Scilla bifolia 'Rosea' (Alpine Squill)
Botanical name origins are intriguing to say the least. After all, there must be a story behind the long Latin names or even better stories behind the common names. Let's start with one of the prettiest and smallest blooms of London Town, Scilla bifolia 'Rosea'. Rosea refers to the faint pink rose color of the new buds. S.'Rosea' is fragrant and easily naturalizes in any garden bed. https://www.missouribotanicalgarden.org/.../PlantFinderDe...
Scilla bifolia 'Rosea' (Alpine Squill) blossoming
Chinese-Willow Leaf Magnolia (Magnolia biondii)
One of the first Magnolias to bloom at London Town is the Magnolia biondii, its common name is 'Chinese-Willow Leaf Magnolia'. "The Chinese name for this plant means "hope of spring" alluding to its early flowering. Still extremely rare in cultivation." https://dawesarb.arboretumexplorer.org/taxon-24310.aspx....
Camellia 'Pink Icicle'
Camellia hybrids are plenty like Azaleas. What is easiest way to remember them? The cultivar names! Here is a neat article from UNL that talks about the differences and origins of Latin names: "The word cultivar means a cultivated variety; thus, a cultivar is selected and cultivated by humans. Although some cultivars can occur in nature as plant mutations, most cultivars are developed by plant breeders and are called hybrids." https://extension.unl.edu/.../Cultivar%20vs%20Variety...
Camellia 'Londontown Blush'
Curious about the origin of the name 'Camellia' itself? "The genus Camellia was named after a Jesuit priest and botanist named Georg Kamel.[7] The specific epithet japonica was given to the species by Carl Linnaeus in 1753 because Engelbert Kaempfer was the first to give a description of the plant while in Japan". https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Camellia_japonica....
'Blush' and 'Pink Icicle' are two stellar Camellias found in the woodland gardens of London Town. 'London Town Blush' is darker pink than 'Pink Icicle' but both have a fuller Peony flower form and the blooms are sturdy lasting well over two months or more.
Follow us next week to get another sneak peak of our spring blooms and learn about the many stories they tell.