* * : 
4 
298 THE OLIVE FAMILY. [Fraxtmus. 
corolla regular, each of 4 or 5 divisions, or in a few species 
entirely deficient. Stamens 2. Ovary and fruit 2-celled, each 
cell containing 1 or 2 seeds. 
An Order widely spread over nearly the whole of the globe, readily 
known by the two stamens inserted at the base of the corolla, without re- 
ference to the number of its divisions. It is commonly divided into two :— 
Oleacee proper, with the divisions of the corolla 4 or 2, and usually valvate 
in the bud, which comprises the two British genera, as well as the Olive 
(Olea) and the Lilae (Syringa), Filarea (Phillyrea), Chionanthus, and 
Forsythia of our shrubberies ; and Jasmine, consisting of Jasminum (Jes- 
samine) and some other small exotic genera, which have 5 or more divisions 
to the corolla, overlapping each other and obliquely twisted in the bud, 
The seeds also have usually a considerable albumen in the one tribe and 
little or none in the other, but this difference is not constant. 
Trees, with pinnate leaves, and a dry, oblong, ee ges ; . 1. FRAXINUS. 
Shrubs, with simple leaves, anda berry . : : » 2 LIGUSTRUM, 
I. FRAXINUS. ASH. 
Trees, with pinnate leaves, and a dry fruit produced at the top into an 
oblong, rather firm wing, and divided at the base into two cells, each con- 
taining a single seed. Calyx and corolla either none, or in some exotic 
species 4-lobed. 
A small genus, limited to the northern hemisphere, without the tropics. 
1, F. excelsior, Linn. (fig. 668). Common Ash.—A tall, handsome 
tree, with opposite, deciduous, pinnate leaves, consisting of from 7 to 11 
ovate-lanceoldte, toothed segments. The flowers open before the leaves, 
and appear at first sight like clusters of stamens issuing from opposite buds 
along the last year’s shoots, each cluster surrounded by a few small, woolly 
scales. On examination it will be found to consist of a number of pedicels, 
arranged in a short raceme, each pedicel bearing a pair of sessile anthers, 
with an ovary in the middle, ending in a straight style with a thickened ~ 
stigma. ‘The capsules, commonly called keys, are, including the wing, 
about an inch and a half long. 
In woods, throughout temperate Europe and western Asia, extending 
northwards into Scandinavia, but generally replaced in southern Europe by 
a closely allied but perhaps distinct species. Common in Britain, and truly 
wild excepting in the northern parts of Scotland, where, however, it bears 
the climate in plantations. Fl. spring. A garden variety with solitary 
leaflets is the #. heterophylla. Several American species are to be met 
with in our plantations. , : 
Il. LIGUSTRUM. PRIVET. 
Shrubs, with opposite, simple leaves, and small white flowers. Calyx 
slightly 4-toothed. Corolla 4-lobed, with a short tube. Stamens short. 
Fruit a berry, with 2 cells and 1 or 2 seeds in each. 
Besides our own, the genus contains but a small number of species, — 
chiefly from eastern Asia, some of which are in cultivation in our gardens. — 
1, &. vulgare, Linn. (fig. 669). Common Privet.—A shrub, attaining 
6 to 8 feet in height, with long, slender branches. Leaves nearly ever- 
