Host an Event Volunteer Join Tickets

Support the plant database you love!

Q. Who is Mr. Smarty Plants?

A: There are those who suspect Wildflower Center volunteers are the culpable and capable culprits. Yet, others think staff members play some, albeit small, role. You can torture us with your plant questions, but we will never reveal the Green Guru's secret identity.

Help us grow by giving to the Plant Database Fund or by becoming a member

Did you know you can access the Native Plant Information Network with your web-enabled smartphone?

Share

Ask Mr. Smarty Plants

Ask Mr. Smarty Plants is a free service provided by the staff and volunteers at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center.

Search Smarty Plants
See a list of all Smarty Plants questions

Please forgive us, but Mr. Smarty Plants has been overwhelmed by a flood of mail and must take a break for awhile to catch up. We hope to be accepting new questions again soon. Thank you!

Need help with plant identification, visit the plant identification page.

 
rate this answer
Not Yet Rated

Thursday - June 17, 2010

From: Buda, TX
Region: Southwest
Topic: General Botany, Plant Identification
Title: Clarification for botanical (Latin) names for Herbertia
Answered by: Nan Hampton and Joe Marcus

QUESTION:

I am looking for a clarification of scientific names. In the classic wildflower book 'Wildflowers of Texas' the author, Geyata Ajilvsgi, attributes the plant Herbertia with the name Alophia drummondii, but your database and a few other internet sources give the plant Purple Pleat-Leaf this name. Ajilvsgi gives Purple Pleat-leaf the name Eustylis purpurea. Which is correct? and what is the correct scientific name for Herbertia?

ANSWER:

First of all, there is no official authority for common names of plants. They can, and do, vary from region to region, culture to culture and language to language.  However, the Latin or botanical name is meant to be the same and recognized everywhere—in any region and by any culture or language. Nevertheless, plant taxonimists, in their infinite wisdom, do often change the botanical names of plants.  Renaming them isn't done, no matter what we might think, simply to irritate us who have learned the former Latin name! There are a number of reasons for name changes, but most have to do with new evidence coming to light which necessitates name changes in order to be in compliance with The Code.  The Code is the International Code of Botanical Nomenclature (Vienna Code) adopted by the Seventeenth International Botanical Congress, Vienna, Austria, July 2005 and published in 2006.  The Code is available online and is the official document containing the rules governing the naming or renaming of plants.   

For valid botanical names in the United States one consults the ITIS (Integrated Taxonomic Information System) database. 

ITIS shows five unaccepted synonyms for the accepted Alophia drummondii (propeller flower).  These synonyms are:  Cypella drummondii, Eustylis purpurea, Herbertia drummondii, Nemastylis purpurea, and Tigridia purpurea.  In our Native Plant Database we show three common names—propeller plant, purple pleat-leaf and pinewoods lily.

Herbertia lahue is the accepted name listed by ITIS for Herbertia lahue (prairienymph).  There are no synonyms listed for this species.  In our Native Plant Database we show two common names—prairienymph and herbertia.  But then there is Herbertia lahue ssp. caerulea (prairienymph) with five unaccepted synonyms listed: Alophia drummondii, Herbertia caerulea, Trifurcia caerulea, Trifurcia lahue ssp. caerulea.

We can see how you could be confused!  You can read the accounts from Flora of North America for Alophia drummondii,  and Herbertia lahue which give us some insights into the confusion about the two names and gives us detailed descriptions of the two species. The explanation under the entry, Herbertia, says that the two names have been confused because of "an erroneous interpretation of the identity of the type species of Alophia (P. Goldblatt 1975)."

 

From the Image Gallery


Propeller flower
Alophia drummondii

Prairie nymph
Herbertia lahue

More General Botany Questions

Oils/paraffins in sea oats
September 04, 2010 - Do Sea Oats produce oils/paraffins?
view the full question and answer

USDA Hardiness Zone of Rancho Bernardo, CA
October 01, 2009 - What plant zone is Poway, Rancho Bernardo CA?
view the full question and answer

Experiment to detect presence of sugar in cellulose from Routt CO
January 28, 2013 - My teacher ask me to plan an experiment to detect the presence of sugar in cellulose. I know that cellulose are abundant at the stem, and sugar here is glucose. I wonder how to conduct this experiment...
view the full question and answer

Manzanita struggling in CA
March 01, 2012 - I live in Monterey, CA and I have had a manzanita (either Dr. Hurd or Mt. Hood) growing successfully in my yard for about 4 years. This fall all the leaves turned brown and brittle. I am not sure if d...
view the full question and answer

Plants killed by frost
October 31, 2007 - In a frost why do flowers etc. die where grass will not die?
view the full question and answer

Support the Wildflower Center by Donating Online or Becoming a Member today.