Botanical name

Abotanical nameis a formalscientific nameconforming to theInternational Code of Nomenclature for algae, fungi, and plants(ICN) and, if it concerns a plantcultigen,the additionalcultivarorGroupepithets must conform to theInternational Code of Nomenclature for Cultivated Plants(ICNCP). The code of nomenclature covers "all organisms traditionally treated as algae,fungi,or plants, whether fossil or non-fossil, including blue-green algae (Cyanobacteria),chytrids,oomycetes,slime mouldsandphotosynthetic protistswith their taxonomically related non-photosynthetic groups (but excludingMicrosporidia). "^[1]

The purpose of a formal name is to have a single name that is accepted and used worldwide for a particular plant or plant group. For example, the botanical nameBellis perennisdenotes a plant species which is native to most of the countries ofEuropeand theMiddle East,where it has accumulated various names in many languages. Later, the plant was introduced worldwide, bringing it into contact with more languages. English names for this plant species include: daisy,^[2]English daisy,^[3]and lawn daisy.^[4]The cultivarBellis perennis'Aucubifolia' is a golden-variegated horticultural selection of this species.

Type specimens and circumscription

The botanical name itself is fixed by atype,which is a particular specimen (or in some cases a group of specimens) of an organism to which the scientific name is formally attached. In other words, a type is an example that serves to anchor or centralize the defining features of that particular taxon.^{[citation needed]}

The usefulness of botanical names is limited by the fact that taxonomic groups are not fixed in size; a taxon may have a varyingcircumscription,depending on thetaxonomic system,thus, the group that a particular botanical name refers to can be quite small according to some people and quite big according to others. For example, the traditional view of the familyMalvaceaehas been expanded in some modern approaches to include what were formerly considered to be several closely related families. Some botanical names refer to groups that are very stable (for exampleEquisetaceae,Magnoliaceae) while for other names a careful check is needed to see which circumscription is being used (for exampleFabaceae,Amygdaloideae,Taraxacum officinale).^{[citation needed]}

Forms of plant names

Depending onrank,botanical names may be in one part (genusand above), two parts (various situations below the rank of genus) orthree parts(below the rank of species). The names of cultivated plants are not necessarily similar to the botanical names, since they may instead involve "unambiguous common names" of species or genera. Cultivated plant names may also have an extra component, bringing a maximum of four parts:^{[citation needed]}

in one part: Plantae(the plants); Marchantiophyta(the liverworts); Magnoliopsida(class including the familyMagnoliaceae); Liliidae(subclass including the familyLiliaceae); Pinophyta(theconifers); Fagaceae(thebeechfamily); Betula(thebirchgenus)

in two parts: Acaciasubg.Phyllodineae(the wattles); lchemillasubsect.Heliodrosium; Berberis thunbergii(Japanese barberry) a species name, i.e., acombinationconsisting of a genus name and one epithet; Syringa'Charisma' – a cultivar within a genus; HydrangeaLacecap Group – a genus name and Group epithet; LiliumDarkest Red Group – a genus name and Group epithet; PaphiopedilumGreenteaicecreamandraspberries grex; snowdrop 'John Gray' – an unambiguous common name for the genusGalanthusand a cultivar epithet

in three parts: Calystegia sepiumsubsp.americana(American hedge bindweed), a combination consisting of a genus name and two epithets; Crataegus azarolusvar.pontica(a Mediterranean hawthorn); Bellis perennis'Aucubifolia' – a cultivar; Brassica oleraceaGemmifera Group – a species name and Group epithet

in four parts: Scilla hispanicavar.campanulata'Rose Queen' – a cultivar within a botanical variety; apart from cultivars, the name of a plant can never have more than three parts.

Components of plant names

A botanical name in three parts, i.e., aninfraspecific name(a name for a taxon below the rank of species) needs a "connecting term" to indicate rank. In theCalystegiaexample above, this is "subsp.", forsubspecies.In botany there are many ranks below that of species (in zoology there is only one such rank, subspecies, so that this "connecting term" is not used in zoology). A name of a "subdivision of a genus" also needs a connecting term (in theAcaciaexample above, this is "subg.",subgenus). The connecting term is not part of the name itself.^{[citation needed]}

A taxon may be indicated by a listing in more than three parts: "Saxifraga aizoonvar.aizoonsubvar.brevifoliaf.multicaulissubf.surculosaEngl. & Irmsch. "but this is a classification, not a formal botanical name. The botanical name isSaxifraga aizoonsubf.surculosaEngl. & Irmsch. (ICNArt 24: Ex 1).

