Botanical Discoveries
What’s in a name?
Plant common names and cultivar names are chosen for a variety of reasons, including medicinal uses, identifying characteristics, or plant type. Some are even created in honor of someone and feature their name. Here we have gathered a few interesting stories behind some plant names from the book “Legends in the Garden,” by Linda L. Copeland and Allan M. Armitage.
Rhododendron x ‘George Taber’
This impressive evergreen azalea produces proliferate, pink springtime blooms. The ‘George Taber’ is a popular plant in the South and works well when planted en masse. It attracts butterflies and makes excellent cut flower arrangements. Growing upwards of 10 to 12 feet tall and spreading to 8 to 10 feet, this azalea is sure to make a statement in your yard. Its unique name is coined by the man who discovered it, who named it after the founder of one of the South’s long-standing plant nurseries.
George Lindley Taber Jr. first noticed this azalea growing at the Glen St. Mary Nursery in Baker County, Florida in the spring of 1928. The nursery tested this azalea for introduction, and it was officially added to the nursery’s catalogue in 1938 after determining it was a prize azalea to be shared. George Taber Jr. chose to memorialize his father, George Taber Sr., and name the azalea after him. George Taber Sr. moved to North Florida in 1881 near the small town of Glen St. Mary and bought land along the Little St. Mary’s River. It was here he founded the Glen St. Mary Nursery, which became widely acclaimed in the South as a thriving nursery specializing in citrus and ornamental plants.
Solanum tuberosum ‘Russet Burbank’
From the National Archives
The ‘Russet Burbank’ potato can be appreciated for its contribution to the agricultural industry in the United States, adding tasty carbs to dinner plates across the country. The ‘Russet Burbank’ is a large, hardy variety well adapted for growing in the northwestern states of Idaho, Washington, Oregon, and Montana. It produces high yields in areas with cooler temperatures but less so in higher temperatures. The large, long cylindrical tubers (the edible part of the plant) are great for baking or frying and store well for long periods of time. They possess a rough or “russet” skin type and grow on large, vigorous vines. This potato became the building block for today’s well-known “Idaho” potato.
The original clone of the ‘Russet Burbank’, known simply as ‘Burbank’, gets its name from a man known as the “Plant Wizard.” Luther Burbank first identified the plant after it developed from a first-generation seedling of the cultivar ‘Early Rose’ in Massachusetts. He sold the plant to James J.H. Gregory for $150 to fund his move to California. Gregory then named the potato after Burbank, who went on to establish a nursery garden, greenhouse, and experimental farms in Santa Rosa, California. Over his lifetime, he developed more than 800 new strains and varieties of plants and became famous throughout the world. One other plant was named in his honor; a cultivar of his favorite flower was given the name Rosa ‘Burbank’.
Hydrangea macrophylla ‘Dooley’
‘Dooley’ is a bigleaf hydrangea cultivar that typically grows 3 to 6 feet tall. It’s a deciduous shrub with long-blooming summer flowers that grow in mophead form, creating globe-like flower clusters. Flowers range in color from blue to pink, depending on the soil pH. It grows dark green, elliptical leaves and works well when planted as a hedge or shrub border. It has been noted for its cold hardiness, a trait first noted by the man who discovered it in 1996.
‘Dooley’ gets its name from the highly esteemed University of Georgia football coach, Vince Dooley, who led the team from 1964 to 1988. He later became the university’s athletic director and won numerous awards, including being inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame. In the 1990’s, Dooley began taking horticulture classes , and soon turned his family home garden into a repository for a variety of plants. Together, Dooley and the horticultural specialist Professor Dirr made a concerted effort to initiate the design of an arboretum for the University of Georgia. Their friendship fueled the name coined for the blue mophead hydrangea that grew in Dooley’s garden. Dirr took note of this indestructible plant after it appeared to be thriving after a freeze and named it ‘Dooley’.
Ilex ‘Nellie R. Stevens’
Holly sprigs can be used for holiday decorating to liven up a mantel or table. The ‘Nellie R. Stevens’ holly makes a suitable plant for the Florida landscape year-round. It’s a shrub with glossy, pointed evergreen foliage and small, red berries in the winter. The berries provide winter food for birds such as cedar waxwings, mockingbirds, robins, and woodpeckers. The holly can grow quite tall, up to 30 or 40 feet, but generally grows between 15 and 25 feet. It thrives in hot and humid climates, perfect for Southern gardens. The name of the plant is derived from the woman who originally planted the seeds of the discovered cultivar ‘Nellie R. Stevens’.
Stevens was a well-respected teacher and principle at Oxford High School in Oxford, Maryland. She also became an influential figure in the community, providing opportunities for enrichment and entertainment such as a citizen’s reading club. Stevens’ passion for gardening led her to get involved in community gardening, planting flowers and shrubs in school yards and inspiring others to start their own gardens. She was a seasoned traveler and loved collecting plants from abroad and planting them in her garden. It was a trip to the United States Botanic Garden in Washington D.C. around 1900 where she originally collected the seeds that led to the establishment of the infamous holly. The resulting cultivar was a cross between the Chinese holly (Ilex cornuta) and English holly (Ilex aquifolium).
Diving into the stories and people behind plant names can take us back through history, unraveling the mystery and allure of plant origins. Discoveries continue to happen every day, creating new “legends in the garden,” taking root in our botanical history.