by Leslie Cox; Thursday, August 16, 2012
There are many gardeners who do not like to call plants by their scientific name. Perhaps it is the uncertainty of getting the pronunciation correct that scares them off. It may also be some of the long names with multiple syllables. But heck…who knows which pronunciation of the common name for Lycopersicum lycopersicum, tomato, is really correct? It depends on which side of the Atlantic Ocean you live, doesn’t it? And we are both right.
There are a couple of good, solid reasons why every gardener should make at least some effort to learn the scientific names of their plants. First, there is no confusion about what plant you are talking about when you use the Latin name. It refers to one plant and one plant only. Use the common name and you could be talking about two, possibly even three totally different plants.
Let’s say you want to plant a coneflower in your garden. Your friendly neighbourhood nurseryman will wonder if you are looking for an Echinacea, a Rudbeckia or a Ratibida…all of which go by the common name of coneflower but are quite definitely different plants.
The second reason is the helpful hints hidden within the scientific name of a plant. Things like where the plant is native to, the colour of its flowers, the shape of its leaves…even where to plant it.
You see, certain word bases have predictable meanings. For instance, you might find a clue to a plant’s country of origin. Spiraea japonica tells you that particular plant is a spiraea from Japan. Sambucus canadensis is a North American elderberry. Other countries are England – anglicus, Belgium or the Netherlands – belgicus, Greece – graecus, Portugal – lusitanicus, Sweden – suecicus…to name a few.
There are also clues in Latin as to colour. Some words that denote “black” are: ater – pure black, carbonaceous – black like charcoal, ebonaceus, ebenus – black like ebony, niger – black or nigrescens, nigricans – blackish; blackening.
White is denoted by: albicans – whitish; foamy, albus – white, argo – pure white, lacteus – milky white or nivalis, niveus – snow white. Other colours such as red, blue, green, yellow, brown, etc. also have their own Latin terms.
Then there are general colour terms: bicolor means bicoloured obviously, discolor – of different colours, floridus – bright, fulgens, fulgidus – shining, opacus – dark, opaque, pallidus – pale, splendens – brilliant, vernicosus – varnished.
But plants are not just about place of origin or colour. There are Latin names that describe certain leaf characteristics:
- angustifolia – narrow leaved
- cardiophyllus, cordifolius – with heart-shaped leaves
- dentatus – toothed
- dissectus – dissected; deeply divided
- grandifolius – with large leaves
- longifolius – long-leaved
And names that describe the plant’s growth habit:
- arboreus – treelike
- columnaris – columnar
- procurrens – spreading, running
- scandens – climbing
- tortuosus, tortus, tortilis – tortuous, winding
Or that describe a scent or taste:
- citriodorus – lemon-scented
- dulcis – sweet, pleasant
- foetidus – evil-smelling
- meliodorus – honey-scented
- odoratus, odorus – scented, fragrant
And to be really helpful to the beginner gardener, there are clues to season, timing and weather buried in the Latin name but for the deciphering:
- aestivalis, aestivus – of summer
- annuus – annual
- autumnalis – of autumn
- hyemalis – of winter
- longaevus – long-lived
- noctiflorus – night-flowering
- perennis – perennial
- praecox – precocious, developing early
- solaris – sun-loving
- trimestris – of three months
I think you can get the idea. It is pretty simple really…with just a wee bit of effort. Criswell Freeman wrote in his book The Gardener’s Guide to Life (Walnut Grove Press 1997), “Gardening is an educational process that lasts a lifetime. Its diploma consists of a green thumb, a happy heart and a permanently enlarged soul. If you are ready for an advanced degree, Mother Nature is anxious to teach. Her class is always in session.”
Amo ad hortus – I love to garden!
