ROOTS OF SCIENTIFIC NAMES

PLANT CURIOSITIES

What do those cryptic scientific names mean? Before starting with the plant list, here are some names that occur in multiple species, so the details are put here andwill not be repeated later.

Names derived from people

fremontiiAfter John Charles Frémont (1813–1890), the “Pathfinder.” Frémont was an Army officer, a senator representing the new state of California in 1850, and in 1856 a presidential candidate of the anti-slavery Republican Party. Apparently, hewas also an avid and prolific plant collector on his four expeditions to the American West in the 1840s.

nuttallii, nuttallianus, nuttallianum, nuttallianaAfter Thomas Nuttall (1786–1859), an English botanist and ornithologist who explored America from 1808 to 1841.

parryi, parryiiAfter Dr. Charles Christopher Parry (1823–1890), who, of course, named the Torrey Pine and the Chaparral Yucca, among numerous other plants that actually bear his name.

Names related to places

californica, californicus, californicum: California

Suffixes meaning flowers

-anthos, -anthus, from the Greek anthos, blossom

-florum, -flora, from the Latin flos

Suffixes meaning grasses

-chloa, possibly from Greek, in which chloros is greenish

Suffixes meaning leaves

-folium, -folia, from the Latin word folium

-phyllum, -phylla, from the Greek word phyllon

Prefixes and names for specific features

edulis-, edible; from the Latin edere, eat

dumosum, dumosa, bushy, shrubby; from the Latin dumus, thorny bush

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Eri-, Erio-, hairy or woolly; from the Greek erion

fasciculata, fasciculatum, from Latin fasciculus, little bundle; also fascis, bundle

longi-, long; from the Latin longus

macro-, large

maritima, maritimum, near, of, or from the sea

oblongi-, oblong, from combining Latin ob-, for against or facing, and longus, long, so (not really long, just) somewhat long

parvi-, small; from the Latin parvis or parvus, small, little

pauci-, few; from the Latin paucus, few, small in quantity

sessili-, without a stalk; from the Latin sessilis, sitting

umbellata, umbellatum, in umbels, usually in describing an inflorescence; from the Latin umbella, parasol, shade

Suffixes, meaning ofMany suffixes mean related to, or resembling something else. So for many scientific names, especially species names, focus on the first part of a word for itsmeaning. There are many variations because a particular suffix depends on whether the word to be modified is singular or plural, masculine, feminine or neuter, and in what form and part of speech.

-acea, -eaFrom Latin, indicating resemblance; -acea also for indicating position

-ale, -alis, -arisFrom Latin, pertaining to

-ana, -anumFrom Latin, indicating connection or association with

-ansFrom Latin, assuming the appearance

-ata, -atum, -atusFrom Latin, possessing

-culus, -culum, -lusFrom Latin, diminutive

-ellum, -ellaFrom Latin, diminutive

-ense, -ensis

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From Latin, denoting (geographical) origin

-estre, -estrisFrom Latin, belonging to, living in, loving

-eumFrom Greek, belonging to

-ica, -icumFrom Latin, belonging to

-idea, -idiumFrom Greek, resembling; see also -oidea listed below

-ina, -inum, -inusFrom Latin, property of, pertaining to

-issima, issimum, issimusFrom Latin, most

-itesFrom Greek, closely connected

-iumFrom Latin, characteristic of; also used for indicating resemblance

-oid, -oidea, -oides, -odes, -oeidesFrom Greek, meaning resembling, or “like that.” There are many Latinized formsfrom variations of the Greek eidos, meaning form or likeness; idein, to know or to see; and eidenai, to know, literally to see. The “-o” is used as a connective. Seealso -idea listed above.

-ola, -olus, olumFrom Latin, diminutive

-osa, -osusFrom Latin, abundance

-ula, -ulum, -ulusFrom Latin, diminutive. A suffix such as -ulatum is a combination of -ula and -atum, possessing. Same as -ulata, having a smaller version of something.

The plants are ordered by their scientific names under ferns, monocots, and dicots. The common names may not cover what you are familiar with, but we have decided not to list all probable variations as the objective of this plant list is to understand the meaning of the scientific names.

Nonnative plants have “(xN)” appended to their common names.

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FERNS AND FERN-ALLIES

Polypodiaceae

Polypodium californicumCalifornia PolypodyPoly-, Greek for many-podium, from the Greek podion, little foot Polypodium, many feet, referring to the rhizome and its branches.

Pteridaceae

Pellaea andromedifoliaCoffee Fern, Coffee CliffbrakePellaea, from the Greek pellaio, dark colored, here referring to the dark stalks of this fern.andro-, shortened form of andromedea, referring to Andromeda, daughter of Ethiopian king Cepheus.andromedifolia, having leaves like those of Andromeda polifolia, the bog rosemary.

Selaginellaceae

Selaginella cinerascensMesa Spikemoss, Gray Spikemoss, Ashy SpikemossSelaginella, resembling a small Selago, a plant with moss-like features.cinerascens, gray or ashy-gray, from the Latin cinerarius, pertaining to ashes; cinis means ashes, or spent love.

MONOCOTS

AmaryllidaceaeAmaryllis

Allium haematochitonRed-Skin Onion, Wild OnionAllium, Latin for garlichaemato-, pertaining to blood; from the Greek haimo, blood or meaning blood red.-chiton, from Ancient Greek khiton and Latin chiton, tunic. A chiton was a loose, woolen tunic in Ancient Greece. Here chiton refers to the coating or skin of the bulb.haematochiton, blood-red skin

Asparagaceae

Agave shawii var. shawii

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Shaw's Agave, Coastal AgaveAgave, from the Greek agauós, noble, illustrious; here referring to the tall flower stalk.

shawii, in honor of Henry Shaw (1800 – 1899), English born industrialist, philanthropist, and founder of the Missouri Botanical Garden.

In Greek mythology, Agave was the daughter of Cadmus and Harmonia, and the mother of Pentheus. And there is another shawii as in Lycium shawii, which is named after W. B. Kennedy Shaw (1901– ?), an English-born forester in the Sudan.

What makes tequila? Agave tequilana, blue agave (agave azul) down in Mexico.

Chlorogalum parviflorumSmall-flower Soap Plant, Coast Soap Plant, AmoleChloro-, from the Greek chloros, greenish-galum, from the Greek gala, milkChlorogalum, green milkparvi-, smallparviflorum, small flower

The “green milk” most likely refers to whitish soap from a green plant, not that the (root) soap is green.

Dichelostemma capitatum ssp. capitatumBlue Dicks, Wild HyacinthDichelo-, from the Greek dichelo-, meaning cloven (hoof)-ostemma, from the Latin stemma, a wreath or garland (crown)Dichelostemma, a “toothed crown”capitatum, a “knob-shaped head” from the Latin capitatus, headed, or capit-, caput head; generally in reference to the inflorescence being a cluster at the end of a (mostly bare) stem.

So here, this is a plant with a toothed crown headed flower. The toothed crown could also refer to pointed appendages on the stamens.

Hesperoyucca whipplei (syn. Yucca whipplei)Chaparral Yucca, Our Lord's CandleHespero-, from the Latin hespero or hespera, meaning westernHesperoyucca, a western yucca plant (see below for Yucca)whipplei, named after Lt. Amiel Weeks Whipple by Charles Parry during the U.S.-Mexican Boundary Survey. Later Whipple was the topographical surveyor in charge of the 1853-4 Pacific Railroad Survey.

Yucca schidigeraMohave Yucca, Spanish DaggerYucca, a variant of yuca, from the Spanish for cassava in the Caribbean; presumably because Carl Linnaeus and others confused it with that plant.schidi-, from the Latin schidia or Ancient Greek scheggia, splinter

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-gera, has multiple usages, but roughly can mean “making.”

Together, schidigera can mean fiber making.

IridaceaeIris

The family name is based on the genus Iris, which is taken from Ancient Greek Iris, the messenger of the gods but also known as the goddess of the sea and the sky, or more notably the goddess of the rainbow.

Sisyrinchium bellumBlue-Eyed Grass, Western Blue Eyed GrassSisy-, from the Greek sys or Latin sus, allegedly meant to be a preface for pig, which is choiros.-rinchium, from the Greek rynchos, snoutSisyrinchium, literally pig snout. Pliny used the Greek Sisyrinchion for the Barbary nut iris (Moraea sisyrinchium). Here, the genus name refers to the roots being consumed by swine.bellum, from the Latin bellus, pretty, handsome

JuncaceaeRush

Juncus acutus ssp. leopoldiiSouthwestern Spiny Rush, Spike RushJuncus, Latin for rush. The name is possibly derived from iungere also jungere, to join or bind, because the stems were used for binding.acutus, Latin for sharp, sharpened, pointed.leopoldii, named after Leopold II (1797–1870), Grand Duke of Tuscan, by the Italian botanist Filippo Parlatore (1816–1877).

Liliaceae

Lily is from the Greek lilium.

