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Martin Quigley, The Ohio State University, Horticulture and Crop Science; James A. Chatfield, Kenneth D. Cochran, |
In 1753, Linnaeus, a Swedish botanist, developed a system for naming a species with a two-part Latin name (the genus and the specific epithet). This Latin binomial for each species, is, believe it or not, a way to limit confusion. It helps us communicate with each other, even if we are in different countries speaking in different languages.
Michael Dirr points out the difficulties we would have with plant names if this system were not in place, using this example:
Nymphaea alba L., the European white waterlily, has:
How would anyone in our global horticultural markets today communicate about a plant without Latin binomials one name for one species such as Nymphaea alba instead of the 245 indicated above?
As to this botanical Latin there are some rules. As you can see by the previous text, the plant name is italicized or underlined in text usages where italics are not available. The first letter of the genus name is capitalized; the first letter of the specific epithet is not. In scientific publications, but rarely elsewhere, the authority (person) that first described the plant is abbreviated after the Latin binomial (the "L." used in our earlier example is for Linnaeus, who is indicated by a single initial – a courtesy – sort of like calling Michael Jordan "Air").
So, to review, for some of the organisms we have discussed earlier, the Latin binomials for the species are:
Notice that the last two examples were plants in the same genus (a group of related species). Also notice that each Latin binomial represents a species and is composed of the genus and the specific epithet.
Note: So what about the question previously asked about a red maple for an open, wet site?
Well, if a client asks you if a red maple is a good choice for a fairly wet, very sunny site, your answer depends on how well you and your customer understand the nuances of plant names. One answer could be that yes, red maples (Acer rubrum) are tailor-made for such a site.
On the other hand, what if the customer really means one of the red-leaved types of Japanese maple (Acer palmatum)? A sunny sight with less than good drainage could be a disaster for such a plant.
Further, the customer might mean by red maple one of the red-leaved types of Norway maple (Acer platanoides). Being aware of how names can mis-communicate is one of the responsibilities of a horticulturist to head off mis-understandings and mis-plantings.