BEAUTIFUL FLOWERING SHRUBS 



i 



DAPHNE 



Daphne mezereum . . Mezereon 



var. alba White Mezereon 



cneorum . . Garland Flower 



laureola . . Spurge Laurel 



MEZEREON Daphne mezereum the shrub 

 with the sweet-sounding name and the sinister 

 reputation, the shrub whose delicate fragrance 

 urges to a nearer acquaintanceship, but whose poisonous 

 juices severely punish too presumptuous an interfer- 

 ence. Now claimed as a native in some of the more 

 southerly counties of England, it was not so recognised 

 when Gerard wrote his Herball in the days of Queen 

 Elizabeth, though that renowned herbalist knew it well 

 as a plant " that growes naturally in moist and shadowy 

 woods of most of the East countries, especially about 

 Melvon in Poland, from whence," he tells us, " I have 

 had great plenty for my garden." He gives " Germane 

 Olive Spurge" as its commonest name then, but adds, 



