Hi there,

In this enthralling piece i am going to reveal to you why us horticulturists/botanists and gardeners use latin names for plants.  Yes i know you think we’re crazy and why would you bother with this old antiquated language, but all will be revealed.  Here’s a few classic examples of why we don’t use common names for plants, or try not to.

1. Red Gum.  Most of us know that the Red gum is the Eucalypt that lines a lot of our waterways.  It could also be the Red gum from forests on the east coast.  On the west side of the country Red gums are known for their brilliant summer flowers which can be white or pink or orange as well as red.  People call these 3 tree’s Red gums yet they are 3 distinctly different species.  Eucalyptus camaldulensis (red gum on our waterways), Angophora costata (red gum from the eastern forests), Eucalyptus ficifolia (red flowering gum from the west).  Three very different tree’s, yet all have the same common name which leads to confusion.  Hence why we use scientific names.
2. Here’s a slightly different example.  Eucalyptus regnans, in Victoria its know as the Mountain Ash.  In Tasmania its known as the Swamp Gum, Stringy Gum and Tasmanian Oak.  So here’s one tree with numerous different common names.  Very easy to get them all confused.  This is why its important for any plant to have 1 scientific name, which means it cannot be confused with anything else the world over.
3. Lily of the Valley.  In France its Muguet, in Russia its Landysh, in Germany its Maiblume and in England and elsewhere its Lily of the Valley.  Luckily it has one scientific name which is Convallaria majalis.  Thank goodness for that.

Did you notice anything about how the scientific names are written.  These are controlled by the International Code of botanical Nomenclature and the International Code of Nomenclature for Cultivated Plants.  Suffice to say there are rules on how we write scientific names

Species.  The basic unit of classification is the species which is made up of two words.  The first being the genus (generic name) and the second is the specific name ( known as the specific epithet).  The two names are always written together and are known as the binomial.  The generic name always, yes always starts with a capital letter and the specific epithet always starts with a lower case.  They need to stand out as well, so should always be written in italics.  There are other technicalities which involve subspecies and the like, but we might leave them for a rainy day or never!

Rosa glauca, gives us the genus Rose and glauca gives us a description of a grey like coating or bloom on the stems of this rose and the colouring of the foliage which is said to have a grey like ting.  So the specific epithet gives us description to some degree of the plant or a particular feature of that plant.  Here’s another example,  Salvia taraxifolia, gives us the genus Salvia and the specific epithet describes the leaves which are Dandelion like, tarax being the genus of dandelion and folia gives us foliage like.

Cultivar.  Cultivated plants use the genus for the first name and then some other name which can be anything from a person to a town or place or any other meaning or just plain whatever.  These are always written like so. Salvia ‘Silkies Dream’.  Always italics with the first letter capital for the genus and normal writing for the named cultivar with appropriate capitals.

Hope that hasn’t muddied the waters too much, but when you see me using these scientific names, the above is the reasons why.  Happy gardening and

Cheers!

Hi there,

Last week I had one of our cars booked in to get new tyres put on it and on the way there, you guessed it, I was pulled over in our little town by a cop from a big town.  “License please”, here you go(pass over license).  “Is this your car your driving”, yes.  “You been drinking today”, no(bear in mind its 9:50am Saturday morning).  “How many did you have last night”, What the!(no I didn’t say that, maybe I thought it though, what’s with the Spanish inquisition!).  None sir,  “Here ,blow into this in a continuous breath until I say stop”, phuuuuuuuuuuuugh. ‘Stop, Thanks”, no worries.  Then I see him start looking at the tyres and I’m thinking,  “And Here we go” (like how the Joker says it in Batman).  He walks around the car checking each tyre, then comes back to me and before he can say anything, I go.  “You won’t believe this but I actually have a 10:30am appointment at Tyrepower to get my tyres done and that’s where I was heading”.  “No worries, but I am giving you a defect notice, it’s not a fine but its to make sure that you get them fixed within 7 days”.  Groan( inside I did, I think I muttered “Sure officer, three bags full”).

So, the long and the short of it is

• The car was booked in for new tyres
• The car got pulled over
• New tyres were put on
• Vicroads have cleared the defect notice
• All is well in the world

That’s my new definition of Irony, you just wouldn’t dream about it.

Cheers.

Hi There,

While I was weeding a few weeks ago I came across a clump of grass like foliage which reminded me again of the surprise that bulbs bring.  They hide underground for  the majority of the year, then the send up foliage then comes the flowers, then set seed and then the foliage dies off and the bulb pulls the nutrients out of the leaves back into itself to provide energy for itself and grow for the following season.  In the photo below we have the said clump of weedy grass like clump which is Narcissus bulbocodium ssp. bulbocodium. Now your thinking  WHAT THE!! but don’t panic it’s also known as one of the charming hoop petticoat daffodils.

Doesn’t look like much doe’s it.  All will be revealed later on.  This species is native to parts of Spain, Portugal, France and Morocco and grows in the mountains on acid soils. Foliage is a nice chive green colour and looks similar as well – round and about 15cm tall.

In the photo below you can see some buds starting to come up.

Not long after we see the beautiful cheery sulphur yellow blooms that look like hoop petticoats if you turn your head on to the side.  Try it.

The above ones are not yet fully open, so try looking at the photo below with your head on the side.  Now you get the picture!

Why have you got your head on the side, you look quite ridiculous.  Here’s a couple more photos just for the fun of it.  With bulbs there is an expectation when you notice the foliage for what’s to come and the reward is great when they flower.  That’s why I like them.  Cheers.

Another great family of plants at this time of year is the genus Helleborus. Great for winter/early spring colour.  Here are just a few from my garden.  Enjoy!