52 PLANT NAMES 



a pool, and fell in love with it. He vainly tried to 

 kiss it, and was drowned, so he was changed into 

 the flower. The Nerine Lily is called after Nereis, 

 a sea nymph. The Water Lily, Nymphsea, derives 

 its name from the fabled maidens inhabiting the 

 rivers and woods. The Osmunda Fern is said to be 

 called after a Celtic deity, and Tagetes, of which the 

 African Marigold is a species, after a Tuscan deity. 

 Teucrium is from Teucer, a Greek hero in the siege 

 of Troy. Samphire is from the French Herhe de 

 Saint Pierre, and Filbert is named after St. Phili- 

 bert, the nut being ripe on his day, August 22. And 

 so, too, Lady^s Bedstraw and Lady's Slipper are 

 called after the Virgin Mary. The Veronica was 

 probably named after the legendary maiden who, 

 it was believed, offered her handkerchief to our 

 Saviour on His way to Calvary. He wiped the 

 sweat from His face, and when He returned it, it 

 bore His likeness. Vera ikonika means the true 

 image, and the maiden received that name. A 

 handkerchief which is supposed to prove the truth 

 of this story is preserved in St. Peter's in Rome. 

 The Peony is from Paian, who was in mythology the 

 physician of the gods. The name was afterwards 

 transferred to Apollo, the god of song, and so a 

 song of triumph after victory was called a paean. 



