Missouri and 

 Texas. Most abundant near the coast. 

 Wood hard, nearly white; weight per 

 cubic foot 36 Ibs. Ascends to 3000 ft. in 

 North Carolina. April-June. 



