CHAP. LXXV. 



OLEA^CEJE. LlGU'STllUM. 



! 199 



common English name of Privet may have been given to it from its being frequently planted in 

 gardens to conceal privies. 

 Engravings. Engl. Bot., t. 764. ; Curt. Lond., t. 300. ; (Eil. FT. Dan. t. 1141. ; Schmidt Baum., 3. t. 

 147. ; Lam. 111., 1. t. 7. ; Bull. Herb., t. 295. ; Mill Ic„ 162. ; Baxt. Brit. Fl. PL, vol. 2. t. 119. ; 

 and our figs. 1019, 1020. 



Spec. Char., fyc. Leaves elliptic-lanceolate, glabrous. Ra- 

 cemes compound, coarctate. The flowers are sweet- 

 scented, white at first, but soon change to a reddish 

 brown. Berries dark purple, almost black. (Don's 

 Mill.,\\. p. 44-.) A shrub, indigenous to Britain; grow- 

 ing to the height of from 6 ft. to 10 ft., in a wild state; 

 and flowering in June and July. 

 Varieties. 



ik L. v. 2 leucocarpum. The white-berried Privet. 

 s& L. v. 3 xanthocdrpum. The yellow-berried Privet. 

 * L. v. 4 chlorocdrpum. The green-berried Privet. 

 f «e L. v. 5 sempervirenSj L. italicum Mill., and 

 owx fig. 1018. The Italian, or evergreen, Privet. 

 — This is a most desirable variety for shrub- 

 beries ; and it is so distinct, that it was con- 

 sidered by Miller as a species. 

 Sfc L. v. 6 variegdtnm. The vanegated-leawed Privet. 



— Leaves variegated with yellow. 

 & L. v. 7 angustifulium. The narrow-leaved Privet. 

 Description. The common privet is a much-branched twiggy shrub, with 

 the bark of a greenish ash colour, dotted with numerous prominent points. 

 The leaves, in exposed situations, and on poor soils, 

 are deciduous; but in sheltered situations, and more 

 especially when the plant is cultivated in gardens, they 

 remain on throughout the winter. When the plant is 

 found in woods and hedges in the 

 middle and south of England, it is 

 generally subevergreen ; but in the 

 north of England, and in Scotland, it 

 is more commonly deciduous. 



Geography, and History. The com- 

 mon privet is a native of most parts' 

 of Europe, in woody wastes and 



hedges, from n. lat. 51° to 57°, 



m 



plains ; and it is also found in the north of Africa, in the west and east of Asia, 

 including Japan and the Himalayas ; and in North America, from Canada to 

 Virginia. In England, it is very common in woods and hedges ; and, in Scot- 

 land, it is found as far north as Forfar. It is also indigenous in Ireland. It is 

 almost always found on good soils, more or less loamy or calcareous, and moist. 

 It is believed to have been known to the Greeks (see p. 18.), under the name 

 of phillyrea ; and it undoubtedly was so to the Romans, it being men- 

 tioned both by Virgil and Pliny; the latter stating that the berries were 

 given to chickens to cure them of the pip. It is described by Gerard as 

 growing naturally in the hedgerows of London gardens, and in every wood in 

 all the countries of Europe, except Poland. In this last particular, however, 

 he is mistaken; as, according to Schubert's Catalogue, p. 107., the plant is 

 found wild in the neighbourhood of Warsaw. In British gardens, the privet 

 has been held in high estimation, for several centuries, for its use in making 

 hedges; either alone, or mixed with the common thorn, and as affording a 

 screen for concealing objects. 



Properties and Uses. The leaves of the privet are bitter and astringent ; 

 notwithstanding which they are eaten by cattle, sheep, and goats, but not by 

 horses. The wood is white, hard, and, when of sufficient size, well adapted 

 for the purposes of the turner. The berries, which ripen in autumn, and 

 i emain on the trees daring winter, are excellent food for blackbirds, thrushes, 



1 K 



