Common names of a selected list of plantsAnderson, Kling L.
Science
Common names of a selected list of plants
Anderson, Kling L.
Plant names, Popular -- Kansas
This list grew from an earlier Kansas list of grasses and legumes that
emphasized chiefly range and pasture plants. It is extended here to
include most plant families and genera that occur in Kansas and many
species that do not necessarily occur in Kansas but may be important or
closely related to those listed. Obviously, not all Kansas plants could
be included, and therefore many minor plants have been omitted. Species
not obviously important had to be somewhat arbitrary. Perhaps certain
species listed could have been omitted and others not included might
have been added. The list can, therefore, grow or be altered as need
for change is shown. If further information on common names is needed,
the Kelsey and Dayton 1942 edition of Standardized Plant Names[3]
should be consulted.
=Genus Common Names=
In preparing this list, we attempted to give a single common name to
each genus and to use it in connection with common names for each
of the species listed under that genus. For example, brome for the
genus, _Bromus_, and various species such as smooth brome and hairy
brome. Thus, there are two words for species names. However, common
names of some species are single words and may not bear the generic
name at all; for example, switchgrass, curlymesquite, catchflygrass,
darnel, needleandthread, berseem, and horsebean. Some genera have
more than one common name, but in that case the genus is subdivided
into different types, each with its own common name. For example,
most species of the genus _Panicum_ are called panicum, but certain
others are witchgrass; _Melica_ is melic, but bulbous species of that
genus are called oniongrass; and _Setaria_ is bristlegrass, but the
name millet is applied to certain ones. Some poisonous species of
_Astragalus_ are called loco, but nonpoisonous ones are milkvetch and
the selenium-gathering ones, poisonvetch. In a few cases the same
common name is applied to two genera, but that generally occurs only
when the genera involved are closely related. They may formerly have
been considered a single genus.
The words tree, grass, bean, seed, etc. are combined with key words
to make common names of many genera and species. Examples of the
former are dropseed, cupgrass, tanglehead, peavine, wildindigo,
coffeetree, and sensitivebriar; and of the latter, breadroot scurfpea,
splitbeard bluestem, shortawn foxtail, and smoothseed wildbean.
Hyphens are avoided except in a few cases where they are used to make
spelling, meaning, or pronunciation more clearly understood. Some
examples are s-curve threeawn, blue-eyedgrass, climbing-buckwheat,
dutchmans-breeches, snow-on-the-mountain, fat-hen saltbrush,
false-alyssum.
=Species Common Names=
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account