Company Name

"What's in a name?"

After Romeo poses this question in Shakespear's famous play, Juliet replies, "That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet." Why then all the confusion over names? Have you ever tried to locate a plant only to discover that it is known by half a dozen different names? This is one of the reasons for a universal naming system Plant taxonomy and proper nomenclature, however, is probably one of the more confusing aspects of gardening. The following information tries to put some scientific perspective into why plants are named as they are. Hopefully, it will also serve as an aid in locating and identifying plants by botanical name. Our common to scientific name chart (found below) is also useful in locating a desired plant.

All the organisms in the world have a unique name, printed in latin, so that anyone in the world will know and recognize that name. Since latin is supposedly a dead language, it does not change and the names will remain the same. When you see the botanical names of plants and related cultivars, often the Latin derived name is descriptive of their ornamental features.

Aurea, aureo -- golden (applies to yellow variegations or coloration)
example: Acorus Aureominimus
Alba, albo -- white (applies to white variegations)
example: Hosta Albomarginata
Glauca -- blue (describes a blue tinted leaf coloration)
example: Festuca glauca ‘Elijahs Blue’
Glabra -- shiny, silvery (describes a leaf coloration)
Rubra -- red (describes red colorations)
example: Pennisetum setaceum ‘Rubrum’
Purpurea, atropurpurea -- purple, (describes purple coloration)
example: Echinacea purpurea
Marginata -- marginal (describes a type of variegation)
Medio -- middle (describes a type of variegation)
Striata -- streaks (describes a type of variegation)
variegata -- variegated (not specifically descriptive of the type of variegation)
example: Miscanthus sinensis ‘Variegatus’
Contorta, tortulosa, monstrosa -- contorted, twisted, fused growth habits
Zebrina, zebrinus -- striped or banded
example: Miscanthus sinensis ‘Zebrinus’
Tricolor -- a three color blend of variegation
Rotunda, rotundifolia -- round shaped
Fastigiata -- tall, slender, upright, columnar shape
Prostrata -- low to the ground, creeping
Pendula -- weeping growth habit
example: Carex pendula

Family
The family grouping is usually where the classification process takes on significance. A family is a group of plants whose members resemble one another in several respects. An example would be the grass family, which is composed of many genra. The grass family is scientifically referred to as the poaceae (or gramineae) family of plants.

The full scientific (botanical) name primarily consists of two names, the genus and the species. Other names are added when cultivars or hybrids of a species are formed or discovered.
Example 1:
Miscanthus sinensis var. condensatus ‘Cabaret.’
Example 2:
Pennisetum setaceum ‘Rubrum’

Genus
name, which is comparable to our last name, (for example, Wilson).
1 genus = Miscanthus
2 genus = Pennisetum

Species
name, which is comparable to our first name (for example, Cecilia).
1 species = sinensis
2 species = setaceum

Variety
This is a group of plants that possess certain characteristics, of a specific population of plants that occurs in the wild, with slight variations such as leaf color, leaf shape, etc.
1 variety = var. condensatus
2 variety = 

Cultivar
There are several definitions of this, the most accepted is that
(1) this is an individual plant that was found in the wild and is brought into the garden and is cloned by man or
(2) this is a hybrid plant that was produced in the garden of known or unknown parentage or was found in the wild and is cloned by man. The key points here are that a cultivar is a distinct plant, with characteristics that make it unique, such as flower color, size, leaf shape, etc. and it is cultivated by man
1 cultivar = ‘Cabaret’
2 cultivar = ‘Rubrum’ (Latin meaning red)

Common Names
These are the local names, given by local people in their own language, for a particular plant. They are sort of like nicknames; for example, monkeygrass, or sweetflag. One group of people will have a different name for a certain plant than another group of people and neither group will know to which plant the other group is referring. This leads to a very funny, but confusing situation.
1 common name = Cabaret Japanese Silver Grass
2 common name = Purple Fountain Grass

COMMON TO BOTANICAL NAMES

Adagio miscanthus
Miscanthus sinensis ‘Adagio’

Arabesque miscanthus
Miscanthus sinensis ‘Arabesque’

Autumn light miscanthus
Miscanthus sinensis ‘Autumn Light’

Autumn moor grass
Sesleria autumnalis

Bamboo grass  
Arundo, A. formosana

Black flowering fountain grass
Pennisetum setaceum ‘Moudry’

Blue fescue  
Festuca glauca

Blue Indian grass  
Sorghastrum nutans ‘Sioux Blue’

Blue lyme grass  
eymus arenarius

Blue moor grass  
Sesleria caerulea

Blue switch grass  
Panicum virgatum ‘Heavy Metal’, Panicum virgatum ‘Prairie Sky’

Blue wild rye  
Leymus arenarius, Elymus glaucus

Bowles golden sedge
Carex elata ‘Aurea’

Cabaret miscanthus
Miscanthus s. var. condensatus ‘Cabaret’

