BUCKTHORN FAMILY. Rhamnaceae. 



BUCKTHORN FAMILY. Rhamnaceae. 



A large family; shrubs, or small trees, of temperate and 

 warm regions, some with bitter, astringent properties, 

 often thorny; leaves mostly alternate; stipules minute; 

 flowers often in showy clusters, small, regular; calyx-lobes 

 and stamens four or five; petals usually four or five, some- 

 times lacking, with claws. The short calyx-tube is lined 

 with a fleshy disk and on this are borne the petals and the 

 stamens, alternate with the sepals and opposite the petals, 

 with swinging anthers. In some cases, some of the flowers 

 have only pistils or only stamens. The ovary superior or 

 partly inferior; the fruit a berry or capsule. 



There are many kinds of Ceanothus, largely western; 

 flowers small, blue or white, in clusters; calyx bell-shaped, 

 five-lobed, with a colored, petal-like border; petals five, 

 the tips arching to form a tiny hood, with long claws; 

 stamens five, long, protruding, with threadlike filaments; 

 ovary partly inferior; style three-cleft; capsule splitting 

 open elastically so as to scatter the three, hard nutlets, 

 The flowers make a soapy lather when rubbed in water, 

 hence the name Soap-bush, and the kinds with rigid 

 branches are called Buckbrush. Red-root is another name, 

 Mountain Lilac is the commonest name, but misleading. 

 Lilacs belong to another family. 



This decorative shrub is common in the 

 Squaw Carpets, Sierras and carpe ts the forest floor with a 



Mahala Mats . , i /- 1 1 * -,t. 



Ceanothus r green, leafy mat, .sprinkled with 



prostratus small, feathery clusters of blue flowers. 



Blue The trailing stems are clothed with 



leather y leaV6S ' PP site and ver y g loss y. 



and the little flowers are deep purplish- 1 

 blue, with yellow stamens, and slightly scented. These 

 plants are equally attractive late in the season when the 

 flowers are replaced by scarlet seed-vessels, with three horns. 

 A fine shrub, two to twelve feet high, 

 Snow Brush, with gtout tmnk and branches, easily 

 Mountain Lilac ... . , , . , . , 



Ceanothus recognized by its leaves, which are rich 



velutinus green, thick and resinous, shiny as ii 



White varnished on the upper side and some- 



West, except times rich chocolate-brown in color, but 

 pale on the under side, with three, con- 

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