Snowdrop is Galanthus nivalis. Snowflake is Leucojum vernum. Snowdrop is the rarer of the two. I have seen it only in pictures from other regions. The potential for consequences of its misidentification are therefore quite minimal. That is fortunate. I learned Leucojum vernum as snowdrop. Locally, no one ever corrected this transgression, probably because no one here was aware that it was a transgression. Most likely learned it the same as I did. Similarly, we learned heaths as heathers. Since heathers are very rare here, there is not much to compare heaths to. Fortunately, snowdrop, snowflake, heath and heather all have botanical names, which are universally the same everywhere. Well, at least they should be. During the past few years, I have noticed that the tree that I leaned as Eucalyptus pulverulenta is now Eucalyptus cinerea, and what I knew as Eucalyptus cinerea is now Eucalyptus pulverulenta. It is as if the two have simply traded names. Now that more information than ever in history is so readily available online, it is amazing what information is unavailable. I can confirm the identity of neither species of Eucalyptus! Many modern cultivars, particularly hybrids, lack species names between their genus name and cultivar name, as if such designations are no longer important. In that regard, their botanical names are no more defining than their common names. At least some of the common names are entertaining, such as pig face, pig squeak, chicken liver plant, brazen hussy, naked lady, twisty baby, mother-in-law’s tongue, sneezewort, shaggy soldier, corpse flower, sticky monkey flower, bear’s breeches, sticky willy, turkey tangle frog fruit, laurel-leaf snail seed, love in a mist, love in a puff, dead nettle, butter and eggs, teasel, fleabane and yesterday, today and tomorrow. Goodness, that is a big list, and it could go on.

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