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Smilax laurifolia
Credits
Article from Bean's Trees and Shrubs Hardy in the British Isles
Recommended citation
'Smilax laurifolia' from the website Trees and Shrubs Online (treesandshrubsonline.
A tall evergreen climber with thick, leathery leaves, 2 to 5 in. long, 5⁄8 to 2 in. wide, three-nerved, dark green and rather glossy above, oblong, tapered or rounded at the base, and with usually a short, abrupt, fine point; stalk 1⁄4 to 1⁄2 in. long. Flowers greenish, in umbels, the main-stalk of which is about as long as the leaf-stalk. Fruits 1⁄4 to 1⁄3 in. wide, one-seeded, black when ripe, but taking two seasons to become so.
Native of the south-eastern United States, west to Texas; in cultivation 1739. Very distinct in its three-nerved, leathery, evergreen, and comparatively narrow leaves, this is, unfortunately, rather tender. It succeeded well on a wall in the vicarage garden of Bitton, near Bath, and is suitable for the south and west generally, where it will make an interesting evergreen wall-covering.