 Meanings of Primula Plant Names
Meanings of Primula Plant Names
by Ralph Balcom
No doubt most of us have wondered just who is responsible for the
naming of our plants and why so often they appear so long and
complex and seemingly unpronounceable. The first person who
accurately describes a species and has it printed where it is
readily available to the general public, especially to various
botanical institutions, has the right to name it. A Latin version
sufficiently accurate to identify this plant should accompany the
description and the name should be Latinized.Most of the Primula names refer to a trait of the plant that caught
the eye of the one who named it. Knowing meanings of names of the
plants we grow should be of real interest to all of us. Very often
it gives us a clue as to some outstanding characteristic. Here below
is a list of a number of our primulas, most of them species plants,
and their meanings:
- acaulis - without a stem
- algida - cold (algid)
- amethystina - amethyst color
- anisodora - scent of aniseed
- aurantiaca - orange-yellow
- auricula - ear shaped
- capitata - clustered in a head
- cuneifolia - wedge-shaped leaves
- denticulata - toothed
- elatior - tall
- erosa - notched uneven leaves
- farinosa - mealy
- glabra - smooth, without hair
- glomerata - bunched
- glutinosa - sticky
- grandis - great
- helodoxa - “glory of the marsh”
- hirsuta - hair
- hyacinthina - scent of hyacinths
- imperialis - majestic
- incana grayish
- incisa - edges deeply notched
- involucrate - edges rolled inward
- luteola - yellowish
- macrophylla - large leaves
- marginata - distinct leaf margins
- malacoides - poorly shaped
- minima - smallest
- minutissima - tiny
- nivalis - snowy
- nutans - nodding
- obliqua - unequal leaves or sides
- obtusifolia - leaves blunt
- officinalis - medicinal
- pedemontana - foot of mountain
- pinnatifida - feather like leaves
- polyanthus - many flowers
- prolifera - multiplies freely
- pulverulenta - powdery
- redolens - fragrant
- reptans - creeping
- reticulata - net like leaves
- rosea - rose pink
- rotundifolia - round leaves
- rubra - red
- saxatilis - growing among rocks
- secundifolia - one sided
- serratifolia - saw toothed
- veris - spring flowering
- viscose - viscid leaves
- vulgaris - common
Reprinted from the Summer 1972 Quarterly
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