Taxonomy-Plant Naming

Unit 2 Horticulture

Plant names

• Common Names• Scientific Names

Common Names

• cause confusion!!!!!!• example

Scientific Names

• Binomial system- Linneaus• Latin terms• 2 Name system

–Genus–Species–Variety or cultivar

Genus• Noun- plants of very similar characteristics• Always capitalized• Written in italics• Often a Botanists name• May become the common name eg. Pothos,

Rhododendrun, Forsythia, Philedendron

Species• Adjective- describes characteristics of

the plant• Always in lower case letters• Written in italics• May describe a color, leaf size, leaf

shape,growth habit, location, flower type

Species-Color

• lutea• alba• ruba• nigra

Color-Lutea

Color- rubra

Color-nigra

Species- location

Species- Growth habit

• erectus• repens• compacta• horizontalis

Growth Habit

Growth Habit- horizontalis

Growth Habit

Species-Leaves

Phyllus

Species- flower types

• Cantha• Flora

What is this?

What is this?

What is this?

Cultivar or variety

• Cultivated variety• different in small characteristics• written in single quotation marks• Capitalized