Julie 22, 1889. 
the gardening world. 
Odontoglossum Marriottianum ? 
ORCHID NOMENCLATURE. 
It seems to me that by the death of Prof. Reichenbach, 
the question of who is to be considered the authority on 
Orchid nomenclature has become a serious matter to 
Orchid growers. I cannot help thinking it is a 
question well worthy of the consideration of the Royal 
Horticultural Society, and I think the Council should 
call a meeting of Orchid growers, both amateur and 
professional, to discuss the subject. It would be well 
to determine upon what principle Orchid varieties shall 
in future be named. Kew, no doubt, will give us great 
assistance in the naming of species, treating the matter 
from a purely botanical point of view, but varieties can 
only be looked upon in the light of florists’ flowers, as 
although these plants have great value to the horti¬ 
culturist, they possess little interest to the botanist. 
To my mind varieties of Odontoglossum crispum or 
Cattleya Mossice stand in the same relation to one 
another as the names of Chrysanthemums or varieties 
of hybrid perpetual Roses. Named they most assuredly 
will be, because amateurs will not purchase high-priced 
varieties without a name, which if sold out of bloom 
would then only realise a few shillings. A register 
with descriptions of named varieties might be kept by 
the Royal Horticultural Society, and it would be well 
if drawings were also kept for future reference. If 
some action be not taken 
at once, the nomenclature 
will in a few years drift into a 
state of inextricable con¬ 
fusion ; even at the present 
time it is most unsatisfactory. 
To illustrate the present 
state of confusion, I enclose 
a drawing of an Odonto¬ 
glossum, which three years 
ago I bought of Messrs. 
Sander as new. A flower was 
sent to Prof. Reichenbach to 
be named, and he called it 
Odontoglossum Marriot- 
tianum. Under this name 
it was exhibited at one of the 
Royal Horticultural Society’s 
meetings, when the name 
was challenged by Mr. 
Pollett and Mr. Marriott. 
I again sent a flower to 
Prof. Reichenbach, who then 
called it 0. Wilckeanum ; 
Mr. Veitch called it 0. 
Wilckeanum variety ; Mr. 
O’Brien called it 0. Marriot- 
tianum ; and this year Mr. 
Rolfe has called it 0. 
Andersonianum variety. I 
cannot conceive anything 
more unsatisfactory than for 
the same plant to receive 
different names from recog¬ 
nised authorities, and the 
facts of the case seem to 
me to point to the urgent 
necessity for calling a 
meeting of Orchid growers 
to determine some definite 
principle upon which Orchids shall be named. I could 
give other instances, but I shall be trespassing on your 
space. The drawing is taken from a photograph then 
drawn, and each flower measured with the compasses.— 
A. E. Smee. [The coloured drawing by Mr. Foord- 
Hughes, from which the accompanying illustration has 
been carefully prepared, proves by comparison with 
Reichenbach’s description (Gard. Chron., p. 168, vol. 
xv., n. s.) that his first name—0. Marriottianum—was 
the most nearly correct one. We suspect Mr. Pollett 
based his opinion on a plant he bought as 0. Marriot¬ 
tianum, but which was not the real Simon Pure.—E d.] 
-- 
ORIGIN OP ENGLISH PLANT 
NAMES. 
Many of the English plant names in use at the present 
day are of very ancient origin, and we may conclude 
that those were the first employed by our forefathers to 
distinguish the plants with which they were familiar, 
and are therefore older than botanical names, whether 
of Latin or Greek origin, and which were called into 
requisition at a comparatively recent date to assist the 
botanist in his classification of plants in general. 
As might have been expected, there was no system 
attached to the giving of popular names, for the simple 
reason that they were merely meant to individualise 
those plants that were sufficiently common to come 
frequently under observation. In such cases we find 
that the names given expressed something in relation 
to their appearance, to their surroundings, or the 
localities in which they grew ; or the titles given indi¬ 
cated that the plants bearing them had been compared 
to something else that was better known. Names 
implying virtues, qualities, and medicinal properties, 
real or supposed, were also adopted. The uses to which 
plants were put furnished many of them with names. 
Some of these popular appellations, however, have been 
so corrupted in course of time that it is difficult to 
recognise the original meaning, or to get at the 
etymology of the word. Samphire (Crithmuni mari- 
timum) is an illustration of this. The Gaelic name is 
Saimbhir, and that is a corruption of the French St. 
Pierre, which in English is St. Peter. That again is 
taken from the Greek petra, a rock, in allusion to the 
habitat of the plant on cliffs or rocks by the sea-shore. 
