When learning about or discussing plants, you’ll often come across both common and scientific names. There are good reasons for knowing both.
When I discuss any plant on this site, I always mention the scientific name. That’s not just to impress you with my botanical chops, there are a few good reasons to use scientific names.
Common Names Can Be Misleading
Here are some examples of desert plants with ironic common names:
- Bear grass is not a grass
- Sago palm is not a palm
- Mexican honeysuckle is not a honeysuckle
- Texas sage is not a sage
- Texas olive is not an olive tree
- Mexican petunia is not a petunia
- Hesperaloe (also called red yucca) is not an aloe or a yucca
And don’t even get me started on the five plants grown in the southwest called bird of paradise — it’s a nomenclature nightmare!
While these examples can be amusing, misleading common names can lead you to give these plants the wrong care.
Your sago “palm” doesn’t need palm fertilizer, your bear grass should not be sheared like an ornamental grass, and don’t expect your Mexican honeysuckle to climb like a vine.
Weird But True!
There are over 1,000 plants that go by the
common name “morning glory“.
Common Names Can Be Confusing
If you go shopping for a firecracker bush (Hamelia patens), you might wind up bringing home a totally unrelated firecracker plant (Russelia equisetiformis) instead.
Tucson’s Tohono Chul Park is home to the world’s largest private collection of queen of the night (Peniocereus greggii), a cactus native to the Sonoran and Chihuahuan Deserts. Their collection of 400 plants simultaneously blooms once a year. Bloom Night is a major event attended by plant lovers from around the world who come to admire this elusive desert beauty.
If you tell someone from another part of the country that your local botanical garden hosts a major event the night the queen of the night (Peniocereus greggii) blooms, they might wonder what the fuss is about if they grow queen of the night as a fairly common houseplant.
Of course, their queen of the night is a different, unrelated species — Epiphyllum oxypetalum.
The Bottom Line
Gardening is hard enough in the desert. Knowing scientific names can make it easier.
The next time someone uses or asks you for a scientific name of a plant, don’t think they are being a “botany snob”. They may just be striving for accuracy so that you get the plant you want and give it the care it needs.
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Author Bio
Deane Alban is the creator of Southwest Gardener. She is a science writer with a bachelor’s degree in botany from the University of South Florida. Gardening is her lifelong passion. She’s been gardening in Tucson for over 15 years.
Photo Credits
“Nightblooming Cereus Cactus” by Exia Photography is licensed under CC BY 2.0