Gardiner’s Latin

Gardener’s Latin by Bill Neal is a fun, informative book that is full of Latin, and rich with the origin, lore and meanings of botanical names. I discovered the book when I was just getting interested in gardening, but well before I started taking classes at Merritt College. I studied French in high school and got hooked on language and the meaning of words, so the book appealed to me on several levels.

The book format is a glossary of Latin terms in alphabetical order, with fascinating bits of lore in the side bars. Examples of Latin words used in botanical names:

Words about color:	Albus – white Azureus – azure, sky blue Purpureas – purple Rufus – red, reddish
Words about shape:	Bilobus – having two lobes Crepidatus – slipper-shaped, shoe-like Lanceus – spear shaped Orbicularis – round, shaped like a wheel
Words about places:	Africanus – of or from African Caribaeus – of or from the Caribbean Oreganus – of or from Oregon, United States Ruthenicus – from Ruthenia, now known as western Russia
Words about direction or time:	Meridionalis – southern, pertaining to or flowering at noon Orientalis – eastern, of the dawn Pomeridianus – of the afternoon, flowering after noon Submersus - submerged
Words that are descriptive:	Bambusoides – with leaves or growth like bamboo Floridus – flowering, full of flowers Osmanthus – fragrant-flowered Zebrinus – zebra-striped
Words that describe uses:	Medicus – useful as a medicine, curative, of Media (Iran) Olifera – producing oil Religiosus – used for religious purposes, sacred Venenatus – poisonous (don’t use!)
Words about people:	Imperatricis – of the Empress Josephine Linnaeanus – in honor of Linnaeus Narcissiflorus – with flowers like Narcissus (mythical) Regina – of the queen, specifically, Queen Marie of Belgium

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This is a great companion book when you are figuring out the meaning of  Latin plant names.