Calochortus splendensSplendid Mariposa Lily, Lilac Mariposa LilyCalo-, from the Greek kalos, good or beautiful-chortus, grass; taken from Chorto, a seaside village in Greece, and by implication pasture or grassCalochortus, beautiful grasssplendens, from the Latin splendere, shine, glitter, or splendor, brilliance

So the plant is a beautiful, splendid grass, likely a reference to the long, basal leaves and the succeeding showy flower.

Calochortus weedii var. weediiWeed's Mariposa Lily, Yellow Mariposa Lilyweedii, named after John (James) Tweedie (1775–1862), Scottish botanist who

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began his exploration of Argentina when he was 52 years old.

Melanthiaceae

Toxicoscordion fremontii (syn. Zigadenus fremontii)Fremont's Camas, Star Lily, Fremont Death CamasToxico-, from the Latin toxicum or Greek toxicon, poison-scordion, a plant that smells like garlic; from the Greek scordion, garlicToxicoscordion, poisonous garlic; here naming after the resemblance of the bulb of the death camases to garlic (Allium sativum)fremontii, named after John Charles FremontZiga-, from the Greek zugon, yoke-denus, from the Greek aden or adenas, glandZigadenus, yoked gland

The common name death camas (as in Camassia in Agavoideae) is maybe more revealing; this whole plant is poisonous. The toxic alkaloid derived from the genus is even named zygadenine. The folklore is that the Lewis and Clark Expedition got sick after eating the bulbs. Without the flowers, it is easy to mistaken Zigadenus with Camassia.

OrchidaceaeOrchard

Piperia cooperiCooper’s Rein OrchidPiperia, named after Charles Vancouver Piper (1867–1926), agronomist at the U.S. Department of Agriculture, who compiled the first authoritative floral guide to the Pacific Northwest.cooperi, named after Dr. James Graham Cooper (1830–1902), who graduated as a physician, but worked as a geologist with the Geological Survey of California, and became an expert on biology and zoology during his survey expeditions.

PoaceaeGrassesThe family is from Ancient Greek poa, poie, or poia, for grass.

Distichlis spicataSaltgrassDis-, Greek for double or twice.Distichlis, in two rows; from the Latin distichos, having two lines; referring to leaves conspicuously two-rowed and glabrous.spicata, from the Latin spicatus, spiky; spica is head, ear of grain.

Ehrharta calycinaPerennial Veldt Grass (xN)Ehrharta, named after Jakob Friedrich Ehrhart (1742–1795), a German botanist and director of the Botanical Garden of Hannover.

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caly-, from Ancient Greek kalux, calyx or case of a bud, huskcalycina, calyx-like or with a persistent calyx

Ehrharta erectaPanic Veldt Grass (xN)erecta, Latin word for erect

Ehrharta longifloraLong-Flower Veldt Grass (xN)longi-, from the Latin longus, longlongiflora, flowers with long corolla

Melinis repensNatal Red Top, Natal Grass (xN)Melinis, no reliable source but cannot be related to honey here; possibly from an Ancient Greek name for a cereal, which might be a millet.repens, having creeping and rooting stems; from the Latin repere, creep, crawl.

Muhlenbergia microspermaLittleseed MuhlyMuhlenbergia, named after Gotthilf Henry Ernest Muhlenberg (1753–1815), a Lutheran minister in Pennsylvania and a botanist with grass as one of his specialties.micro-, from the Greek mikros, small-sperma, from the Greek sperma, seedmicrosperma, small-seeded

Stipa coronata (syn. Achnatherum coronatum)Giant Stipa, Crested Needle GrassStipa, from the Greek stuppe (Latin stuppa), tow, coarse flax, fiber; for the feathery or plumose inflorescence.coronata, crowned; from the Latin corona, crown; coronatus, adorned with wreaths.Achna-, from the Greek achne, chaff, glume.-atherum, from the Greek ather, barb, stalk.Achnatherum, awn-scaled, bristle-like, referring to the grass spikelet (the lemma).

Stipa pulchra (syn. Nassella pulchra)Purple Needle Grasspulchra, from the Latin pulcher, pretty, beautifulNass-, from the Latin nassa, a narrow neck wicker basket for catching fishNassella, a little basket; -ella, diminutive

So this California State Grass is probably good for making pretty little baskets.

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DICOTS

AdoxaceaeElderberry, Moschatel

Sambucus nigra ssp. caerulea (syn. Sambucus mexicana)Elderberry, Desert Elderberry, Mexican Elderberry, Blue ElderberrySambucus, from Ancient Greek sambuke, a stringed musical instrument made from elder wood.nigra, from the Latin niger, blackcaerulea, dark blue or pertaining to the sky, sea or rivers; from the feminine formof the Latin caeruleum, with caelum for sky or heaven, and suffix -ulum, diminutive.

AizoaceaeIce PlantFrom the Latin aizoon, an evergreen plant; in Ancient Greek, aei, forever; zoion, living thing.

Carpobrotus edulisHottentot Fig, Yellow Ice Plant (xN)Carpo-, from the Greek karpos, fruit-brotus, from the Greek brotos, edibleedulis, Latin for edible; edere is eat, consume, devour.

So this invasive plant has a very edible fruit. The common name Hottentot fig came from South Africa, where the fruit of the plant is used to make (tart) jam and pie.

Carpobrotus chilensisSea Fig (xN)chilensis, from or referring to Chile

The species name probably came from where it was first found, or introduced from South Africa.

AmaranthaceaeAmaranthThe family name is derived from the Greek amarantos, meaning unfading, perpetual, meant for long-lasting flowers, but could also apply to the hardiness ofmany of these plants.

Atriplex canescensFourwing Saltbush, Hoary SaltbushAtriplex, an ancient Latin name for this plant; from the Latin atriplex, kitchen herb, orach-vegetablecanescens, from the Latin canescens, covered in gray or grayish white, likely referring to hairs.

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Atriplex semibaccataAustralian Saltbush (xN)semi-, half-baccata, berry-like; from the Latin bacca, berry, fruit of treesemibaccata, somewhat berry-like

Bassia hyssopifoliaFivehook Bassia, Five Horn Bassia (xN)Bassia, named after Ferdinando Bassi (1710–1774), an Italian botanist and Prefect of the Bologna Botanical Garden.hyssopi-, from the Latin hysopum and Ancient Greek hussopos for aromatic herbsof the genus Hyssopus in the mint family Lamiaceae.hyssopifolia, having leaves like Hyssop.

Chenopodium muraleNettle-Leaved Goosefoot, Nettle Leaf Goosefoot (xN)Cheno-, from the Greek chen, or Ancient Greek khen, goose-podium, from the Greek podion, little foot; pous is foot.Chenopodium, goosefoot; in reference to the shape of the leaves in some species. murale, growing on walls; from the Latin murale, of or relating to a wall, or against a wall.

Extriplex californica (syn. Atriplex californica)California SaltbushEx-, from Latin ex, out; used as a prefix meaning on the outsideExtriplex, outside of Atriplex, where this plant was formerly placed under

Mesembryanthemum crystallinumCrystalline Ice Plant, Common Iceplant (xN)Mesembry-, from the Greek mesembria, midday; by implication, the south-anthemum, Greek for flowercrystallinum, from the Latin crystallinum, has property of crystal, crystalline

Mesembryanthemum nodiflorumSlender-Leaf Iceplant, Little Ice Plant (xN)nodi-, from the Latin nodus, knot or nodenodiflorum, flower with knot

Salsola tragusPrickly Russian Thistle, Russian Tumbleweed (xN)Sal-, from Latin (and Greek) sal, saltSalsola, from the Latin salsus, salty; referring to the fact that many of these plants have a high salt tolerance.tragus, from the Latin tragus, or Greek tragos, goat

Salicornia pacifica (syn. Sarcocornia pacifica, Salicornia virginica)Pacific Swampfire, Pacific Glasswort, Pacific PickleweedSali-, from Latin (and Greek) sal, salt

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-cornia, from the Latin cornus, dogwood, cornel-wood (Cornus is a genus in Cornaceae); possibly meaning horn in GreekSalicornia, salty horn-like branchesSar-, from the Greek sarx, fleshSarcocornia, fleshy horn-like branchespacifica, of or near the Pacific

Salicornia subterminalis (preferred syn. Arthrocnemum subterminale)Parish's Glasswort, Parish's Pickleweed-terminalis, terminal, from the Latin terminus, boundary, limit, endsubterminalis, almost or nearly terminalArthro-, from the Greek arthron, joint-cnemum, from the Greek kneme, knee; could also be knemis or knemidos, a leggingArthrocnemum, jointed leg or knee, referring to the stems

Suaeda esteroaEstuary Seablite, California SeabliteSuaeda, from an old Arabic name for this plantesteroa, from the Latin aestuarium, which itself is from aestus, tide, and the suffix -arium, place for. A place for the tide would be an estuary.

