BROAD-LEAVED EVERGREENS 143 



flowers at the first burst of spring. This plant is 

 native of the higher slopes of the southern Appalachian 

 Mountains and is a low, broad, round-topped bush 

 with dark green shining leaves and short, erect clusters 

 of flowers which are fully grown in the autumn and the 

 flower buds are white and conspicuous through the 

 winter. Its Japanese relative (P. japonicd) grows 

 taller and has larger flowers but, unfortunately, is 

 much less hardy. 



For planting in the shade of trees and more es- 

 pecially by the s de of woodland streams Leucothoe 

 Catesbaei, with yard-long, arching stems, glossy 

 green, broad, pointed leaves, and axillary racemes of 

 small, pure white flowers, is a charming plant. It is 

 native of the mountains of Virginia and Georgia, 

 but is very hardy. By the side of a babbling brook 

 in the Hemlock grove of the Arnold Arboretum it is 

 perfectly happy and a joy to behold at all seasons of 

 the year. 



The American Holly (Ilex opaca), with its dull 

 green leaves, is much inferior to the English Holly 

 (I. Aquifolium), which has lustrous foliage, but it 

 has the merit of being fairly hardy in northern 

 Massachusetts, whereas its European relative is not. 

 The American Holly is a large bush or small tree and 

 has red fruit. It delights in a cool soil and a position 



