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INSTITUTE OF SOCIAL ANTHROPOLOGY PUBLICATION NO. 1 1 



red, blackish-red, and mottled flowers. The best 

 known nialvas are bola de fuego, viuda alegre, and picada; 

 and the prized strains of geranios are Ires piedras, rey de 

 los negros, granduque, filite, payaso, camelino, holandis, 

 luto de JuArez azalea, aviador, triumfo, japones, jicote, 

 and de cartOn or de guia. Several of the Mexican strains 

 surpass in loveUness any of the "geraniums" that we 

 have seen in the United States or South America. 

 These pelargoniums (growing from the ground, climbing 

 on walls and frames, or in formal banked rows of pots) 

 dominate the floral landscape in the Quiroga homes. 

 Somewhat more than half of the homes have pelargo- 

 niums, with the malva being 50 percent more common 

 than the geranio. We were unable to distinguish be- 

 tween the two in many cases, but in general the geranios 

 have a more brilliant flower and harsh crennulated leaves 

 while the malvas are more commonplace and have softer 

 velvety leaves. 



Helechos (chiefly Polypodiaceae) include at least a dozen 

 native and introduced ferns among which the most 

 common are chino, lacio, de la fuenle, alienlo de niho, 

 and japoneso. It should be mentioned here that chino 

 does not mean Chinese but curly or rough, and also 

 pretty; and that japones is often applied (for no reason 

 known to us) to exotic plants which commonly are not 

 of Japanese origin. 



Begonia {Begonia spp.). There are at least eight culti- 

 vated species of begonia (some for their delicate flowers, 

 others for the large and showy leaves), apparently all of 

 them native to Mexico and some of them native and 

 wild in the Pdtzcuaro Basin. There are some 20 com- 

 monly cultivated and named strains among which the 

 most important are: Begonia gracilis H. B. K. known as 

 came de doncella and ala de dngel; Begonia incarnata 

 Link & Otto, also known as ala de Angel, and as corazdn 

 de Jesils; Begonia imperialis Lem., begonia imperial and 

 hoja elegante; Begonia fuchsioides Hook., corazon de 

 Maria; and others not identified specifically, such as 

 corazdn de Angel, plateada, pantalla, primoroso, realzada, 

 terciopelo, miilata, de la sombra, caracal, and china. 



Resales {Rosa spp.) include four or five species and a 

 number of hybrid roses among which the most common 

 are rosa de castilla or cabbage rose {Rose centifolia L.), 

 rosa de cambray {Rosa alba L.), and rosa te or tea rose 

 {Rosa indica or Rosa odorata Sweet). Red roses dom- 

 inate; there are comparatively few white roses; and 

 yellow roses are rare. Roses are the chief ornamental 

 shrubs. 



Camelina {Bougainvillaea glabra Choisy and B. spectabilis 

 Willd.), also known as bugambilla and azalea de guia. 

 Both the purple (which is dominant) and the brick-red 

 bougainvilleas are raised in Quiroga. These two South 

 American climbing shrubs are great favorites, and may 

 be seen on trellises, trees, and walls. 



Azucenas comprise many species and several genera of 

 lilies and amaryllises. The most common forms are 

 white {azucena bianco) and yellow {azucena amarilla) 

 lilies of the genera Lilium and Hemerocallis; and red, 

 salmon, and red and white striped amaryllises of the 

 genus Hippeaslrum which go by such names as pabelldn 

 (from color resemblance to the Mexican flag), azucena 



de Panamd or josefina (salmon-colored), azucena roja, 

 and azucena amarilis. On occasion the related tube- 

 rose {Polianihes tuberosa L.) will be termed azucena, 

 but the more common names are nardo and flor de novia. 



Ruda, the medicinal rue mentioned previously. 



Clavel and clave {Dianthus caryophyllus L.), the carnation 

 pink or clove pink of our gardens, and clavelina {Dianthus 

 barbatus L.) which is our sweet-william, are very popular 

 cut flowers. Carnations predominate. 



Primavera {Primula spp.). The primrose is represented 

 by at least two species. 



Belen, belem, or bals&mico {hnpatiens balsamina L.). The 

 garden balsam which riots in a variety of colors. 



India, coyol, platanillo, bdstago azalea, canna {Canna indica 

 L.). The canna or Indian shot is cultivated in the 

 yellow and red forms. 



Betulia, vetulia, betunia, petunia {Petunia nyctaginiflora 

 Juss., and other species). White, red, violet, purple 

 and almost black forms are present. 



Alcatraz {Zantedeschia aethiopica Spreng.). The calla "lily." 



Hortensia {Hydrangea opuloides Koch.). Hydrangea. 



Azalea {Rhododendron indicum (L.) Sweet, and other 

 species). Strains with pink, purple, and white flowers 

 are most common. 



Palmas (Palmae). A number of species of small potted 

 palms are present including cola de pescado {Chamaedora 

 spp.), kentia {Hoivea sp.), and several others. Also, 

 several date palms {Phoenix dactylifera L.) are cultivated 

 as ornamentals. The term palma is often applied to the 

 native yucca (lily family) which is a very common 

 ornamental. 



A very important group of ornamentals is provided by the 

 Crassulaceae or orpine family, especially in the genera 

 Echeverria or Cotyledon, Sedum, and Bryophyllum; both 

 introduced species and native wild plants. The more 

 common cultivated forms include siempreviva (a general 

 and a specific name), rococo, concha and conchita, rueda 

 de la fortuna, chisme, admirable, bruja, oreja de burro 

 and oreja de ratdn, rocid, rona, dedo de la virgen, and 

 amor Iras de la puerta. These vary in size from delicate 

 chismes and rococds, through the conchas and ruedas de la 

 fortuna (hen-and-chickens), to tall orejas de burro with 

 attractive flowers. 



Crespon {Asparagus sp.). A large climber. This term is 

 also applied to the crape-myrtle {Lagerstroemia indica L.) . 



Perritos {Antirrhinum majus L.). Snapdragon. 



Leocoyo {Gladiolus sp.). Gladiola. 



Lirio and lirio-iris, flor de lis {Iris germanica L. and others) 

 Blue to white irises. 



The last group important enough to discuss here comprises 

 the caclos de maceta or potted Cactaceae. In addition to 

 large ornamental and economic cacti, there are several 

 small ornamentals among which three are outstanding: 

 (a) the floricuerno or flor de cuerno (named because often 

 it is grown in a suspended horn) which is Aporocaclus 

 flagelliformis Lem.; (6) the related form or species known 

 asjunco, junquillo, a,ud flor del Idtigo (names also applied 

 to the previous cactus) ; and a plant which may not be 

 a cactus (fleshy succulent, rose-colored flowers, no 

 spines), which is known as palma de Santa Teresa, 

 teresita, and flor de lis. 



