186 BRITISH FLOWERING PLANTS chap. 



longer and the leaves and stipules larger. The latter, 

 indeed, become quite leafy, and supplement the area of 

 foliage. This is doubtless an advantage, as the leaves 

 themselves do not by any means utilise the area at their 

 disposal, as do those of the Lime, Beech, or Elm. 



COTONEASTER 



0. vulgaris is a native of Europe and temperate Asia, 

 found wild in Britain only on the Great Orme. The 

 tiny pink flowers are homogamous or protogynous, with 

 concealed honey. This species ascends to the Arctic 

 Circle, and high up in mountain ranges. The leaves 

 are typical of a cold wet district : small, ovate or 

 orbicular, entire, and glabrous on the upper surface, so 

 that wet runs off easily, while below they are covered 

 with a short dense cottony down, which protects the 

 stomata from wet during rain, and renders transpiration 

 possible as soon as the sun comes out again. 



Mespiltjs 



M. germanica (the Medlar), a native of the East 

 Mediterranean area, has become naturalised in hedges 

 and thickets in Central and South England. The flowers 

 are homogamous, with half-concealed nectar. They are 

 remarkable for the great development of the sepals, 

 which are broad and leafy. 



ONAGEACE^ 



The flowers are, with a few exceptions, regular, with 

 the parts in twos or fours, and an inferior ovary. 



EpiLOBiaM (Willow Herb) 



We have ten species of this genus. One of them, 

 E. angustifolium, has the flowers irregular, the others 



