296 



DESCRIPTIONS OF THE SHRUBS 



Swamp Bay (514) — Persea pub&oens, — wild from North Carolina 

 south, is a small tree or shrub with the hranohlets and other parts hairy, 

 creamy white flowers (J inch), and dark blue drupes | inch long. 



Alligator ' Pear ' (515) — Persea gratfssima, — of California, and 

 Plorida, has a slightly pear-shaped green fruit, several inches -long, used 

 as a salad and very palatable. A tree 20 to 30 feet high. 



[Layers; twig cuttings.] 



Fig. 522. — "White Garland Daphne. 



Fig. 523. — Silky Daphne. 



Sdssafras. Sassafras (516) — Sassafras variifblium (S. ofJicinMe) — 

 is an aromatic shrub or tree growing in some cases to the height of 100 

 feet. It has alternate simple entire to 3-lobed leaves without notches or 

 serrations. As the plant is dioecious, only those with pistillate flowers have 

 the blue 1-seeded fruit, I inch long, on red stems. The flowers bloom be- 

 fore the leaves are expanded. The bark on young twigs is gi-een with a 

 purplish shade on the light side. The bark of the roots is peculiarly 

 aromatic, and is often used in beer making. 



[Seeds ; suckers ; root cuttings.] 



CUpparis. This genus of over 100 mostly tropic plants is here repre- 

 sented by the one species fiom whicli the genus is named. Caper-bush 

 (517) or Caper-tree ^Capparis spinbsa, — from which capers are made 