Suaeda taxifolia (Suaeda californica var. pubescens)Woolly Seablitetaxifolia, having leaves like that of the yew tree (Taxus baccata)

AnacardiaceaeSumac, also as the Cashew familyThe family name is from the Greek ana, upwards or apart/without, and cardium, related to the heart. The family is named after the cashew genus Anacardium in which the seed is located outside the core of the fruit, and thus without a heart.

Malosma laurina (syn. Rhus laurina)Laurel Sumac, California SumacMal-, from the Latin Malus, apple tree (here, not bad or evil)-osma, odor, smelllaurina, from the Latin Laurus, bay tree; laurina means like the Laurel.

The (unfolded) leaves resemble those of the Laurel tree (bay leaf that is used in cooking is from Laurus nobilis), and they smell like apple (when you crush the leaves or in the air on a warm day). The apple smell is rather faint, but it is a lot stronger and pleasant with the Sugar Bush (Rhus ovata).

Rhus integrifoliaLemonadeberry, Lemonade SumacRhus is the Greek name for Sumac.integri-, from the Latin integritas, completeness; integer or integra (feminine), complete, whole.

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integrifolia, with complete leaves

So the plant is a Sumac with whole, undivided leaves.

Toxicodendron diversilobumWestern Poison Oak, Pacific Poison OakToxico-, poison; from the Latin toxicum or Greek toxicon. In Latin, toxicum is a poison in which arrows are dipped, and in Greek, toxikos is for the bow or belonging to the bow, referring to a poison in which arrows are dipped.-dendron, tree; from Ancient Greek dendrites, of or pertaining to a tree.Toxicodendron, poison treediversi-, from the Latin diversum, diverse, different-lobum, from Ancient Greek lobos, lobediversilobum, diverse lobe, referring to the varied-shape leaves.

ApiaceaeCelery, aka carrot or parsleyThe family name is from the Latin apium for celery or parsley.

Foeniculum vulgareSweet Fennel (xN)Foeni-, from the Latin foenum, hay; in reference to the smell in other plants (certainly sweet fennel smells much better).Foeniculum, diminutive; small hay.vulgare, common; from the Latin vulgare, spread around, among the multitude; also vulgus, common people, multitude.

Lomatium lucidumShiny Lomatium, Biscuit RootLoma-, possibly from the Greek loma, bordered.Lomatium, little border, possibly a way to express the wing-like fruits.lucidum, from the Latin lucidus and Ancient Greek lucere, full of light, clear; bright.

ApocynaceaeDogbaneDerived from Latin apocynon or ancient Greek apokunon, meaning dog's bane, referring to plants poisonous to dogs. As for apokunon, apo- is from the Greek apo, away from or “off.” (In biochemistry, apo is the prefix for a protein in an inactive or unbound state.) And -kunon is from the Greek kuon, for dog.

Funastrum cynanchoides var. hartwegii (syn. Sarcostemma cynanchoides)Climbing Milkweed, Vining Milkweed, Fringed MilkvineFun-, from the Latin funis, rope-astrum, from the Latin astrum, celestial body, starFunastrum, literally a rope of starscynanchoides, resembling cynanchia, which is derived from the Latin cynanche, inflammation of the throat, a bad sore throat that’s like a dog’s collar; also in

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Greek, kunancho, or kuon anche, dog strangulation, referring to the pain.Sarco-, from the Greek sarx, flesh-stemma, from the Latin stemma, a wreath or garland (crown)Sarcostemma, fleshy crown

The plant is a rope (the stem) of stars (the flowers), but it is poisonous (even the leaves and fruits), and eating it will make you suffer like a sick dog.

Funastrum is in the subfamily Asclepiadoideae, named after Ascelpias, the Greekgod of medicine because many plants in here have medicinal uses.

AsteraceaeSunflowerFrom the Latin aster, star, a reference to the arrangement of the florets.

Achillea millefoliumCommon YarrowAchillea, named after Achilles, who used these plants to staunch the wounds of his soldiers at the siege of Troy.mille-, from the Latin mille, thousandmillefolium, thousand leaves

Amblyopappus pusillusPineapple Weed, Coast WeedAmblyo-, from Ancient Greek ambluopia, dimness of sight, or amblus, dull-pappus, from the Latin pappus, woolly, hairy seedpusillus, from the Latin pusillus, insignificant; tiny, wee

Poor little inconspicuous plant. But it smells good!

Ambrosia psilostachyaWestern RagweedAmbrosia, from the Latin ambrosia, food of the gods; in Ancient Greek, means immortality.psilo-, from the Greek psilos, bare-stachya, from the Greek stachys, spike

Immortal naked spikes, referring to the inflorescence.

Artemisia californicaCoastal Sagebrush, California SagebrushArtemisia, the Ancient Greek goddess of forests and hills

Artemisia dracunculusDragon Sagewort, Wild Tarragondracun-, from the Latin draco, dragondracunculus, little dragon

Baccharis pilularis ssp. consanguineaChaparral Broom, Coyote BrushBaccharis, the etymology is uncertain; could be from Latin baccar, bacchar, or

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baccaris, also in Greek Bakkaris, name for a plant having a fragrant root; the name could also be from Bacchus, the Roman god of wine and fertility.pilu-, from the Latin pilus, hairpilularis, having small hairy globules or ballsconsanguinea, from the Latin consanguinea, blood relative; here, blood colored

Baccharis salicifoliaMule Fat, Seep Willowsalicifolia, having leaves like willow, Salix

Baccharis salicina (Baccharis emoryi)Emory Baccharissalicina, willow-like

Baccharis sarothroidesBroom Baccharis, Desert Broomsarothroides, broom-like

Chaenactis glabriuscula var. glabriusculaYellow PincushionChaen-, from the Greek chaino, gape-actis, from the Greek aktis, rayChaenactis, gaping ray, referring to the discoid flowerglabri-, from the Latin glaber, smooth, hairlessglabriuscula, a little or rather smooth and hairless

Corethrogyne filaginifolia var. linifoliaSand Aster, Del Mar Sand AsterCorethro-, from the Greek korethron, a brush for sweeping-gyne, from the Greek gune, styleCorethrogyne, referring to brush-like style tipsfilaginifolia, having leaves like those of Filago, referring to the white, woolly threads on the leaf surface.lini-, resembling Linum, a genus in the family Linaceae; linum is Latin for flax.linifolia, having leaves like those of Linum

Filago is a genus in Asteraceae with the common name cottonroses or cudweeds.

Deinandra fasciculata (syn. Hemizonia fasciculata)Golden Tarweed, Fascicled TarweedDein-, from the Greek deinos, wondrous, fearful, terrible, excessive-andra, from the Greek andros, man, here meaning stamenDeinandra, awfully big stamen in the tiny disk flowersfasciculata, from the Latin fasciculus, little bundleHemi-, half-zonia, a band or circular mark (applies to the phyllaries)

Encelia californicaCalifornia Encelia, Bush Sunflower

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Encelia, named after Christoph Entzelt (1517–1583), a German clergyman and historian.

Eriophyllum confertiflorum var. confertiflorumGolden Yarrow, Yellow YarrowErio-, from the Greek erio, woollyEriophyllum, wooly leafconferti-, from the Latin, plural of confertus or conferta (feminine), meaning dense, crowded together.

So the plant is woolly leaved and densely flowered. Its common name came fromthe similar appearance of its inflorescence to the true yarrow, Achillea millefolium, which has white flowers.

Hazardia squarrosa var. grindelioidesSawtooth GoldenbushHazardia, named after Barclay Hazard (1852–1938), a California botanist.squarrosa, scaly or scale-like overlapping leaves; from the Latin squarrosus, scurfy, scabby.grindelioides, like or having the form of the genus Grindelia.

Heterotheca grandifloraTelegraph WeedHetero-, from the Greek heteros, different-theca, from the Greek theke, receptacle, ovaryHeterotheca, referring to the different achenes (dry fruits) of the ray and disk florets.grandi-, from the Latin grande, largegrandiflora, large flowers (arguable here)

Heterotheca sessiliflora ssp. sessilifloraFalse Goldenaster, Sessileflower False Goldenastersessili-, from the Latin sessilis, sittingsessiliflora, stalkless flowers

Isocoma menziesiiCoastal Goldenbush, Menzies' GoldenbushIso-, same-coma, from the Latin come, or Greek kome, hair, hair of the head.Isocoma, an equal hair-tuft, a reference to a pappus with two equal series of bristles.menziesii, named for Archibald Menzies (1754–1842), a Scottish botanist and surgeon.

Jaumea carnosaSalty Susan, Fleshy JaumeaJaumea, named after Jean Henri Jaume Saint-Hilaire (1772–1845), French naturalist and artist.

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carno-, from the Latin caro or carnis, flesh or meat, pulp of a fruit.-osa, from the Latin feminine suffix meaning full of, prone to.carnosa, fleshy, pulpy

Lasthenia gracilis Common GoldfieldsLasthenia, named after Lasthenia, the Athenian girl who dressed as a boy in orderto attend Plato’s classes.gracilis, slender and graceful; from the Latin gracilis, thin, slender

Layia platyglossaTidy TipsLayia, named after George Tradescant Lay (1799–1845), a British naturalist and missionary.platy-, from the Greek platus, flat, broad; referring to things that are flat but wide-glossa, from the Greek (and Latin) glossa, tongue.platyglossa, broad-tongued; here referring to the ray flowers.

