THE SHRUBS OF NORTH CAROLINA. 153 



common in rich bottom lands of the Middle District, 

 10 to 15 feet high, but in the primitive soil of the 

 Western States sometimes 30 feet. The flowers are 

 dull dark-purple, over an inch wide. The fruit is 

 about 3 inches long by 1^ thick, yellow, and filled 

 with a soft sweet pulp which is edible, but does not 

 seem to be agreeable to most persons. The bark of 

 the trunk and root exhales a very heavy unpleasant 

 odor. The wood is remarkably light and spongy. 



2. Dwarf Papaw. (A. parviflora, Dunal.) — A 

 small shrub similar to No. 1, but smaller every way, 

 found in waste grounds in the Lower District, and in 

 thin woods of the Middle and lower part of the Up- 

 per District. It is from 2 to 5 feet high, the leaves 

 4 to 6 inches long, (about half the size of the pre- 

 ceding,) the greenish-purple flowers i inch long and 

 of unpleasant odor. Fruit in clusters, about an inch 

 long. 



1. Spanish Bayonet. (Yucca aloifolia, Linn.) — 

 A native of the coast from North Carolina south'^vard, 

 frequently cultivated in the Lower District, and very 

 showy when capped by its large cluster of white bell- 

 shaped flowers. It is 4 to 8 feet high, its stiff leaves 

 (12 or 18 inches long) tipped with a very sharp 

 thorny point, and their edges very rough. 



2. (Y. gloriosa, Linn.) — Found also on the sand}^ 

 coast, similar to the preceding, but smaller, and the 

 leaves smooth on the edges. 



V 3. Bear Grass. (Y. filamentosa, Linn.) — Com- 

 mon in sandy fields nearly throughout the State, well 



