394 Thymelacea— Daphne. 
1. DAPHNE. 
Small erect or trailing shrubs with alternate or opposite 
persistent or deciduous leaves and very fragrant lateral or 
terminal flowers. Perianth tubular, 4-lobed. Stamens 8, in 2 
series ; style short or none. Fruit coriaceous or fleshy. North 
temperate regions of the Old World. Name of classical origin. 
Deciduous species, flowers lateral, appearing before the leaves. 
1. D. Mezéreum. Mezereon.—A small erect branched shrub 
which produces its clusters of pink, rose or purplish, rarely white 
flowers in Winter. Leaves membranous, 2 to 3 inches long; 
lanceolate, obtuse or acute, shortly petiolate. Occasionally seen 
in copses in the South of England, but perhaps not indige- 
nous. 
2. D. Forttimet.—This has lilac flowers, also appearing early 
in Winter. China. 
Erect evergreen species with greenish-yellow axillary flowers. 
3. D. Lauréola. Wood Laurel.—A shrub 2 to 3 feet high. 
Leaves coriaceous, 4 or 5 inches long, lanceolate, almost 
sessile. Flowers in clusters in the axils of the upper leaves, 
appearing in February. Native in England. 
4. D. Péntica.—Very similar to the last, but differing in the 
lighter green foliage, and deeper coloured flowers which appear 
about a month later. It is uw native of Asia Minor, and not 
quite so hardy. Both of these, and also No. 1, are employed for 
grafting the greenhouse and rarer varieties upon. 
Evergreen or deciduous trailing or erect species with 
terminal flowers. 
5. D. alpina—An undershrub with lanceolate obovate 
pubescent deciduous leaves and terminal sessile villose white 
or rose flowers. A pretty species, suitable for rockwork. 
Italian Alps. D. Dawphin of gardens is an improved variety 
of this; and D. Verloti, a charming little shrub with rosy car- 
mine flowers, inhabiting the same localities, appears to be a 
diminutive form of the same. 
6. D. collina.—An erect shrub 2 or 3 feet high. Leaves 
oblong-obovate, obtuse, shining, glabrous above, hirsute 
beneath, persistent. Flowers in clusters, villose, rose-coloured. 
South of Europe. 
