Target Learners
Adults and teens who garden, grow houseplants, or just enjoy nature and want to learn more about plant taxonomy and what plant names tell us.
Instructional Objectives
After completing the course, learners will be able to
- Sketch the history of plant taxonomy
- Recall taxonomic principles
- Apply knowledge of gardener's Latin to predict features of a plant based on its Latin binomial
- Evaluate the value of nomenclature for plant life
Instructional Method
After watching a video and reading about the history of plant taxonomy, learners fill in a timeline of the major events in the history of plant taxonomy. After viewing a presentation with audio and reading about taxonomic principles, learners create their own reference card of taxonomic principles. After lessons in taxonomic Latin, learners predict the plant that a Latin binomial describes; lessons in taxonomic Latin include an audio presentation on pronunciation, a video presentation on the basics of Latin as used in botanical names, a reference guide to helpful vocabulary, and a video demonstration at a garden. Learners read articles or watch videos that present a philosophical claim about plant nomenclature to form an opinion on the value of nomenclature for plant life.
Photos from the Pitt County Arboretum
These photos were taken by me in September 2023 in Greenville, NC.
Acer rubrum
Acer rubrum
Achillea Millefolium
Ajuga reptans
Asclepius syriaca and Monarch caterpillar
Asclepias syriaca
Asclepias syriaca seed pods
Chasmanthium latifolium
Chasmantium latifolium leaves
Coreopsis auriculata
Cyperus alternifolius
Eupatorium dubium
Euphorbia myrsinites
Ficus carica common fig
Ficus carica fruit
Ficus carica ripe fruit
Ficus carica
Foeniculum vulgare
Gelsemium sempervirens
Hibiscus syriacus
Hydrangea paniculata
Iberis sempervirens
Ilex vomitoria pendula
Ilex vomitoria
Iris siberica
Jasminum nudiflorum
Lespedeza bicolor leaves
Lespedeza bicolor
Lycoris radiata
Lycoris radiata
Miscanthus sinensis
Muhlenbergia capillaris
Muhlenbergia capillaris
Nandina domestica
Nipponanthemum Nipponicum
Osmanthus heterophyllus
Osmanthus heterophyllus leaves
Phlox glaberrima
Platycodon grandifloria
Platycodon grandifloria
Prunus cerisfera
Prunus cerisfera
Rostrinucula dependens
Rostrinucula dependens leaves and flowers
Salvia elegans
Salvia microphylla
Salvia microphylla
Solidago rugosa
Spirea japonica
Symphytum officinale
Tawny Emperor butterfly on Ficus carica
Thymus vulgaris
Viburnum plicatum leaf
Viburnum plicatum
Vitus rotundifolia fruit
Vitus rotundifolia leaves
Vitus rotundifolia leaves and fruit
Vitus rotundifolia
Gardening with the RHS
This audio clip is a segment of the Royal Horticulutral Society's gardening podcast March 3, 2022, episode #302 What’s in a Name? podcast on benefits of scientific names, including pronunciation, specificity, and clues to plant through Latin names (appearance, relations, performance, etc.); scientific names as erasure of indigenous people. Click here for the full episode , or here to learn more about the Gardening with the RHS podcast.
Species Names
This audio, written and narrated by me, accompanies the images from the Pitt County Arboretum.
Carl Linnaeus's Systema Naturae
Introduction to Linnaeus’ method of organizing data on the natural world, why he devised it, and how it has influenced taxonomic practices. Linnean Society. (2018, January 2)
What is botanical art?
Botanical art as part of the scientific process of information prioritization. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (2019, April 25)