I want to make a T-label to identify a specimen of the ground cover lippia repens but I'm unfamiliar with methods of nomenclature. As far as I know one gives the common name and the "scientific" name, for instance:
BLUE GRAMA
or
MOSQUITO GRASS
Bouteloua
gracilis
So I googled lippia repens but I was so overwhelmed by the taxonomy, eg,
http://zipcodezoo.com/Plants/L/Lippia_repens/....that I have no idea whether lippia replens is really its "common" name or how the technical term (genus? species? phylum? subclass? etc etc) is usually derived so I hardly know where to begin. How would you suggest I label it? Thank you most kindly
Lippia is the genus name, repens, the species.
It looks like it also has the scientific name Phyla nodiflora. Common names seem to include capeweed, false thyme, fogfruit, frogfruit, mat grass, mat lippia, phyla, and turkey tangle. Take your pick.
nodiflora Look in the
synonym department and you'll see 'var.repens'. And a clear cute list under the picture.
Thanks guys, your helpfulness is exceeded only by my laziness. However, I'm still not entirely sure what convention I should follow in choosing a "scientific" name for my T-label
Fal if it's no trouble could you please provide a link to that list of common names, thanking you most kindly
I ain't F, but google/Wikipedia is a wonderful thing. (you could make a bookmark for it...)
Phyla nodiflora - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Vision quackery spreading? Shrdlu, I'm afraid I'm on your 'ignore' list. I have given the same link a few posts up. ( you can give it three of four times, it's all there under the picture on that Wiki page, but....... (sigh) for Dale...do you consider the links in the replies you get?
no, Bran, you're not on my list, but perhaps you're on dale's? I'm sorry about missing your link, I missed it when responding to dale.
Maybe this is the solution:
Dale: if you haven't already been here, and if you have the patience,
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phyla_nodiflora
The genus or generic name is a noun which usually names some aspect of a plant. The species or specific name is usually an adjective that describes the genus. at a guess repens could have something to do with creeping? Below is a general classification structure for the biological kingdom.
Kingdom
Subkingdom
Phylum
Subphylum
Class
Subclass
Order
Family
Genus
Species
Bran, thanks, I don't know how I missed that link, I am getting old I guess. Does anyone by chance know (1) which of the "common" names is most common or (2) which of the dozen or so "synonyms" would customarily be used as the "scientific name" on, say, a plant label
Also I've noted the spelling as reptans, repens, and replens and I'm wondering which one is correct if not all three
It's Olly who gave the most complete answer for your taxonomical needs. You miss the links that are not like:
http:// etc.and all what it may contain.
(1)The most common of common names for plants are the ones you hear in your area/neighborhood/town. They may differ a lot locally.
(2)Look at garden centre's labels or just work you way through WIKI plant world. For repens, replens, you need to replenish your Latin.
Lippia repens, Lippia reptans
Both mean 'creeping' or 'crawling'. The former is from repo, repere, and the latter is from repto, reptare, a frequentive form of the first verb. Our word reptile is from the same root. Lippia is derived from a surname. Probably a German one. (There was a Johannis Lippius who was a music theoretician.) The modern binomial nomenclature for the plant seems to be Phyla nodiflora.