| 释义 |
‖ arbutus
[L. arbutus or arbitus.]
1. |ˈɑːbjuːtəs|. A genus of evergreen shrubs and trees (family Ericaceæ). The name belonged originally, and is still usually applied, to the species Arbutus Unedo, or Strawberry Tree, a native of the south of Europe, long established in the south-west of Ireland, and commonly cultivated for ornamental purposes.
1551Turner Herbal (1568) 41 Arbutus may be called in englishe strawbery tree. 1672Petty Pol. Anat. 374 That part of Kerry..where the arbutus groweth in great quantity. 1752Mrs. Delany Autobiog. III. 121 The arbutus bears fruit and flowers at the same time. 1877H. E. H. King Ugo Bassi vi, Brushwood of myrtle, heath, and arbutus, With here and there a solitary pine.
2. U.S. |ɑːˈbjuːtəs|. Applied to a North American ericaceous plant, Epigæa repens, called also trailing arbutus, ground laurel, and Mayflower, and prized as a harbinger of spring.
1785H. Marshall Arbustrum Amer. 42 Epigæa repens. Trailing arbutus. This grows naturally upon northern hills, or mountains, with trailing shrubby stalks. 1869J. G. Fuller Uncle John's Flower Gatherers 14 It comes forth with softly perfumed garments, and we call it Trailing Arbutus. 1888Whittier Writ. II. 35 The trailing arbutus, or mayflower, grows abundantly in the vicinity of Plymouth, and was the first flower that greeted the Pilgrims after their fearful winter. |