California meadow sedge
Carex pansa

Canary grass
Phalaris

Cappuccino  
Carex t. ‘Cappuccino’

Central Park miscanthus
Miscanthus s. var. condensatus ‘Central Park’

Chikara shiba
Pennisetum alopecuroides

Common blue fescue
Festuca glauca

Compact purple fountain grass
Pennisetum setaceum ‘Eaton Canyon’

Cosmopolitan miscanthus 
Miscanthus s. var. condensatus ‘Cosmopolitan’

Daylily
Hemerocallis

Dwarf fountain grass
Pennisetum setaceum ‘Hameln’

Dwarf maiden grass
Miscanthus sinensis ‘Adagio’

Dwarf purple fountain grass
Pennisetum setaceum ‘Eaton Canyon’

Eulalia grass
Miscanthus sinensis

Elephant’s Ear
Colocasia escalante

Elijah’s blue fescue grass
Festuca glauca ‘Elijah’s Blue’

Feather reed grass
Calamagrostis acutiflora, C. arundinacea

Fescue  
Festuca

Flame grass 
Miscanthus oligostachyus ‘Purpurascens’

Fountain grass
Pennisetum, P. alopecuroides, P. orientale

Gardener’s garters
Phalaris arundinacea ‘Picta’

Garden fescue 
Festuca glauca

Giant burgundy fountain grass
Pennisetum ‘Burgundy Giant’

Gray fescue 
Festuca glauca

Green fountain grass
Pennisetum alopecuroides

Gulf muhly
Muhlenbergia capillaris

Hachijo susuki  
Miscanthus sinensis variety condensatus

Indian grass
Sorghastrum , S. nutans

Japanese silver grass 
Miscanthus , M. sinensis

Japanese sweetflag
Acorus, A. gramineus

Kari yasu modoki
Miscanthus oligostachyus

Karl Foerster’s feather reed grass
Calamagrostis acutiflora ‘Karl Foerster’

Korean feather grass
Calamagrostis brachytricha

Leatherleaf sedge 
Carex buchananii

Little bunny fountain grass
Pennisetum setaceum ‘Little Bunny’

Little honey fountain grass
Pennisetum setaceum ‘Little Honey’

Little dot Miscanthus 
Miscanthus sinensis ‘Puenktchen’

Lyme grass  
Leymus arenarius, Elymus glaucus

Maiden grass
Miscanthus s. ‘Gracillimus’

Mexican feather grass
Nassella tenuissima (formerly Stipa)

Miscanthus
Miscanthus, M. sinensis

Morning light miscanthus
Miscanthus sinensis ‘Morning Light’

Muhly 
Muhlenbergia

Needle grass
Nassella, Stipa

Northern sea oats 
Chasmanthium, C. latifolium, Uniola

Pampas grass  
Cortaderia, C. selloana

Panic grass
Panicum, P. virgatum

Pink hair muhly
Muhlenbergia capillaris

Pink pampas grass 
Cortaderia selloana ‘Rosea’

Plaintain Lily
Hosta

Porcupine grass 
Miscanthus sinensis ‘Strictus’

Purple fountain grass
Pennisetum setaceum ‘Rubrum’

Purple muhly
Muhlenbergia capillaris

Purple silver grass
Miscanthus oligostachyus 'Purpurascens'

Red switch grass  
Panicum virgatum 'Rotstrahlbusch', P. virgatum 'Shenandoah'

Reed canary grass 
Phalaris arundinacea

Reed grass
Calamagrostis

Ribbon grass
Phalaris arundinacea 'Picta'

Sea lyme grass  
Leymus arenarius

Sedge 
Carex

Silver feather grass
Miscanthus sinensis 'Siberfeder'

Spear grass
Stipa

Strawberries and cream
Phalaris arundinacea 'Feesey's Form'

Susuki  
Miscanthus sinensis

Susuki zoku 
Miscanthus

Sweetflag 
Acorus, A. gramineus

Switch grass  
Panicum virgatum

Tall switch grass 
Panicum virgatum 'Cloud Nine'

Taro
Colocasia escalante

Taiwan grass  
Arundo formosana

Tender fountain grass
Pennisetum setaceum

Toe Toe   
Cortaderia

Variegated feather reed grass
Calamagrostis acutiflora 'Overdam'

Variegated maiden grass 
Miscanthus sinensis 'Variegatus'

Variegated ribbon grass
Phalaris arundinacea 'Picta'

Wheat grass 
Elymus

White flowering fountain grass
Pennisetum caudatum

White pampas grass
Cortaderia selloana 'White'

Wild oats 
Chasmanthium, C. latifolium

Wild rye  
Elymus, Leymus

Wood grass  
Sorghastrum

Wood oats 
Chasmanthium, C. latifolium

Wood's dwarf
Phalaris arundinacea ‘Dwarf Garters’