Day 213: So here's the thought process...I'm out in the woods and I see a tall, slightly hairy stem with little green bells hanging more or less off one side of it. The top ones aren't open yet (that's a clue, especially given the height) and there's a slight pink tinge to some of the lower ones (that's another clue). The leaves are also slightly hairy and remind me of Heuchera which, aggravatingly, I have no problem remembering. I say to myself, "Mitella...no, that's not right. That's Mitrewort. This is...that other thing, the one that looks kinda like it." Then the mental search begins in earnest, and the first item to mind is Tiarella. Just that fast, I follow with reproach, "No, bonehead, that's Foamflower."
Having successfully remembered Mitella, Heuchera and Tiarella, you'd think I'd be able to pull this one out of the hat, but the scientific name eludes me. A tenth of a mile further down the trail, the common name pops into my head, "Fringe-cup! Okay, got that part...now what? Tia...Teme...Melitta...that's a coffee pot...dammit. WHY can't I ever remember that word?" And to add insult to injury, a quarter mile beyond the specimen with the annoyingly elusive name, I recall having read somewhere that it's an anagram of "Mitella." I'm remembering a lot, just not what I really NEED to remember. For example, I remember that Mitrewort's petals are more lacy and look "fringier" than those of Fringe-cup, but that doesn't help. I know what the plant is. I just can't say the name. It may take me a full mile, but eventually, I get it: Tellima. The "grandiflora" part comes easily on its heels. There's no mistaking how much more "grandi" its "flora" are than those of Mitella.
Tellima grandiflora...I'd like to get my hands on the taxonomist who anagrammed the name of a similar plant to get that one...a little botanical joke on the rest of us who have to try to delve it up from the old cerebral database.
No comments:
Post a Comment