KEY TO THE DAPHNES 299 



KEY TO THE DAPHNES 



* Leaves deciduous ; flowers lilac to purple in axillary clusters Feb. 



to April, before the leaves. (A.) 

 A. Leaves alternate, wedge-shaped ; shrubs erect, to 4 feet. (B.) 

 B. Flowers usually 3 without stalks ; leaves green above, gray 

 below. Common Mezereon or Daphne (520) — Daphne Mez6- 

 reum. 

 B. Flowers 2-4 with short stems ; leaves purple, almost evergi'een. 

 Daphne Houtte^na. 

 A. Leaves opposite, oblong, li-2 inches long ; flowers 3-7 in short- 

 stalked clusters. Japanese Daphne — Daphne G^nkwa. 



* Leaves evergreen, alternate (2d B above might be looked for here). 



(C.) 

 C. Trailing or creeping plants with many-flowered terminal clusters 

 (April-June) and wedge-shaped leaves; flowers fragrant. (D.) 

 D. Flowers pink ; leaves i-l inch long. Pink Garland Daphne 

 (521) — Daphne Cneorum. 



D. Flowers white or creamy ; leaves 1-1| inch long. White Gar- 

 land Daphne (522) —Daphne Blagayana. 



C. Erect, 1-5 feet high. (E.) 



E. Flowers densely hairy outside in few-flowered terminal 

 heads. (F.) 



P. Flowers purple, f inch long, with bracts ; leaves 1-2 inches 

 long. Silky Daphne (523) — Daphne sericea. 



F. Flowers white or nearly so, i inch long, no bracts. Olive- 

 like Daphne (524) — Daphne oleoides. 



F. Flowers reddish purple, very fragrant, large. Hybrid Daphne 

 (525) — Daphne hybrida. 



E. Flowers smooth outside or nearly so. (G.) 



G. Flowers in dense terminal clusters, white, red to purple, very 

 fragrant. Sweet Daphne — Daphne odora. 



G. Flowers in 5-10-flowered axillary clusters, odorless, March- 

 May. Wood Daphne (526) — Daphne Laur^ola. 

 G. Flowers in 1-3-flowered axillary clusters, fragrant, April- 

 May. Pontic Daphne (527) — Daphne pontica. 

 Daphne Mezereum, D. Cneorum, D. Blagayana are hardy to Massachu- 

 setts, D. Laureola, D. pontica to New York, others only South. 



Polygonum. The Poltgonums form a large genus, 200 species, of 

 mainly herbaceous plants, but two of them appear so like bushy shrubs 

 they are introduced here, though they die down to the ground in winter. 



