The a to Z of Plant Names: A Quick Reference Guide to 4000 Garden Plants (2 page)

Occasionally an epithet may have a meaning that seems strange for the genus it is in.
Crocosmia
×
crocosmiiflora
and
C
. ×
crocosmioides
, for example, mean, respectively, ‘the
Crocosmia
with flowers like
Crocosmia
’ and ‘the
Crocosmia
like a
Crocosmia
’. The reason for this is that the first was originally named as a species of
Montbretia
and the second as a species of
Antholyza
. Therefore the original meanings were ‘the
Montbretia
with flowers like
Crocosmia
’ and ‘the
Antholyza
like a
Crocosmia
’. When a species is moved to another genus, the characters that distinguished it in the first genus, and gave rise to its name, may not be as meaningful in the current genus. For example the epithet of
Vancouveria hexandra
means ‘having six stamens’, which all species in this genus have. The epithet was more meaningful when it was originally named as a species of
Epimedium
, the species of which have four stamens.

Although scientific names are regarded as being in Latin form, they are far from the Latin spoken by the Romans and
incorporate words that the Romans never knew or words given a different meaning for the purpose of botany. Many scientific names use place names that were used in Roman times, many more use the names of modern countries, regions or cities unfamiliar to the Romans, or the modern names for regions. The epithet
sinense
/
sinensis
, for example, is derived from
Sina
, the Latin name for China. The epithet
chinense/chinensis
, which has the same meaning (‘from China’), is a Latinised version of the country’s English name. Such words could be described as modern Latin. Often, the names of plant parts have been adapted from Latin words that were originally used in a different sense. For example, the spathe—the conspicuous bract around the inflorescence in
Arum
and its relatives—derives from the Latin word (from the Greek) for a broadsword.

Common, or vernacular, names have been with us for much longer than scientific names; their origins are often steeped in history and their meanings can be fascinating. They have the advantage of being easier to pronounce, spell and remember for most people than scientific names and often contain words that can be related to, immediately conveying an impression of a plant. While common names are generally sufficient for everyday language, they do have some disadvantages. One plant may have several or many common names, which can be specific to different regions, languages or countries. While some foreign common names have been adopted in English, such as edelweiss (German for ‘noble white’), these are the exception. While common names often tell us something about the plant, they may not always indicate its true relations. Plants from several different genera are referred to as ‘cedar’ or ‘pine’, for example, and
Symphyotrichum novi-belgii
is known as Michaelmas daisy, or New York aster, in spite of being neither a daisy nor an aster.

In addition, the same common name can have different meanings. To illustrate the confusion that can occur, in North
America the common name ‘sycamore’ is applied to members of the genus
Platanus
, which in Europe are called ‘planes’. In Europe the name ‘sycamore’ applies to a maple,
Acer pseudoplatanus
, which in Scotland is referred to as ‘plane’. A sycamore mentioned in the Bible, however, is a type of fig.

Scientific names have the advantage over common names in that they have the same meaning in any part of the world. In addition they are documented, and it is always possible go back to the original to discover exactly what the author meant, something that is not always possible with common names. Knowing the correct scientific name of a plant allows access to a much wider range of information about it, in sources that may not use common names.

Changes to the scientific name of plants are part of life, though often frustrating. However, names are only changed for good reasons, and changes aim to give an accurate representation, not only of the true identity of a plant but also of its relationships. Some examples of why names are changed are given here.

1. Plants can be wrongly identified. For many years, a bedding plant was commonly grown under the name
Helichrysum microphyllum
. Its correct name, however, is
Plecostachys serpyllifolia
. Both species are in cultivation. The spider plant commonly referred to in the literature and grown in gardens as
Cleome spinosa
, is, in fact, a different species,
C. hassleriana
, now known as
Tarenaya hassleriana
. The author ‘hort.’ (Latin
hortulanorum
, ‘of gardeners’) is often used to denote plants that are grown in gardens under the incorrect name. In the example just given,
Helichrysum microphyllum
hort. (or at least hort. in part) is different
to H. microphyllum
(Willd.) Cambess.

2. Names can change for nomenclatural reasons. Nomenclature decides if the name used for a plant is the correct one—for
example, if it was published correctly, or if there is an earlier name for the same plant. The rules of nomenclature state that the earliest validly published name takes priority, even if this is obscure. Since the adoption of their use, many genera have been found to have earlier names, which should have been used. However, as changing the names of many familiar and important genera would cause considerable disruption, it has been possible to conserve these later names and allow their use.
Pittosporum
is an example of a conserved generic name. Without conservation, the earlier name
Tobira
would have to be used.

The names of species can also be conserved, an important point when talking about those plants with a high profile in horticulture. As an example of this,
Zinnia violacea
is an earlier name applied to the same species as
Z. elegans
. Under the rules of nomenclature, if they are regarded as the same species then
Z. violacea
must take priority, as it was published first. However, as
Z. elegans
is a much more widely used name, it has been proposed for conservation. Many of these possible changes can therefore be avoided.

3. Names can change for taxonomic reasons. Taxonomy deals with the relationships between plants—for example, which genus does a particular plant belong in, or should it be regarded as a species, or maybe as a subspecies of a different species. There have always been name changes of this sort, but recent molecular work has made considerable advances in the understanding of plant relationships, resulting in many changes. It has been found, for instance, that most American species of
Aster
are not closely related to the Old World species, thus resulting in the splitting of the genus into several smaller ones.