Leptosyne maritima (syn. Coreopsis maritima)San Diego Sea DahliaLepto-, from the Greek leptos, slender, delicate, frail-syne, could be from the Greek syn or syneches, (joined) togetherCore-, from the Greek koris, a bug-opsis, from Greek, indicating a resemblanceCoreopsis, tick-like, referring to the tick-like seeds, aka tickseed

So now this is a slender plant by the sea, clearly a reference to its delicate leaves.

Osmadenia tenellaOsmadenia, Three-Spot, Rosin WeedOsma-, from the Greek osme, smell or odor-adenia, from the Greek aden or adenas, glandOsmadenia, odor gland; how this little plant makes the aromatic resin/rosin.tenella, from the Latin tenellus, delicate, tender

Pseudognaphalium biolettii (syn. Gnaphalium bicolor)Bicolor Cudweed, Bioletti's CudweedPseudognaphalium, false Gnaphalium, the cudweeds, another genus in Asteraceae. Gnaphalium is from the Greek gnaphalion, a plant whose soft white leaves are used as cushion stuffing.biolettii, named after Frederic Theodore Bioletti (1865–1939), an Englishman who moved to California, and was a professor of viticulture at U.C. Berkeley (notDavis).

The common name cudweed comes from the fact that Gnaphalium plants were once used to feed cows that had lost the ability to chew the cud.

Pseudognaphalium californicum (syn. Gnaphalium californicum)California Everlasting

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See Pseudognaphalium above.

Pseudognaphalium luteoalbum (syn. Gnaphalium luteoalbum)Everlasting Cudweed (xN)luteo-, from the Latin luteus, orange-yellow, saffron yellow, or lutum – the plant giving the dye or the dye; luteola is yellowish-album, from the Latin albus, whiteluteoalbum, yellowish white

Rafinesquia californicaCalifornia Chicory, White ChicoryRafinesquia, named after Constantine Samuel Rafinesque-Schmaltz (1783–1840), born near Constantinople but moved to Ohio in 1815, and made notable contributions to different fields, including botany.

Senecio californicusCalifornia Butterweed, California Groundsel, RagwortSenecio, from the Latin senex, aged, old man; referring to either the gray hairs onthe seeds or a whitish beard-like pappus.

Senecio vulgarisCommon Groundsel, Common Butterweed (xN)vulgaris, common; from the Latin vulgare, spread around, among the multitude

Stephanomeria diegensisSan Diego Wreath-PlantStephano-, from the Greek stephane, wreath or crown-meria, from the Greek meros, division, as separated from a larger groupdiegensis, of or from San Diego

Stephanomeria exiguaSmall Wreath-Plantexigua, from the Latin exiguus, small, meager

Stylocline gnaphaloidesEverlasting Nest-StrawStylo-, from the Greek stylus, meaning a style-cline, from the Greek clinos, slope or bendgnaphaloides, meaning resembling Gnaphalium, from the Greek gnaphalion, the herb cudweed, also cotton-grass, a plant whose soft white leaves are used as cushion stuffing.

Uropappus lindleyiSilver PuffsUro-, from the Greek oura, tail-pappus, from the Latin pappus, woolly, hairy seedUropappus, hairy seed with a taillindleyi, named after John Lindley (1799–1865), a British botanist and a

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professor of botany at University College, London.

Berberidaceae

Berberis nevinii (syn. Mahonia nevinii)Nevin's BarberryBerberis, Latinized Arabic name for the fruit.nevinii, named after Rev. Joseph Cook Nevin (1835–1913), who collected plants on Catalina Island and Santa Catalina Island.Mahonia, named after Bernard MacMahon (ca. 1775–1816) an Irish-American horticulturist.

BoraginaceaeBorage or forget-me-notThe name is derived from medieval Latin borrago, or Latin borra, short wool, rough hair. Many plants in this family are hairy.

Cryptantha intermediaCommon Cryptantha, Forget-Me-Not, NievitasCrypt-, from the Latin crypta, a vault, and in Ancient Greek kruptos, hidden.Cryptantha, hidden flower, a reference to the self-pollinating flowers of some other species in the genus.intermedia, from the Latin intermedia or intermedius, in the middle, intermediate

Cryptantha micromeresMinute-Flowered Cryptantha-meres, from the Latin merus, unmixed, pure, onlymicromeres, only small; in other fields of biology, a micromere is an unusually small cell (a blastomere) formed by unequal division of a fertilized egg.

Heliotropium curassavicumSalt Heliotrope, Wild Heliotrope, Chinese ParsleyHelio-, from the Greek helios, the sun-tropium, from the Greek trope, turningHeliotropium, turning with the sun, referring to many species in the genus flower when the sun is “turning” at the summer solstice.curassavicum, of or from Curacao, an island in the Dutch West Indies

Pholistoma membranaceumWhite Fiesta Flower, San Diego Fiesta FlowerPholis-, from the Greek pholis, scaled or horny scale-stoma, from the Greek stoma, mouth; figuratively an openingPholistoma, scaled openingmembrana-, from the Latin membrana, membrane, skinmembranaceum, membranous, skin-like

Plagiobothrys collinus var. californicusCalifornia Popcorn flower

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Plagio-, from the Greek plagios, oblique, sideways-bothrys, from the Greek bothros, a pit or scarPlagiobothrys, the nutlets have a scar or pitted face on the sidecollinus, from the Latin collinus, of or belonging to hills

Many people also refer Cryptantha sp. to as popcorn flowers because it is not easy to tell the difference. The distinction between Cryptantha and Plagiobothrysis largely based on the nutlets, the tiny nuts.

Plagiobothrys collinus var. gracilisSan Diego Popcorn Flowergracilis, from the Latin gracilis, slender, slim, thin

Plagiobothrys trachycarpusRough-Fruit Popcorn Flowertrachy-, from the Greek trachus, uneven, rough-carpus, from the Greek karpos, fruittrachycarpus, rough fruit

Boraginaceae, subfamily Hydrophylloideae

This subfamily was once Hydrophyllaceae, the Waterleaf family.

Eriodictyon crassifolium var. crassifoliumFelt-Leaf Yerba Santa, Thick-Leaf Yerba SantaErio-, from the Greek erion, hairy or woolly-dictyon, from the Greek diktuon, a net or seine for fishingEriodictyon, woolly net, referring mainly to the appearance of the underside of the leaves.crassi-, from the Latin crassus, fat, stoutcrassifolium, thick leaf

Eucrypta chrysanthemifolia var. chrysanthemifoliaCommon EucryptaEu-, from the Greek eu, well, good-crypta, from the Greek kruptos, concealed, hiddenEucrypta, well hidden; here referring to the hidden small seeds (inside a bristly fruit).chrys-, from the Latin chrysos, gold – but not really used directly here.chrysanthemi-, like the Chrysanthemum, flower ofchrysanthemifolia, leaves like that of Chrysanthemum

Phacelia cicutaria ssp. hispidaCaterpillar PhaceliaPhacelia, from the Greek phakelos, cluster, bundle, a reference to how the flowers are packed tightly in coiled spikes.cicutaria, having leaves that resemble the leaves of Cicuta, (a genus in Apiaceae that includes the poison hemlock).hispida, from the Greek hispidus, rough, shaggy, hairy

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Phacelia distansCommon Phacelia, Distant Phaceliadistans, distant, separate; from the Latin distare, to stand apart

Phacelia grandifloraGiant-Flower Phaceliagrandiflora, large flower

Phacelia parryiParry's Phaceliaparryi, after Dr. Charles Christopher Parry

Phacelia ramosissima South Coast Branching Phaceliaramos-, from the Latin ramus, a branchramosissima, many or very branched

BrassicaceaeMustards, aka crucifers, or cabbageThe family name is derived from the Latin brassica, cabbage. It is worth noting that the former name of this family is Cruciferae, meaning cross-bearing, a reference to the cross-like shape formed by the four petals of the flowers.

Cardamine californica var. integrifoliaMilkmaids, California ToothwortCardamine, bittercress; from the Greek kardamon, referring to an Indian spice.

Caulanthus heterophyllusSan Diego JewelflowerCaul-, from the Greek kaulos, stem, stalkCaulanthus, stem-flower, flowers on a stalkhetero-, from the Greek heteros, different, variousheterophyllus, different leaves (on the same plant)

Lepidium virginicum var. menziesiiMenzies' pepperweedLepidium, from the Greek lepidion or lepis, a small flake or scale-flavum, from the Latin meaning yellowvirginicum, of or from Virginiamenziesii, named after Archibald Menzies (1754–1842), a Scottish physician and botanist, who also identified Pseudotsuga menziesii, Douglas fir, a common name that is very misleading.

