186 



GARDENERS' CHRONICLE 



Points additional to those above to be noted are : 

 DECIDUOUS TREES: 



Acer: horticola is a noun, meaning "inhabitant of 

 a garden." As a common noun it is not capitalized 

 like Ginnala and Negundo. 



The word platanoides means "like a plane-tree," 

 the second part being a noun of Greek origin equiva- 

 lent to the English "form" or "appearance." But 

 found in composition, as here, it has adjectival force ; 

 yet it does not vary for the different genders. 



The phrase albo-variegatum is correct, for the o 

 of the albo is equivalent to "with," so that the phrase 

 means "varied with white." In Tsuga albo-spicata 

 the adjectival idea is "provided with white ears." 

 In keeping is found for "double" flore-pleno, ab- 

 breviated into fl.-pl. An albo, or the name of some 

 other color, might be added by means of a hyphen, or, 

 if the color is intended to go with the plant rather than 

 with the flower, an adjective might be added with 

 the gender of the plant's name. 



Gleditschia: triacanthos is similar to platanoides 

 in being of the same form of all genders. 



Prunus: avium is a genitive plural, — "of birds." 



Tilia: platyphylla is correct, not platyphyllos, 

 which is often found. 



DECIDUOUS SHRUBS: 



Calycanthus : tloridus is regularly found ; but it 

 would probably be better to regard all plant names 

 ending in anthus as feminine, as the books do Chio- 

 nanthus virginica. Historically, however, anthus, 

 the Greek word for flower, is neuter. 



Comus: mas is an adjective of peculiar form. It 

 itself means "masculine." The alternative declen- 

 sional form must be of feminine termination, — 

 Cornus mascula. 



Euonymus, as the name of a shrub or of a vining 

 plant, should always be treated as feminine. — E. 

 alata and E. radicans vegeta. 



Philadelphus, like Crocus, Hyacinthus and Nar- 

 cissus, owes its prevailing masculinity to its having 

 started as the name of a man. The writer would pre- 

 fer to have these last three names become feminine 

 at once and is inclined to urge this for Philadeliihus 

 also. 



EVERGREEN TREES present nothing not covered 

 in the foregoing, e.xcejjt that in this di\'ision is often 

 found Taxodium, simply because it is a conifer and 

 has leaves resembling those that mark most ever- 

 green trees. Its removal allows all of the list to 

 be feminine. 



EVERGREEN SHRUBS: 



Cotoneaster is just as regularly found feminine as 

 Aster is masculine. Would it not be better to regard 

 both the compound and the uncompounded forms as 

 feminine ? 



Mahonia is usually found with aquifoliuni, which 

 evidently ought to be aquifolia. 



Osmanthus should certainly not be followed by 

 aquifoliuni, but better by aquifolius, if not by aqui- 

 folia in accordance with the suggestion about anthus. 



VINES: 



Celastrus orbiculata is correct, like Euonymus 

 \egeta. 

 HERBACEOUS PERENNIALS: 



Acorus is feminine and should therefor be followed 

 by variegata even though the masculine Calamus 

 stand between these two words. 



Echinocereus is masculine because the Latin 

 cereus is masculine. But in Latin the word means 

 "wax-light" or "wax-taper." As the name of a plant 

 would it not better be feminine? 



Helianthus also would better become feminine, for 

 the reason already stated in connection with anthus. 

 In the Latin dictionary, though it is of masculine 

 gender, it is found in the spelling Helianthes. 



Iris has as its Latin plural forms both Ires and 

 Irides. But this word has become sufficiently angli- 

 cized so that there need be no hesitancy in using the 

 plural irises, which is euphonious enough, in such 

 a phrase as "peonies and irises." 



Lathyrus is feminine in Latin and there is no ap- 

 parent reason for treating it as masculine. 



Pasonia: the preferred form anglicized is "peony," 

 with the accent on the e. The plural is, of course, 

 "peonies." 



Thymus in ancient Latin is Thymum, a neuter. 

 \\'hy not use it as a feminine instead of a masculine, 

 as the books do now? 



BULBOUS PLANTS: 



Crocus, like Gladiolus, Hyacinthus, Narcissus and 

 Ranunculus, a masculine, makes its plural in Latin 

 by putting i into the place of us. In giving the plural 

 . form Croci the English pronunciation, which it is 

 desirable to use for all Latin names, the i would be 

 .•mounded as it is in "ice" and the c as in "city." (The 

 letter c would have this sound before e or y also, 

 while g before any one of these three vowels would 

 be pronounced as in "gist." The English plural cro- 

 cuses, however, is now used almost exclusively. 



Gladiolus, which for the purpose may be included 

 here with the plants that form bulbs strictly defined, 

 has almost supplanted Sword Flower as the popular 

 name. The old pronunciation with the accent upon 

 the o, too, has nearly disappeared, and the i is 

 sounded strong as in "die." The addition of es to 

 form the English plural would be awkward; accord- 

 ingly it is best to use the Latin spelling and then to 

 pronounce the two i's alike. 



Hyacinthus has been shortened for English speech 

 into hvacinth, the plural of which naturally becomes 

 hvacinths. This form, like crocuses, has nearly sup- 

 planted the Latin form ending in i. 



Narcissus might similarly be abbreviated into 

 narciss, with the accent upon the second syllable, 

 which, — so the writer has been told, — is the name 

 of the flower in its old-world home. There is no 

 change made for the plural. In this respect the word 

 is comparable to "deer" in having lost the plural 

 ending it had in the language from which it came 

 over into English. It is easy, however, to pronounce 

 the long i of the Latin plural form. The form nar- 

 cisses, used in at least one of the bulletins issued by 

 the national Bureau of Plant Industry, has certainly 

 not acquired much vogue. This word, along with 

 Crocus and Hyacinthus, the writer would much like 

 to have become feminine; Gladiolus, because of the 

 character of the plant and its size, it seems a trifle 

 easier to retain as a masculine. 



Muscari, owing to the uncertainty that most people 

 are in as to its origin, also is treated like "deer" in 

 being given no plural. But for the Latin why should 

 not the original plural Muscaria be used? 



Scilla and Sparaxis are singulars. If printed in 

 lists after such words as Tulips, Hyacinths. Narcissi 

 and Crocuses they should themselves appear as 

 Scillse. or .'^cillas, and Sparaxes. 