Are these changes avoidable? In this example, it is not wrong to retain all species in the genus
Aster
, if, with good reason, it is believed that is where they should be, but the new classification shows better the relationships of the species involved, which can help gardeners and plant breeders. In
addition, new species named may not have a useable name in the old genus. For example, new species of
Veronica
have already been described from New Zealand and Australia with no name available for them in
Hebe
or
Parahebe
, or whichever genus they would have been assigned to in the past.

While conservation is a considerable help in promoting name stability, sometimes it comes at a price. When the genus
Chrysanthemum
was split into smaller genera, the generic name should have stayed with
C. segetum
(corn marigold) and its relatives, necessitating a new genus for the florists’ ‘mums’. As this would have caused considerable horticultural disruption, the genus
Chrysanthemum
was conserved so that the ‘mums’ would not have to change their name. This, however, necessitated moving the corn marigold and its relatives to another genus,
Glebionis
.

Pronunciation is one of the most controversial aspects of plant names, and although there are strict rules on how to form and spell plant names, there are no rules on how to pronounce them. They are derived from, or at least regarded as being, Latin, but that does not mean they have to be pronounced as such. As a language, Latin is very rarely spoken in the way the Romans used it. As it spread across Europe, used as an international language, its pronunciation was heavily influenced by the native language; even church Latin, at least today, is strongly influenced by Italian. The original Latin pronunciation is not known for certain, and much of what is known would make it inappropriate, difficult and incomprehensible for English speakers.

It is surprising how infrequently plant names are actually spoken; they are much more likely to be encountered when reading or writing. One simple rule to follow is to pronounce every vowel separately, except for diphthongs (two vowels together pronounced as one) such as ae, ai, au, oe and eu), so
Abies
is ab-ee-ayz, not ay-beez. The most important aspect to take into consideration
when saying a plant name is to be understood, that the person listening knows which plant is being referred to. It therefore makes sense to adopt a traditional pronunciation, one that is widely used and understood, and I have based the suggested pronunciations used here on what I have heard and what I know people recognise. Of course, there is a considerable variety of ways that plant names are pronounced, often depending on regional accent. There is also a great deal of leeway in how names can be pronounced and still be understood. For example, it does not matter if you say uh-me-ri-
kah
-nuh or uh-me-ri-
kay
-nuh; both will be understood, and the difference between the two is very small. Some may prefer to use pur-
poo
-ree-oos, while most will say pur-
pew
-ree-oos. Pronunciation can clarify which is meant of two similar-sounding names—for example,
Dahlia
and
Dalea
, both commonly pronounced
day
-lee-uh.

One of the most difficult parts of a name to decide how to pronounce is the
-ii
found at the end of many species epithets. By far the most common pronunciation of this, in my experience, is ‘ee-ie’ (e.g, wil-
son
-ee-ie, but
wil
-son-ie or wil-
son
-ee-ee are also found). I have opted for ‘-ee-ee’ here because it is more likely to be accepted by non-English speakers (who would not use the ‘-ie’ sound for the letter
i
) and emphasises the spelling, thus differentiating between epithets ending
-ii
and those ending
-iae
. However, all are likely to be understood, and in every case, it is better to use a pronunciation with which you are familiar and confident.

The pronunciation of names derived from personal names can be problematic. If we were to pronounce the plant name in the same way as the person’s name, some names would not be understood, at least in English-speaking countries.
Magnolia
, for example, would be pronounced man-
yol
-ee-uh. In addition, when a Latin ending is added to a name it changes the stressed syllable, so in the earlier example only
wil
-son-ie (not recommended) would come close to the original pronunciation.

The aim of this book is to give the correct name as well as its derivation and pronunciation for the most commonly grown plants in the UK and in temperate areas of North America. Most of the plants included will be grown out of doors, but also listed is a wide range of plants that are grown either indoors or with protection in many areas.

Entries are arranged alphabetically by genus, then by species. Information given for the genus includes the name of the genus followed by the author and then, parenthetically, the family, which links the genus to related plants. The suggested pronunciation, with the stressed syllable in italics, is followed by the common name, if there is one, and the derivation of the scientific name. Finally, the number of species currently accepted, the type of plant and the distribution is given. The number of species should be regarded as approximate. Some plants are known only in cultivation. This may be because they are hybrids that arose in gardens; species now extinct in the wild; so widely grown that their native origin has become obscured; or because the plants in cultivation have changed so much from the original species by selection in cultivation over a long period that they are sufficiently distinct to be regarded as a different species.

Entries for species include the specific epithet followed by the author, the suggested pronunciation, common name, derivation of the epithet, and the distribution (unless this is the same as that given for the genus) and the parentage (if it is a hybrid). Information for the derivation of the epithet given in parentheses is implied and is derived from knowledge of the meaning together with knowledge of the plant. Common names and synonyms (previously used names) are cross referenced.

While some cultivars that have epithets in Latin form are included in the text, to avoid repetition a list is included here of
those that are most commonly used together with their pronunciation and meaning. As with the epithets of species, the ending often varies depending on the gender of the genus to which they are assigned, and they are presented here in the order masculine/feminine/neuter. Two or more words are often used in combination to form an epithet. They may be joined by a connecting vowel, for example ‘Albiflora’, meaning white-flowered, or ‘Roseopicta’, meaning variegated with pink, or retained as separate words, e.g., ‘Alba Plena’, meaning double white.