The small scale is in reference to the shape of the seed pods. (Note: Lepida or Lepidus would mean elegant or graceful. Big difference!)

Matthiola incanaStock, Hoary Stock, Tenweeks Stock (xN)Matthiola, named after Pietro Andrea Gregorio Mattioli (1501–1577), an Italian

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physician and botanist.incana, from the Latin incanus, grayish or hoary

CactaceaeCactusThe family name cactus in Latin means thorny or spiny, and in Ancient Greek was kaktos.

Cylindropuntia californica Snake ChollaCylindro-, from the Greek cylindro, cylinder-opuntia, referring to the genus Opuntia (more on Opuntia below).Cylindropuntia, an Opuntia that is cylindrical in shape.

Cylindropuntia prolifera (formerly Opuntia prolifera)Coastal Chollaprolifera, from the Latin proles, offspring, meaning bearing or producing offshoots.

Ferocactus viridescens Coast Barrel Cactus, San Diego Barrel CactusFero-, from the Latin ferus, fierceFerocactus, a cactus with fierce, heavy spinesvirid-, from the Latin viridis, fresh, greenviridescens, greening, becoming green

Opuntia ficus-indicaIndian Fig (xN)Opuntia, referring to Opus, an Ancient Greek city; Opuntia was the name used by Pliny for other cactus-like plants which grew around the town.ficus-, from the Latin Ficus carica, an edible fig-indica, of or from India

The India here would be America-India.

Opuntia littoralisCoast Prickly-Pearlittoralis, from the Latin litoralis, of the seashore; litus is shore, seashore.

CaprifoliaceaeHoneysuckleThe family name means being related to the goat leaf. The name is derived from the Latin caprifolium, with capra, goat, and folium, leaf; possibly goats like somespecies of honeysuckles.

Lonicera subspicata var. deundataJohnston's HoneysuckleLonicera, named after Adam Lonitzer (1528–1586), a German herbalist, physician and botanist.

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-spicata: from the Latin spicatus, spiky; spica is head, ear of grain.subspicata, somewhat spikydenudata, from the Latin denudatum, to denude or to make bare.

CaryophyllaceaePink, aka carnationThis family resembles Caryophyllus, walnut leaf. In Greek, karya or kaura is walnut, and karyophyllon is a walnut leaf, a usage in reference to the aroma of walnut leaves that can be found in some species in this family. Incidentally, there was a goddess associated with Artemis named Karya who was sometimes referred to as the walnut goddess. There is also a village in Greece named Karya famous for its walnut groves.

Cardionema ramosissimaTread Lightly, Sand MatCardio-, from the Greek kardio, heart-nema, from the Greek nema, threadCardionema, heart thread, referring to the inversely heart-shape stamens.ramos-, from the Latin ramus, a branchramosissima, many or very branched

Silene laciniata ssp. laciniata (syn. Silene laciniata ssp. major)Southern Pink, Mexican Pink, Fringed Indian PinkSilene, possibly from the Greek sialon, saliva, referring to sticky secretions on the stem.laciniata, from the Latin lacinia, edge, fringe; laciniatus, fringed, torn; here likely referring to the deeply fringed, narrow petals.

CistaceaeRock rose

The family name is based on the genus Cistus, which is derived from the Greek kistos for rock rose.

Helianthemum scopariumPeak Rush-Rose, Rock RoseHeli-, from the Greek helios, the sunHelianthemum, a flower that turns to the sun.scopar-, from the Latin scopare, broom, brushscoparium, like a broom, broom-like

ConvolvulaceaeMorning gloryThe family name is derived from the Latin convolvere, to interweave, interlace, or roll around, referring to the twining stems.

Calystegia macrostegia ssp. intermediaSouth Coast Morning Glory, California Glory Bind

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Caly-, from the Greek kalux, calyx-stegia, from the Greek stege or stegos, a roof or coverCalystegia, a covered calyx (by the bracts)macrostegia, large coverintermedia, intermediate; from the Latin intermedius, with prefix inter, between, and medius, middle

Calystegia macrostegia ssp. tenuifoliaSan Diego Morning-Glory, Narrow-leaf Morning-Glorytenui-, from the Latin tenuis, slender, thintenuifolia, thin, slender leaves

Convolvulus arvensis(Common) Field Bindweed (xN)Convolvulus, from the Latin convolvere, meaning to twine around.arvensis, from the field or farm in Latin; arvum is arable land, field.

Cuscuta californica var. californicaChaparral Dodder, Witch's HairCuscuta, an Ancient Latin name derived from Arabic for dodder.

Cuscuta pacifica var. pacificaSalt Marsh Dodderpacifica, of the Pacific

Cuscuta pacifica var. papillataMendocino Dodderpapill-, from the Latin papilla, nipplepapillata, nipple-like, referring to bud-like protuberances.

Dichondra occidentalisWestern Dichondra, Western PonysfootDi-, two-chondra, from the Greek khondros or chondros, for cartilage but also grain, grain of salt, or seed.Dichondra, literally double grain; here referring to the deeply lobed fruit.occidentalis, of or from the west, western; from the Latin occidens, connected with sunset, western.

CleomaceaeSpiderflower

Peritoma arborea (syn. Isomeris arborea)BladderpodPeri-, from the Greek peri, around-toma, from the Greek tome or tomos, to cut or to section.Peritoma, cut around, a reference to the calyx base being circumscissile.arborea, from the Latin arboreus, tree, or tree-like

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-meris, from the Greek meris, a partIsomeris, equal parts, referring to the equally divided seed pod.

CrassulaceaeStonecrop

The family name is derived from the Latin crassus, meaning thick or stout.

Crassula connataSand Pigmyweed, Pigmy StonecropCrass-, from the Latin crassus, fat, stout, thick-ula, diminutiveCrassula, small and stoutconnata, from the Latin connatus, meaning twin or double, and which itself is from connasci, at same time, rising together.

The species name connata refers to the opposite leaves that join together at their base.

Dudleya brevifolia (syn. Dudleya blochmaniae ssp. brevifolia)Short-leaved Dudleya, Short-leaved LiveforeverDudleya, named after William Russel Dudley (1849–1911), a botanist who became the head of the Botany Department at Stanford University from 1892 to 1911.brevi-, from the Latin brevis, shortbrevifolia, having short leaves.blochmaniae, named after Ida May Twitchell Blochman (1854–1931), a botanist who was also a teacher in Santa Barbara county.

Dudleya edulisLady Fingers, Mission Dudleya, Fingertipsedulis, edible, from the Latin edere, eat

Dudleya lanceolataLance-Leaf Dudleya, Lanceleaf Liveforeverlanceolata, lance-shaped, referring to the leaves

Dudleya pulverulentaChalk Dudleya, Chalk Lettuce, Chalk Liveforeverpulver-, from the Latin pulvis, dust, powder-ulenta, from the Latin suffix -ilentus, -olentus, meaning abounding in, full ofpulverulenta, also Latin pulverulentus, very dusty

CucurbitaceaeGourdThe family name means gourd-like, from the Latin cucurbita, gourd, and the Greek cucumis is likely the basis for the fruit, cucumber.

Marah macrocarpusWild Cucumber, Cucamonga Manroot, Chilicothe

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Marah, meaning bitter from Hebrew; a reference to the bitter waters of Marah in the Bible.-carpus, from the Greek karpos, fruitmacrocarpus, large fruit

So the plant is a bitter big fruit! But the entire plant is bitter.

EricaceaeHeath or heatherErica is Latin for heather.

Arctostaphylos glandulosa ssp. crassifoliaDel Mar ManzanitaArcto-, from the Greek arktos, a bear.-staphylos, from the Greek staphule, a cluster of grapes, referring to the common name of the first-known species.Arctostaphylos, a bunch of grapes for bears, referring to the fact that bears like feeding on the grape-like fruits.glandulosa, from the Latin glandula, provided with glands, referring to secreting structures on the leaf surface.crassifolia, thick leaves

Xylococcus bicolorMission ManzanitaXylo-, from the Greek xulon, timber and by implication, wood-coccus, from the Greek kokkos, grain or a kernel of seed, the stone of the fruitXylococcus, woody seedbi-, from Latin bi or bis, two or twicebicolor, two color, referring to the two sides of the leaves

EuphorbiaceaeThe family name is derived from Euphorbia, after Euphorbus, the Greek physician to Juba II, King of Mauretania.

Croton californicusCalifornia CrotonCroton, from the Greek kroton, a tick, referring to how the seeds look in some species.

Euphorbia miseraCliff Spurge, Bush EuphorbiaThe root of the genus is the same as the family name.misera, from the Latin miser, miserable, wretched; a reference to the poisonous milky sap that is irritant to the eye and may cause blindness.

Euphorbia polycarpa (syn. Chamaesyce polycarpa)Mat Spurge, Small-seed Sandmatpolycarpa, many-fruited, having many fruits

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Chamae-, from the Greek chamai, prostrate, low, dwarf-syce, from the Greek sukon, a figChamaesyce, fig or fruit on the ground

FabaceaeLegume, aka pea, or beanThe name is from the Latin faba, bean. Fabius, an Old World Roman family name, was named after beans. The word legume is from the Latin legumen, meaning a pod-vegetable.

