ivy. 49 



Description. — Ivy is an evergreen climbing 1 shrub, throwing 

 out roots from the side by which it comes in contact with other 

 substances : the branches are tortuous and flexible ; the wood is 

 soft, light, and porous ; when the plant is young* and creeps upon 

 the ground, the leaves are lanceolate and entire; at a more ad- 

 vanced period, when it climbs upon trees, &c, they become cordate, 

 with three or five lobes ; and subsequently, when it has arrived at 

 the top of any support, the branches shorten, and form into large 

 bushy heads, and the leaves become ovate and undivided ;* all the 

 leaves are petiolate, coriaceous, thick, shining, deep green, and 

 are often veined with whitish lines. The flowers are small, pale 

 green, and collected into spherical, simple umbels, at the summit of 

 the branches ; the pedicels generally covered with stellate pubes- 

 cence. The calyx is very small, and five-toothed. The five petals 

 are oblong, acute, reflexed, and of a light yellowish-green colour. 

 The stamens are five, alternate with the petals, erect, with subulate 

 filaments inserted beneath a large disk, which crowns the germen ; 

 the anthers are cleft at the base. The germen is inferior, turbi- 

 nate, crowned by a very short style and simple stigma. The fruit 

 is a smooth, globose, purplish-black, rather succulent berry, about 

 the size of a pea, crowned by the remains of the calyx, one-celled, 

 three to five seeded. The seeds are large, oblong, angular, convex 

 on the outer, angular on the inner side. Plate 28, fig. 3, (a) 

 lower leaf ; (b) entire flower; (c) calyx and pistil; (d) fruit or 

 berry ; (e) seed. 



- Ivy is a native of Europe, from Italy to the confines of Lapland. 

 It is very frequent in Britain, in woods, on the trunks of trees, 

 on the dismantled walls of ruined buildings, and on rocks. It 

 flowers from the end of September to November ; and its berries, 

 which increase in size during winter, ripen in March and April. 



Several different etymologies of the word Hedera have been 

 given, as from hcereo, to adhere, and edo, to eat ; but the most 

 probable, is from the Celtic hedra, a cord. The specific name is 

 derived from siXeoo, to encompass, in allusion to the twining 

 stems. The Celtic word, iw, green, is probably the parent of our 

 word Ivy, as it is likewise of Yew. 



* These different states of the plant were regarded by some of the old 

 botanists as constituting so many distinct species ; hence, we have Hedera 

 humi repens, Hedera major sterilis, and Hedera arborea. Linnaeus poeti- 

 cally represents them under the titles of infancy, childhood, and manhood. 