Generic, specific, and infraspecific botanical names are usually printed initalics.The example set by theICNis to italicize all botanical names, including those above genus, though theICNpreface states: "TheCodesets no binding standard in this respect, as typography is a matter of editorial style and tradition not of nomenclature ". Most peer-reviewed scientific botanical publications do not italicize names above the rank of genus, and non-botanical scientific publications do not, which is in keeping with two of the three other kinds ofscientific name:zoologicalandbacterial(viral namesabove genus are italicized, a new policy adopted in the early 1990s).^{[citation needed]}

Binary name

For botanical nomenclature, theICNprescribes a two-part name orbinary namefor any taxon below therankof genus down to, and including, the rank of species. Taxa below the rank of species get a three part (infraspecific name).^{[citation needed]}

A binary name consists of the name of agenusand an epithet.

In the case of a species this is a specific epithet:

Bellis perennisis the name of a species, in whichperennisis the specific epithet. There is no connecting term involved to indicate the rank.

In the case of a subdivision of a genus (subgenus, section, subsection, series, subseries, etc.) the name consists of the name of a genus and a subdivisional epithet. A connecting term should be placed before the subdivisional epithet to indicate the rank:

Paraserianthessect.Falcataria

In cultivated plants

In the case of cultivated plants, there is an additional epithet which is an often non-Latin part, not written in italics. For cultivars, it is always given in single quotation marks. The cultivar, Group, or grex epithet may follow either the botanical name of the species, or the name of the genus only, or the unambiguous common name of the genus or species. The generic name, followed by a cultivar name, is often used when the parentage of a particular hybrid cultivar is not relevant in the context, or is uncertain.

References

^McNeill, J.; Barrie, F.R.; Buck, W.R.; Demoulin, V.; Greuter, W.; Hawksworth, D.L.; Herendeen, P.S.; Knapp, S.; Marhold, K.; Prado, J.; Prud'homme Van Reine, W.F.; Smith, G.F.; Wiersema, J.H.; Turland, N.J. (2012).International Code of Nomenclature for algae, fungi, and plants (Melbourne Code) adopted by the Eighteenth International Botanical Congress Melbourne, Australia, July 2011.Vol. Regnum Vegetabile 154. A.R.G. Gantner Verlag KG.ISBN 978-3-87429-425-6.Archivedfrom the original on 2013-11-04.
^Ecological Flora of the British Isles Archived2007-03-12 at theWayback Machine
^"Bellis perennis".Germplasm Resources Information Network.Agricultural Research Service,United States Department of Agriculture.Retrieved2011-06-05.
^L. B. McCarty (15 January 2001).Color Atlas of Turfgrass Weeds.John Wiley & Sons. p. 102.ISBN 978-1-57504-142-1.Archivedfrom the original on 2 May 2016.

Bibliography

Pavord, Anna(2005).The naming of names the search for order in the world of plants.New York: Bloomsbury.ISBN 9781596919655.Retrieved18 February2015.

External links

Brickell, C.D.; Alexander, C.; David, J.C.; Hetterscheid, W.L.A.; Leslie, A.C.; Malecot, V.; Jin, X.; Editorial committee; Cubey, J.J. (2009).International Code of Nomenclature for Cultivated Plants (ICNCP or Cultivated Plant Code), incorporating the Rules and Recommendations for naming plants in cultivation(PDF)(8th ed.). International Association for Plant Taxonomy and International Society for Horticultural Science. Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 2011-08-13.Retrieved2013-12-29.Adopted by theInternational Union of Biological SciencesInternational Commission for the Nomenclature of Cultivated Plants.
Plant botanical definition list.Retrieved 12 November 2016.

[1] McNeill, J.; Barrie, F.R.; Buck, W.R.; Demoulin, V.; Greuter, W.; Hawksworth, D.L.; Herendeen, P.S.; Knapp, S.; Marhold, K.; Prado, J.; Prud'homme Van Reine, W.F.; Smith, G.F.; Wiersema, J.H.; Turland, N.J. (2012).International Code of Nomenclature for algae, fungi, and plants (Melbourne Code) adopted by the Eighteenth International Botanical Congress Melbourne, Australia, July 2011.Vol. Regnum Vegetabile 154. A.R.G. Gantner Verlag KG.ISBN 978-3-87429-425-6.Archivedfrom the original on 2013-11-04.

[2] Ecological Flora of the British Isles Archived2007-03-12 at theWayback Machine

[3] "Bellis perennis".Germplasm Resources Information Network.Agricultural Research Service,United States Department of Agriculture.Retrieved2011-06-05.

[McCarty2001-4] L. B. McCarty (15 January 2001).Color Atlas of Turfgrass Weeds.John Wiley & Sons. p. 102.ISBN 978-1-57504-142-1.Archivedfrom the original on 2 May 2016.

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