Acacia longifoliaSydney Golden Wattle (xN)Acacia, thorny, spiny; from Ancient Greek akakía, which is derived from ake, a sharp point, in reference to the thorns.longi-, from the Latin longus, longlongifolia, long leaves

Acmispon glaber var. glaber (syn. Lotus scoparius ssp. scoparius)Coastal DeerweedAcmispon, a name chosen by C.S. Rafinesque-Schmaltz, presumably from the Greek akme for a (high) point, top, or edge.glaber, from the Latin glaber, smooth, hairless, glabrousLotus, from Latin for flower of forgetfulness; in Latin, lotus or lota also means elegant or fashionable.scopar-, from the Latin scopare, broom, brushscoparius, like a broom, broom-like

Astragalus trichopodus var. lonchusOcean Locoweed, Santa Barbara Milkvetch, RattleweedAstragalus, from the Greek astragalos, ankle bonetricho-, trich-, from Ancient Greek thríx, hairytrichopodus, hairy podlonchus, from the Greek lonche, a spear

The common name loco means crazy in Spanish; the plant makes a neurotoxin that poisons livestock and horses. And Rattleweed refers to the rattling seed pods.The ankle bone refers to a curved bone in the foot that is shaped like some of the pea pods, but it also refers to the rattling noise in seed pods. Greeks used ankle bones for dice that makes the noise.

Lupinus hirsutissimusStinging LupineLupinus, from the Latin lupus or lupinus, wolfhirsuti-,from the Latin hirsutus, hairy, bristlyhirsutissimus, very hairy

The reference to wolf might be due to the belief that these plants could exhaust the soil of nutrients, which is the opposite of the truth for legumes. (A lupine was

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once called a wolf-bean.) The other possibility is that the name has to do with killing sheep because many species are poisonous, especially sheep.

Lupinus truncatesCollared Lupinetruncatus, cut off; from the Latin truncare, maim, mutilate

FagaceaeBeechBeech in Latin is fagus.

Quercus agrifoliaCoast Live OakQuercus, the Latin word for oak; possibly derived from Old Celtic quer, fine, andcuez, tree.agri-, from the Latin, fieldagrifolia, here, generally interpreted as having rough leaves.

Quercus dumosa Nutt.Nuttall's Scrub Oakdumosa, from the Latin dumus, thorny bush

So Quercus dumosa does mean scrub oak.

Gentianaceae

Zeltnera venusta (formerly Centaurium venustum)Canchalagua, Charming CentauryZeltnera, named after Louis Zeltner (1938– ) and Nicole Zeltner (1934– ), Swiss botanists who studied the Gentians.venusta, from the Latin venustas, attractive, charming, lovely; beauty is a salient quality possessed by the goddess Venus.Centaurium, the Latin word for centaury; from the Greek kentauros, centaur; stillthe basis of the current common name.

Canchalagua is named after Chiron, the wise centaur who tutored Hercules and taught the art of medicine to Asclepius. This whole plant was made into a tea for fever.

GrossulariaceaeGooseberry

Ribes speciosumFuchsia-Flower GooseberryRibes, from Medieval Latin ribes, currant. The name could also be from the Arabic ribas, rhubarb.speciosum, showy, good-looking; from the Latin species, appearance. The word species itself is from specio, to see, and the suffix -ies, signifying abstract noun.

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LamiaceaeMintThe mint family of plants is named after the genus Lamium, which was Latin for the deadnettle (or dead-nettles). This common name is in reference to the very distantly related stinging nettles (Urticaceae). The mint family was once named Labiatae, from the Latin labia for lip. The name refers to flowers that often have petals fused into an upper lip and a lower lip.

Salvia apianaWhite SageSalvia, from the Latin salvus, well, unharmed, sound; salveo means “I am well.”apiana, from the Latin apianus, of or belonging to bees; apis is bee.

Salvia is also commonly taken to mean to heal or to be healthy, a reference to the medicinal uses of many species in this genus.

Salvia columbariaeChia Sagecolumbariae, from the Latin columba, pigeon, dove; columbarius dove-like, pigeon-like

No one knows how this little plant is dove-like. The chia seeds from stores are harvested from Salvia hispanica, which was cultivated by the Aztecs. Chia is derived from the Nahuatl word chian, meaning oily.

Salvia melliferaBlack Sagemellif-, from the Latin, mel, honey-fera, from the Latin fero or ferre, to bear, to carry.mellifera, honey-bearing, meaning flowers are rich in nectar.

The European honey bee is Apis mellifica, for honey-making. The cooking spice is common sage, Salvia officinalis, from Europe, where it was used as medicine as well. The word officinalis is Latin, meaning belonging to an officina, an office or workshop. The officina in monasteries was also the storeroom for medical herbs. Linnaeus applied the name to plants with medicinal, culinary, or other practical uses.

MalvaceaeMallow

The family name is from the Latin malva, referring to mallow plants in the Mediterranean region.

Malacothamnus fasciculatusChaparral Bushmallow, Mesa False-MallowMalaco-, from the Greek malakos or malache, soft-thamnus, from the Greek thamnos, shrubMalacothamnus, a soft shrub, referring to the leavesfasciculatus, from the Latin fasciculus, little bundle

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MontiaceaeMiner’s Lettuce Family

This family is named after the genus Montia, which itself is named after Giuseppe Monti (1682-1760), an Italian professor of botany at Bologna, and a director of the Bologna Botanical Garden.

Calandrinia maritime (syn. Cistanthe maritima) Seaside Red Maids, Seaside CalandriniaCalandrinia, named after Jean Louis Calandrini (1703–1758), Swiss botanist, and professor of mathematics and philosophy in Geneva.Cistus, from the Greek kistos, for rock-rose, a genus in the family CistaceaeCistanthe, like the rock-rose flower

Claytonia perfoliata ssp. mexicana Mexican Miner's LettuceClaytonia, named after John Clayton (1694 or 1695–1773), English-born colonialplant collector in Virginia.per-, from Latin per, throughperfoliata, through a leaf; referring to a leaf surrounding a stem as if the stem perforates the leaf.mexicana, of or from Mexico

NyctaginaceaeFour O'ClockThe name for these night-blooming plants is from the Greek nyxtos or nyktos, meaning night. Nyx was the primordial goddess of night.

Abronia maritimeRed Sand Verbena, Seaside Sand VerbenaAbro-, from the Greek habros, graceful or delicateAbronia, being graceful or delicate

The gracefulness refers to the appearance of the bracts below the flowers.

Abronia umbellata var. umbellataBeach Sand Verbena, Purple Sand VerbenaAbronia, from the Greek abros, graceful or delicate, referring to either the bracts below the flowers, or here, how the stems “dance” across the sand.umbellata, in umbels, referring to the inflorescence.

Mirabilis laevis var. crassifolia (syn. Mirabilis californica)Coastal Wishbone Plant, Coast Four-O'ClockMirabilis, from the Latin mirus, wonderful, marvelouslaevis, from the Latin laevis, smoothcrassi-, from the Latin crassus, fat, stoutcrassifolia, thick leaves

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OnagraceaeEvening PrimroseThe family name is possibly from the Ancient Greek name for Onagra, once usedfor fireweed and a member of this family. Another possibility is that the name is from Onagros, a dark yellowish flower near the Caspian Sea.

Camissoniopsis bistorta (formerly Camissonia bistorta)California Suncup-opsis, from the Greek opsis, vision, sight, appearanceCamissoniopsis, having the appearance of Camissonia.Camissonia, named after Adelbert von Chamisso (Camisso, 1781–1838), a French-born German poet and botanist, who wrote the story about a man who sold his shadow. He went on an expedition around the world and discovered several new species in California, including the California poppy. But he named the plant after his friend Johann Friedrich von Eschscholtz, who was also on the expedition.-torta, from the Latin torquere, turn, twistbistorta, twice-twisted

Camissoniopsis cherianthifolia ssp. suffruticosa(formerly Camissonia cherianthifolia ssp. suffruticosa) Beach Suncup, Beach Primrosecheir-, from the Greek cheir, hand-anthi-, from the Greek for flowercheiranthi-, resembling the genus Cheiranthus in the family Brassicaceae. The reference to the hand is perhaps from a custom of carrying these flowers in the hand as a bouquet.cheiranthifolia, having foliage like the Cheiranthus.suffruticosa, somewhat shrubby; possibly from Italian suffruticose, which in turn may be derived from the Latin suffrutex, more or less meaning a subshrub.

OrobanchaceaeBroomrapeThe family name is from the Greek orobanche, which itself is from orobos, a vetch, and ancho or anchone, to strangle, referring to a plant that was parasitic onsome vetch (Vicia, a legume).

