884 



THE NATURE BOOK 



t;l()bular, black in colour, 

 and possess, each of them, 

 lour stones. 



The Alder Bucktlwrn 

 is not ver}^ happily 

 named, since it has little, 

 il an3-thing, in common 

 with the Alder 

 beyond the fact 

 that it chooses 

 a moist soil to 

 grow in. It is 

 generally found 

 on clay or loam, 

 rather than on 

 chalk. The 

 buds are small, 

 and without 

 scales, being 

 protected by 

 narrow, downy 

 stipules, which 

 give them a 

 grey appear- 

 a n c e. The 

 twigs are 

 downy at the 

 tips, and are 

 usually violet- 

 brown in col- 

 our. There are 

 no thorns. The 

 arrangement of 

 the buds shows 

 a remarkable 

 variation. In 

 the central por- 

 tion of the twig 

 the buds dis- 

 tinctl}' alternate, whilst below and above 

 they stand nearly in opposite pairs. 



The leaves, somewhat tliin and smooth 

 in texture, and of a paler 

 colour on the under sur- 

 face, are of similar shape 

 to those of the Common 

 Buckthorn, but the vena- 

 tion is distinct. About 

 eight pairs of secondaries 

 branch out from the mid- 

 rib at pf)ints about equally 

 distant, and along its 

 whole length. These 

 secondary ribs are straight 

 and parallel tiU nearing 

 the margin, when they leaves of 



1. TWIG WITH SPINES OF 



COMMON BUCKTHORN. 



2. TWIG OF SPINDLE. 



FRUITS OF SPINDLE. 



loop one 

 into an- 

 other. The 

 leaf margin 

 is quite 

 w i t h o u t 

 teeth. The 

 fl o w e r s. 

 growing in 

 smaller 

 groups at 

 the points 

 of junction 

 between 

 the 1 e a f - 

 stalks and 



the shoot, are consequently disposed more 

 or less alf)ng its whole length. Each has 

 fi\-e small white petals, and is complete, 

 possessing both stamens and pistil, so 

 that here there is no distinction of a 

 fruiting and non-fruiting shrub. FHes, 

 again, are the chief visitors. The fruits, 

 rather larger and less bunched, are also 

 globular, and black in colour when ripe. 

 Each contains two (or three) stones. 



The presence in the 

 spring, and again in the 

 autumn, of a Brimstone 

 Butterfly is generally a 

 safe indication of the near 

 neighbourhood of Buck- 

 thorn, this shrub provid- 

 ing the foodstuff of the 

 Brimstone's caterpillars. 



TJie Sea Biicklhoni . dW'ied 

 in name only, is of local 

 occurrence. Its leaves are 

 willow-like. Its fruits are 

 SPINDLE. yellow berries. 



