THE YEW. 



7^5 



THE FRUIT. 



at their base, and which have the appearance of being dead. The 

 whole flower is not more than a quarter of an inch in length. 



The Female Flowers. About the end of August the young 

 fruit resembles a blunt acorn or a dark dull-green colour and very 

 hard. The rounded cup in which it is set is paler green and of a 

 consistency that suggests india-rubber ; a short stalk attaches it to the 

 twig. The cup develops into a fleshy semi-opaque mass of a beautiful 

 rose-red, which gradually envelopes the nut and enfolds it so 

 completely that only the tip is visible. Cup and seed at first stand 

 out stiffly from the supporting twig, but gradually become pendent 

 as the fruit ripens. The ripe fruits are about three-eighths of an 

 inch in diameter and grow out singly from the twig : sometimes 

 two start from the same point. 