Castilleja affinis ssp. affinisCoast Paintbrush, Red Paintbrush, Indian PaintbrushCastilleja, in honor of Domingo Castillejo (1744–1793), Professor of Botany in Cadiz, Spain.-finis, from the Latin finis, boundaryaffinis, altering Latin ad- for add or near to, affinis means neighboring, adjacent, but can be used to imply related or similar to.

So nothing specific in the name, possibly meaning resembling similar plants in the family.

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Castilleja foliolosaWoolly Indian Paintbrush, Felt Paintbrush, Woolly Paintbrush-losa, in Spanish, losa is a slab or flagstone.foliolosa, having small leaves, or having leaflets.

Cordylanthus rigidus ssp. setiger (syn. Cordylanthus rigidus ssp. setigerus, Cordylanthus filifolius)Bird's BeakCordyl-, from the Greek kordyle, clubCordylanthus, a flower that looks like a club (head).rigidus, rigidseti-, from the Latin saeta or seta, hair-iger, from the Latin gero, carry, bearsetiger, setigerus, bearing bristlesfili-, from the Latin filum, thread, filamentfilifolius, thread-like foliage

OxalidaceaeWood SorrelThis family is named after the genus Oxalis, the wood sorrels.

Oxalis pes-capraeBermuda Buttercup, Sourgrass, Bermuda sorrel (xN)Oxalis, from the Latin oxalis, garden sorrel. Another form in Ancient Greek is oxús. The name refers to the sour-tasting oxalic acid in the stem and leaves. The common name sorrel is taken from the sheep’s sorrel, Rumex acetosa (family Polygonaceae), which has a high content of oxalates.pes-, foot, derived from Ancient Greek pous.caprae, from the Latin genitive of caper, billy goat or he-goat.pes-caprae, goat’s foot. Even though the resemblance is not close, the shape of two (of six) leaflets presumably reminded Linnaeus of a goat’s foot.

PapaveraceaePoppyThe family name came from Latin pappa, milk, presumably many plants have latex which resembles milk. Papaver is Latin for poppy or poppy seed.

Dendromecon rigidaBush Poppy, Tree PoppyDendro-, from the Greek dendron, tree-mecon, Greek for poppy is mekon.Dendromecon, poppy treerigida, rigid; from the Latin rigere, be stiff

Eschscholzia californicaCalifornia PoppyEschscholzia, named after Dr. Johann Friedrich Gustav von Eschscholtz (1793–

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1831), a Baltic German physician and botanist.

See Camissonia bistorta above on why the plant is named after him.

PhrymaceaeLopseed

Diplacus puniceus (syn. Mimulus aurantiacus var. puniceus, Mimulus puniceus)Coast Monkey Flower, Red Bush Monkey FlowerDiplacus, from the Greek diploos, double, two-fold; dis is double or twice.puniceus, from the Latin puniceus, scarlet, crimsonMimulus, from the Greek mimos, or Latin mimus, mime, actor in mimesaurantiacus, also aurantius, Latin for orange-colored, the species found more inland.

So now there is no more mimicking; this plant has dark red doublet flowers.

Diplacus brevipes (syn. Mimulus brevipes)Wide-Throat Monkey Flower, Slope Semiphorebrevi-, from the Latin brevis, short, little-pes, from the Latin pes, footbrevipes, short foot

PlantaginaceaePlantainThe family name is derived from the Latin planta, meaning sole of the foot, or young shoot detached for propagation, and plantago for plantain.

Antirrhinum kelloggii (syn. Neogaerrhinum strictum)Climbing Snapdragon, Twining Snapdragon, Lax SnapdragonAnti-, Greek for against, opposite-rrhinum, possibly from the Greek rhis, noseAntirrhinum, in Ancient Greek antirrhinon is calf’s snout; in spite of the use of anti-, the term Antirrhinum is interpreted as meaning “nose-like.”kelloggii, named after Dr. Albert Kellogg (1813–1887), physician and botanist, and one of the founders of the California Academy of Sciences.Neo-, a combining form of the Greek neos for new, revived, modified.-gae-, derived from Gaea, the Greek goddess who symbolizes the Earth.Neogaerrhinum, possibly a new goddess nose in reference to the flowerstrictum, interpreted as upright; the Latin word strictus means tight, close.

Antirrhinum nuttallianum ssp. Nuttallianum (syn. Sairocarpus nuttallianus)Nuttall's Snapdragon, Wild Snapdragonnuttallianum, named after Thomas Nuttall.

Nuttallanthus texanus (syn. Linaria Canadensis)Large Blue Toadflax, Oldfield ToadflaxNuttallanthus, named after Thomas Nuttall.texanus, of or from Texas

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Linaria, flax-like; from the Latin linum, flax, linen cloth, threadcanadensis, of or from Canada

Plantago erectaDot-Seed Plantain, Dwarf Plantain, California plantainPlantago, Latin for plantain; from the Latin plata, sole of the foot; referring to young shoot detached for propagation. The Latin plat or Greek platus means flat, spread out.erecta, erect, upright; from the Latin verb erigere, raise, erect

PlumbaginaceaeLeadwort or plumbagoPlumbago is derived from the Latin plumbum, for lead, and ago, a Latin plant name ending used to indicate a resemblance.

Limonium californicumWestern March-Rosemary, Sea-LavenderLimonium, from the Greek leimon, meadow; inhabiting meadows.

Limonium pereziiPerez's Marsh-Rosemary, Statice (xN)perezii, named after after Jorge Victor Perez (1869–1920), a physician and horticulturist from the Canary Islands.

PolemoniaceaePhlox, or Jacob's-ladderThe family name is from the Greek polemonion, plants that might have been usedby Polemon of Cappadocia.

Linanthus dianthiflorusFarinose Ground Pink, Fringed PinkLin-, from the Greek linon, or the Latin Latin linum, flaxLinanthus, flax flowerdianthi-, like the divine flower or the flower of Zeus; from the Greek dios, divine, and anthos, flower.dianthiflorus, like the flowers of Dianthus (a genus in Caryophyllaceae).

Other than being pinkish, the resemblance of Linanthus to Dianthus is small.

Navarretia hamata Hooked Pincushion Plant, Prickly Skunk FlowerNavarretia, named after Francisco Fernandez Navarrete (d. 1742), a Spanish physician, botanist, and philosopher.hamata, hooked or hook-shaped; from the Latin hamus, hook.

PolygonaceaeKnotweed, or buckwheat in the United StatesThe name is based on the genus Polygonum, derived from the Greek polus or poly, meaning many, and gonu or goni, meaning the knee or joint, referring to the

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many swollen nodes that the stems may have.

Chorizanthe orcuttiana Orcutt's Spineflower, San Diego SpineflowerChori-, from the Greek chorizo, to place room between, to divide (not pork sausage!)Chorizanthe, divided flowers; may actually be referring to divided calyx.orcuttiana, named after Charles Russell Orcutt (1864–1929), a naturalist who moved to San Diego from Vermont; among people whom he worked with was Dr. Charles Parry.

Chorizanthe polygonoides var. longispina Knotweed Spineflower, Long Spined Spineflowerpolygonoides, resembling the genus Polygonum, also in Polygonaceaelongi-, long-spina, from the Latin spina, spine, thornlongispina, long-spined

Chorizanthe procumbensProstrate Spineflower, Spiny Herbprocumbens, procumbent, prostrate; from the Latin procumbere, sink down, lie down

Chorizanthe staticoides Turkish Ruggingstaticoides, could be resembling Statice, but it is a common name.static-, could be from the Latin staticus, static; if so, staticoides means resembling static.

Eriogonum fasciculatum var. fasciculatumCalifornia Buckwheat, Flat-Top BuckwheatErio-, from the Greek erion, hairy or woolly-gonum, from the Greek gonu, kneeEriogonum, hairy or woolly joints (of some species of the genus)fasciculatum, from the Latin fasciculus, little bundle

Eriogonum fasciculatum var. foliolosumInland California Buckwheat-losa, in Spanish, losa is a slab or flagstone.foliolosum, small leaf, or leaflet

Eriogonum parvifoliumBluff Buckwheat, Seacliff Buckwheatparvi-, from the Latin parvis or parvus, small, littleparvifolium, small leaf

Mucronea californica California Spineflower

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Mucronea, from the Latin mucro, sword, sharp pointMucronea, being sharp-pointed; referring to the sharp bristles (awns) of the bracts.

Pterostegia drymarioidesGranny's Hairnet, ThreadstemPter-, Ptero-, from the Greek pteron, wing, feather-stegia, from the Greek stegos, a coveringPterostegia, covered wingdrymarioides, meaning like the genus Drymaria in the Caryophyllaceae (Pink) family. Drymaria is derived from the Greek drymos, forest, which itself is probably from Old Celtic.

What we see is a tiny forest of wings.

