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Saint John’s Wort

Saint John’s wort is a survivor.

Saint John’s wort is the common name of a few species of Hypericum. Hypericum beanii sometimes gets the distinction of Bean’s Saint John’s wort. That sounds more like carob, Ceratonia siliqua, though. Carob is the locust bean that sustained Saint John the Baptist in the desert. Mr. Bean was actually a respected botanist of the Royal Botanical Garden.

This Saint John’s wort is not as invasive as naturalized sorts, but is as resilient. Although rarely available from nurseries, it survives in old and neglected landscapes. Established specimens need no irrigation, but perform better with it. This species is likely rare merely because of its resemblance to invasive sorts. It propagates quite efficiently from cuttings.

Hypericum beanii is a shrubby species, unlike more familiar ground cover types. It grows about two or three feet tall and wide. Its bright yellow flowers are about two inches wide, and bloom through summer. Foliage is deciduous where winter is cooler. Here, it is likely to linger until spring foliage replaces it. Partial shade is tolerable, but might inhibit bloom.

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Nomenclature Is The Name Game

60302thumbNomenclature is a standardized technology of naming. It dictates the universal ‘botanical’ names of all plants, so that everyone everywhere can communicate more efficiently about horticulture. Botanical names might seem confusing, and maybe even unflattering, but they eliminate the confusion associated with regional common names that are as variable as languages and cultures.

For example, the white pine from Northern California is not the same as the white pine from Maine, even though they both have the same common name. However, Pinus monticola, the white pine from Northern California, is the same everywhere, even if grown in Maine. This particular botanical name is only for this particular white pine, so eliminates confusion with other white pines.

Botanical names are also known as ‘Latin’ names because they are (obviously) Latin. The first name is the more general part of the name, so is known as the ‘genus’ (or ‘genera’ in plural). The second name is the more specific part of the name, so is known as the ‘species’ (or ‘specie’ in plural). The genus name should be capitalized; but the species name is not. Both are italicized.

Acer is the genus of all maples. Salix is the genus of all willows. These names identify particular genera, but are no more specific alone. Acer rubrum more specifically identifies a popular North American maple that is known locally as red maple. Salix babylonica specifically identifies a common willow known locally as weeping willow. This is almost as specific as nomenclature gets.

A few specie have varieties or cultivars (cultivated varieties) which are variants of the basic species. Variety or cultivar names are added after specie names. They are capitalized, unitalicized and semi-quoted. For example, Acer rubrum ‘October Glory’ is the October Glory red maple. Olea europaea ‘Little Ollie’ is a fruitless, dense and short cultivar of the familiar European olive tree.

Nomenclature of plants is similar to nomenclature of cars. Buick, Chrysler and Mercury are genera of cars. Electra, Imperial and Grand Marquis are specie of Buick, Chrysler and Mercury, respectively. ‘Limited’, ‘Custom’ and ‘Brougham’ are their cultivars. There are of course many more plants with bigger and stranger names, but the system for identification works the same way.