Botanica confusii

What is Perovski atriplicifolia?  Answer: Russian Sage.  Does anyone else find the language of botany confusing?  I work in the plant industry and although I spend a large amount of time reading about plants I still cannot come to terms with the complicated language of botany.  The latin language of botany dates back to 1867 when an internationl standard was agreed apon.  The rules and regulations of plant naming are called : The international Code of Botanical Nomenclature. The most important levels of classification and identification in horticulture are:

Genus -A genus is a group of plants that all share some common characteristics

Species- a large group of plants that exhibit similar charactoristics.  Family names end in "aceae"
Cultivar- these plants freely interbreed maintaining the same charactoristics from generation to generation.

But thats enough about that.  How about this name - Helictotrichon or Rhodochiton Astrosanguineus. Just one more to confuse you - Molopospermum peloponnesiacum.  I could go on but for some reason these names are so complicated and intimidating that they take all the fun out of gardening.  I'm going to stick to my common names even at the risk of being considered a Botanical ignoramous.  So bring on the bell flowers, and the daylilys.  I'm going outside to enjoy my garden.

Coming Next - Flea Market Treasures.

Heart Broken

My son moved out.  Not actually out of the house, he's only 3.  He moved out of my bed. Completely out of the blue he went to sleep in his own bed.  At first I thought it was just a cruel April fools day joke but when he went into his own bed the second and third night I knew it wasn't a joke.  Even when I sublimely suggested that he might like to to sleep in my bed he still chose his own. My heart is broken ( just a little) and now something isn't right when I go to bed at night.  It's just not the same.  The balance has been shifted and I don't like it.  What am I going to do when he goes to school?