82 BUXACEAE 



single bundle trace; no stipule-scars; se&sile ovoid buds with 

 several exposed scales; subelliptical slender-petioled leaves; 

 small imperfect apetalous flowers, clustered in the axils; and 

 small 3-lobed few-seeded capsules. 

 Leaves acute at both ends, entire, pale beneath. S. ramiflora. 



Family BUXACEAE. Box Family. 



A rather small family producing the boxwood formerly 

 much us'ed in wood-engraving, but otherwise of little use. Tne 

 box is the most highly esteemed plant for clipped evergreen 

 hedges where it endures the climate, and, in tubs, often takes 

 the place o'f laurel for formal specimens. 



Buxus. Box Tree. 



Evergreen shrubs or small trees with hard close-grained 

 wood; slender 4-sided branches; small roundish homogeneous 

 pith; opposite small crescent-shaped decurrent leaf-scars with 

 1 transverse bundle-trace; multiple buds with several loose 

 scales; ovate to obovate sessdle small entire leaves; small 

 monoecious apetalous nearly sessile flowers in axillary clus- 

 ters-; and small 3-valved capsules. 



1. Leaves broadest at or below the middle: twigs pubescent. 2. 

 Leaves broadest above the middle: twigs glabrous 1 . 5. 



2. Leaves green. 3, 

 Leaves variegated. 4. 



3. Leaves not glaucous. (Common box). B. sempervirens. 

 Leaves glaucous beneath. B. sempervirens glauca. 



4. Leaves white-bordered. B. sempervirens argentea. 

 Leaves yellow-bordered. B. sempervirens marginata. 

 Leaves 1 yellow. B. sempervirens aurea. 



5. Low or prostrate. B. microphylla. 

 Moderately high. (Japanese box). B. japonica. 



PACHYSANDKA 



More or less evergreen softwooded perennials with alter- 

 nate relatively large wing-petioled toothed leaves clustered to- 

 ward the ends of the short erect shoots; small white or pur- 