PrimulaceaePrimrose

Primula clevelandii var. clevelandii (syn. Dodecatheon clevelandii) Padre’s Shooting StarPrimula, from the Latin primulus, very first; primus is first, foremost; here meaning first blooming.clevelandii, named after Daniel Cleveland (1838–1929), an authority on ferns; founded the herbarium of the San Diego Natural History Museum, and one of thefounding members of the San Diego Natural History Society.Dodeca-, from the Greek dodeka, two and ten, a dozen-theon, from the Greek theos, a deityDodecatheon, twelve gods

Ranunculaceae Buttercup

The family name is from the Latin ranunculus, meaning little frog (rana), coming from the observation that many species tend to grow in moist places.

Clematis pauciflora Ropevine Clematis, Small Leaved Clematis, Virgin’s BowerClematis, from Ancient Greek klematis, a name for a climbing plant with long, lithe branches; in Greek, klema is a limb or broken off shoot.pauciflora, few flowers

Stating that this plant has very few flowers may be subjective. Same with the common name that it is small leaved.

Delphinium cardinale Scarlet Larkspur, Cardinal LarkspurDelphinium, from the Greek name delphinion for the larkspur. The Greek name isderived from delphis for dolphin, a reference to the fact that the flowers of some species resemble the back of a dolphin.

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cardinale, referring to the scarlet red of the cape and dresses of the Cardinals.

Delphinium parryi Parry’s Larkspur, San Bernardino larkspurparryi, named after Dr. Charles Parry.

RhamnaceaeBuckthornRhamnos is Ancient Greek for buckthorn.

Ceanothus verrucosusWart-Stem Ceanothus, California Lilac, White LilacCeanothus, from the Greek keanothus, some spiny plantverruco-, from the Latin verruca, wartverrucosus, warty, wart-like

Rhamnus crocea (syn. Rhamnus crocea ssp. crocea)Redberry Buckthorn, Spiny RedberryRhamnus, from the Latin rhamnus, or Ancient Greek rhamnos, thorny bushcrocea, from the Latin croceus, yellow, golden, saffron-colored (referring to flowers here)

Rhamnus crocea (syn. Rhamnus crocea ssp. pilosa)Hollyleaf Buckthornpilosa, from Latin or Greek pilosus, hairy; pilus, hair

So the two subspecies crocea and pilosa are now together in one species.

RosaceaeRoseRosa is Latin for rose.

Adenostoma fasciculatumChamise, GreasewoodAdeno-, from the Greek aden or adenos, gland-stoma, from the Greek stoma, mouth; figuratively an openingAdenostoma, gland openings (of the calyx)fasciculatum, from the Latin fasciculus, little bundle

Cercocarpus minutiflorusSan Diego Mountain Mahogany, Smooth Mountain MahoganyCerco-, from the Greek kerkos, tail-carpus, from the Greek karpos, fruit (as plucked, so also means wrist)Cercocarpus, fruit with a tail-like plumeminuti-, from the Latin minutus, small, insignificantminutiflorus, small flowers

Heteromeles arbutifoliaToyon, Christmas Berry, California Holly

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Hetero-, from the Greek hetero, different-meles, from the Greek malus, appleHeteromeles, possibly referring to the variation of fruits among different species.arbuti-, from the Latin arbutus, the strawberry tree Arbutus unedoarbutifolia, having leaves like the strawberry tree.

The leaves of strawberry indeed are long, elliptical, with a serrated margin.

Prunus ilicifoliaHollyleaf Cherry, Evergreen CherryPrunus, from Ancient Greek proumnon, and Vulgar Latin pruna, plumilici-, from the Latin ilex, holm oak (Quercus ilex), aka holly oak. There are multiple meanings of holm or its derived forms, but one of them was an obsolete outside dialect for holly.ilicifolia, having leaves like a holly.

Prunus ilicifolia ssp. lyonii (syn. Prunus lyonii) Catalina Cherrylyonii, named after William Scrugham Lyon (1851–1916), a farmer, and California's first State Forester, and who collected on Santa Catalina Island.

RubiaceaeMadder, aka coffee, bedstrawThe family name is derived from the Latin ruber for red or painted red, and rubia, red dye. Madder is the red-purple dye made from the root of these plants.

Galium angustifolium ssp. angustifoliumNarrow-Leaf BedstrawGalium, milk-like; from the Greek gala, milkangusti-, from the Latin angustum, small, narrow space, confinedangustifolium, narrow leaf

The genus name refers to the fact that G. verum was used to curdle milk.

Galium nuttallii ssp. nuttalliiSan Diego Bedstraw, Nuttall's Bedstrawnuttallii, named after Thomas Nuttall.

RutaceaeRue, CitrusThe family name is the Latin ruta for rue (Ruta graveolens), a bitter herb.

Cneoridium dumosumCoast Spice Bush, Bush-Rue, BerryrueCneor-, from the Greek kneoron, Cneorum or spurge olive, for shrub resembling the olive.Cneoridium, a plant that resembles spurge olive.dumosum, from the Latin dumus, thorny bush

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Saxifragaceae Saxifrage

The family name is derived from the Latin saxifragus, meaning stone-breaking (saxum is stone; frangere, to break or shatter), a reference to a common habit of these plants to grow in cracks in rock or in loose rock.

Jepsonia parryi Coast Jepsonia, Parry’s JepsoniaJepsonia, named after Willis Linn Jepson (1867–1946), professor of botany at U. C. Berkeley, founder of the California Botanical Society, and namesake of the Jepson Herbarium.parryi, named after Dr. Charles Parry.

Scrophulariaceae Figwort

The family name is based on the genus Scrophularia.

Scrophularia californica California Bee Plant, California FigwortScrophularia, derived from scrofula, a form of tuberculosis which has enlarged and grotesque lymph nodes, and allegedly ca. 1474 some Italian physician noticed the resemblance with the rhizomal knobs of some species.

Simmondsiaceae Jojoba

Simmondsia chinensis Goatnut, JojobaSimmondsia, named after Thomas William Simmonds (1767–1804), English physician and botanist who died while exploring Trinidad.chinensis, of or from China

SolanaceaeNightshadeSolanum is Latin for nightshade, a name derived from solamen, source of comfort or solace, and referring to the narcotic properties of some species in the family.

Datura wrightii(Western) Jimson Weed, Thorn-Apple, TolguachaDatura, from the Hindi word dhaturawrightii, named after American botanist Charles (Carlos) Wright (1811–1885)

The common name Jimson weed came from Datura stramonium, which was firstidentified near Jamestown, Virginia.

Lycium brevipes var. brevipesCommon Desert Thorn

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Lycium, from the Greek name of a medicinal tree from Lycia in Asia Minor, now part of modern Turkey.brevi-, from the Latin brevis, short, little-pes, from the Latin pes, footbrevipes, short foot

Lycium californicumCalifornia Desert Thorn, California Wolfberry, Box Thorn

The common name Wolfberry sort of came with the thinking that the root of Lycium was the Greek word lukos, wolf — as how in the nightshade family, tomato is Solanum lycopersicum, with lyco-persicum meaning the wolf-peach.

Nicotiana glaucaTree Tobacco (xN)Nicotiana, from the Latinized nicotiana, named after Jean Nicot (1530–1600), a French ambassador to Portugal, where he received tobacco seeds from early voyagers and introduced snuff tobacco to France.glauca, from the Latin glaucus and Ancient Greek glaukos, bluish gray

Solanum parishiiParish's Nightshade, Purple Nightshadeparishii, named after Rev. Charles Parish who discovered the plants in the 19th century.

Violaceae Violet

Viola pedunculata Johnny Jump Up, California Golden Violet, Yellow PansyViola, Latin for viola or violet, some spring flowers; this genus is the namesake of the family.ped-, from the Latin pes, foot; pediculus is little foot, and pedunculusis an alternative form. Here, the “little foot” refers to a small flower stem. (It seems that one may relate pediculus to a pedicel, and pedunculus to a peduncle, but there is no such usage or mentioning of it.)pedunculata, having a small flower stem

Resources

There are reference books on the etymology of plants. The main one is the WorldDictionary of Plant Names: Common Names, Scientific Names, Eponyms, Synonyms, and Etymology by Umberto Quattrocchi. (Google Books has Volume III M-Q, and Volume IV R-Z.) Quattrocchi also has the World Dictionary of Grasses (Google Books link), but what is more useful is the Etymological Dictionary of Grasses by H. Trevor Clifford and Peter D. Bostock (Google

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Books link).

Google Books is very clumsy and difficult to use. The best is perhaps to use the search box to hopefully find things.

A book that helps is California Desert Flowers: An Introduction to Families, Genera, and Species by Sia Morhardt and Emil Morhardt. They provide the meanings on most of their plants, and there is a reasonable overlap in families and genuses with the coast.

In this Internet age, there are many websites that provide etymological information but just like the Internet, they are not necessarily reliable. A good one is the plant names page compiled by Michael Charters on calfora.net (not calfora.org). Dave’s Garden has a dictionary that suggests pronunciations. For things in general, Wiktionary sometimes has etymology information.

A work in progress!Last edited March 2017 by

Pao ChauMargaret Fillius

Ingo RennerBarbara Wallach

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