The number of names given to different plants bearing 
some allusion to the Virgin Mary are very numerous, 
and indicate to a certain extent the religious spirit of 
the times. Instances may be given in Goldilocks or 
Mary’s Locks (Ranunculus auricomus) where the specific 
name has the same meaning in Marigold (Tagetes), in 
allusion to the yellow colour of the flowers, and in 
Marsh-Marigold, to which the Gaelic name Lus Mairi 
or Marywort is given. Lady’s Fingers (Anthyllis 
vulneraria), Lady’s Mantle, which in Irish is Dhearna 
mhuire, or Mary’s Palm, and Mary’s Thistle (Silybum 
marianum), are a few out of the many instances of 
names bearing reference to the Virgin Mary. Rose¬ 
mary (Rosmarinus officinalis) and other names both in 
the Gaelic, Welsh, and Irish languages are merely 
corruptions of the Latin ros rnarinus or sea-dew. 
The word Nasturtium is derivedfrom the Latin 
the nose, and tortus, tormented, in allusion to the 
effects of its pungency, producing wry faces on those 
eating “hot” cresses. The Wood-sorrel (Oxalis aceto- 
sella) has several names derived from the Teutonic 
suer, sour, such as the Celtic Surag, the sour one, and 
the Scotch Sourock. It may be remembered that these 
names are also applied to several species of Rumea, 
popularly known as different kinds of Sorrel. Sham¬ 
rock is sometimes applied to this Oxalis, and is derived 
from Seamrag, the gentle one, in reference to the 
modest appearance of the plant. Southernwood 
(Artemisia absinthinum) would appear to derive its 
name from growing or coming from some southern 
locality or country, but its real origin is sur, sour. Its 
common name in Irish is suramont, and in Welsh it is 
siwdrmwt, both from the same root, so that Southern¬ 
wood means sour wood. 
The medicinal qualities, real or imaginary, of a large 
number of plants have given rise to their popular names. 
Clary (Salvia verbenacea) literally means clear-eye, 
because a mucilage prepared from the seeds was said to 
clear the eye from dust. The word Thyme is derived 
from the Greek thymos, courage, and it was believed to 
impart that quality to persons through its smell. 
Betony (Stachys betonica) is derived in various ways, 
but all refer to the value of the plant as a medicine or 
sustainer of life. In Celtic the word comes from ben, 
head, and ton, tonic ; or it may be derived from Greek, 
biota, life. Hellebore refers to the poisonous qualities 
of the plant, and comes from the Greek helein, to cause 
death, and bora, food. Quite an opposite quality is 
expressed by Borage (Borago officinalis). The plant 
was one of the four cordials, and Borage is merely a 
corruption of the Latin cor, the heart, and ago, to affect, 
and the preparation from it was believed to strengthen 
the action of the heart.— J. F. 
■>*<■ 
PRIMULAS, NATIVES OF CHINA. 
In an enumeration of plants from China and the 
neighbouring islands by Francis Blackwell Forbes, 
F.L.S., and William Botting Hemsley, A.L.S., forty- 
three species are given as natives of that vast empire, 
and of these more than 
thirty are found in the 
district of Yunnan, although 
they may not be confined to 
it. This part of the Chinese 
Empire may then be con¬ 
sidered as one of the head¬ 
quarters of the genus. 
A large proportion of 
them have not yet been in¬ 
troduced to this country, 
and many of them have, in 
fact, only been recently 
discovered. Many of them 
are exceedingly pretty, with 
comparatively large flowers 
and a dwarf habit quite 
distinct from most of the 
species in cultivation in this 
country. It is more than 
probable that the majority 
of them would prove un¬ 
suitable to our climate, 
notwithstanding the fact 
that a considerable number 
of the species have been 
collected at great eleva¬ 
tions. 
In taking a cursory glance 
at the species recorded, a 
number of old or well-known 
friends are noticeable. It 
is satisfactory to learn that 
the exceedingly popular and 
useful P. sinensis has at 
last been really discovered 
in a wild state. Previous 
to this discovery there were 
no wild specimens in her¬ 
baria. The plant was in 
cultivation when seeds were originally obtained and 
introduced to cultivation. We may reasonably infer, 
from its proneness to vary even from the very first in 
this country, that it had been in cultivation in China 
for many years previous to its introduction here. It 
was recently collected at “ Hupeh, and the Gorge of 
Ichang, on the ledges of limestone rocks, where there is 
no soil and practically no moisture.” Fancy its 
growing under the same conditions as the wild Stock 
(Mathiola incana) ! Cultivators would be considered 
mad if they were now to attempt its cultivation under 
those conditions. 
P. cortusoides, originally introduced from Siberia, 
is also found in China, occurring pretty frequently and 
enjoying a wide distribution from Russia in Europe 
through Siberia to Japan, where it joins hands, so to 
speak, with P. c. Sieboldii, the more valuable and 
decorative form, and from which the numerous and 
exceedingly beautiful varieties in cultivation have been 
obtained. The well-known Himalayan species, P. 
denticulata, so well known for the variety in form and 
colour to which imported seeds give rise, also occurs in 
mountainous districts of Yunnan. Curiously enough, 
the Japan Primula (P. japonica) is also found in 
Yunnan, in the marshes at a place called Tavaugmais. 
As a rule it is grown in the ordinary borders of British 
gardens, although a few cultivators may be credited 
