Posts in category: Garden

Before sending a story to copy editing, the editor should verify all plant names. Lead copy editors may check plant names at their discretion at manuscript stage and should check all plant names at first proof stage. Subsequent copy editors and proofreaders need to look up only names that seem questionable or plants that are added at later stages.

The first source for spellings and plant details, including Zones, is BHG.com Plant Encyclopedia. Additional reliable plant name resources include the Missouri Botanical Garden plant finder and USDA plants database. A good source for common names is A–Z Encyclopedia of Garden Plants, which lists plants by scientific name (genus, then species, then cultivars [in single quotes]); common names are listed in parentheses and in an alphabetical index in the back of the book. There also is a plant word list in this stylebook for exceptions or preferences when there are several spelling options. (clarified 12.11.19)

If a plant name or details can’t be verified, the CE should note that on the layout so the editor can double-check in another reference. Do not change a plant name without checking with the editor, except in the case of an obvious typographical error.

Note: Be aware that, in some cases, more than one species might share the same common name. Specific plants also may have multiple common names. Defer to the editor’s choice in those cases.

SIM plant names style
• Common names
• Parentheses
• Scientific names
• Trademarked plants

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Temperatures for garden publications should be in Fahrenheit degrees in the following forms:

For positive degrees, place the number, followed by the degree sign (option-shift-8) and a capital F. There should be no spaces between the elements.
The average January temperature is 35°F.
The temperature should be 40°F–60°F.

For negative degrees, use an en-dash to create the negative.
The average February temperature is –35°F.

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Some companies are attempting to trademark plant names. In these cases, capitalize the name
but do not put it in single quotes. Trademarks are adjectives and must come before the plant name, whether common or botanical. Here are some common examples:
Bonica rose
Brandywine crabapple
Carefree Beauty rose
Carefree Delight rose
Carefree Wonder rose
Diabolo Physocarpus
Endless Summer hydrangea
Graham Thomas rose
Heritage birch
Heritage rose
Ivory Halo dogwood
Knock Out rose
Niobe willow
Northern Burgundy viburnum
Pink Meidiland rose (or any other Meidiland Series rose)
Red Jewel crabapple
Tinkerbelle lilac
Wine & Roses Weigela
Midnight Wine Weigela

SIM plant names style
• Common names
• Parentheses
• Scientific names
• Trademarked plants

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Parts of a plant name include:

• Genus
MCM: capitalize and italicize. It is the same in singular or plural form; do not add “s.”
Laurentia, Heuchera …

• Species
MCM: not capitalized but italicized.
Laurentia fluviatilis, Heuchera sanguinea …

An editor may refer to multiple species using the abbreviation spp.
For example: Buxus spp.

If, however, there is a single plant, and the species and/or variety is unknown, then use sp., as in,
“Shown here is a large juniper (Juniperus sp.) …”

Note: When listing multiple species of the same genus, abbreviate the genus after first reference:
Clematis terniflora, C. macropetala, C. recta.

The genus and species names may be followed by:
• Subspecies: a naturally occurring, distinct variant of a species, indicated by subsp. in roman type. This is a higher division than “variety.”
Prunus lusitanica subsp. azorica
• Varieties and forms: minor subdivisions of a species, differing slightly in their botanical structure. Indicated by var. and f. in roman type.
The pink variety of the Pacific dogwood is Cornus florida var. rubra.
• Hybrids: (or crosses) naturally or artificially produced offspring of genetically distinct parent plants. Use a Dimension X to indicate hybrids.
Viola x wittrockiana
• Cultivars: selected or artificially raised, distinct variants of species, subspecies, varieties, forms, and hybrids. Cultivars will not come true from seed, so are usually propagated asexually by cloning. Denoted by single quotes, capped, no ital. If punctuation follows the cultivar name, the punctuation is placed outside the single quotation mark:
‘Kristina’
Rhododendron ‘Elsie Frye’, Sedum ‘Autumn Joy’, and Lilium ‘Côte d’ Azur’.

Note: It is not always necessary to include both cultivar name and species name. Use is at the editor’s discretion.
Aster amellus
Aster amellus ‘King George’
Aster ‘King George’

Also, it is possible to have a cultivar of a variety:
Berberis thunbergia var. atropurpurea ‘Chenault’

• Mix, Series, Strain: Multiples of a single cultivar. When using strain, mix, or series with a cultivar name, such as Consolida Cloudy Skies Mix, don’t use single quotes around the cultivar name (‘Cloudy Skies’ in this example). When naming a specific color in the cultivar group, do use single quotes (Consolida ‘Cloudy Skies Blue’). See also Trademarked Plants.

SIM plant names style
• Common names
• Parentheses
• Scientific names
• Trademarked plants

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Italicize parentheses when the type inside them is entirely italic. If the type inside is roman or a mix of italic and roman, make the parentheses roman. (Opening and closing parentheses should always be the same type style.)

italic: Pink phlox and purple obedient plant (Physostegia virginiana) contrast with yellow and white snapdragons.
roman: Don’t forget about dogwood (Cornus spp.), fragrant and staghorn sumac (Rhus aromatica and R. typhina), and fothergilla (Fothergilla gardenii and F. major).

SIM plant names style
• Common names
• Parentheses
• Scientific names
• Trademarked plants

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Unless the plant’s scientific name and common name is the same, the common name should be lowercase, roman.

In common names that include a proper noun, capitalize the proper noun:
coneflower
butterfly bush
Jack-in-the-pulpit
Shasta daisy
black-eyed Susan

Copy editors should question common names when they find discrepancies; however, many plants have more than one common name, and the choice of which common name to use is at the editor’s discretion.

Some plants share common and scientific names. They may appear as lowercase and roman when the usage is common, or they may appear with caps and italics when the usage is botanical, at the editor’s discretion. Here are some examples:
aloe
anemone
asparagus
aster
astilbe
begonia
bougainvillea
caladium
camellia
canna
celosia
clematis
cleome
coleus
coreopsis
cosmos
crocus
dahlia
delphinium
dianthus
forsythia
fuchsia
gardenia
hibiscus
hosta
hydrangea
impatiens
iris
lisianthus
lobelia
magnolia
narcissus
petunia
phlox
rhododendron
salvia
sedum
verbena
veronica
viburnum
viola
wisteria
yucca
zinnia

Some names designate different plant genera when used commonly or scientifically. Therefore, it’s best to clarify them on first reference by using both common and scientific names. In subsequent references, capitalize and italicize when referring to genera and lowercase and romanize when referring to the common name.
azalea (Rhododendron spp.) or rhododendron (Rhododendron spp.)
bacopa (Sutera cordata) or water hyssop (Bacopa spp.)
blue mist spiraea (Caryopteris spp.) or spiraea (Spiraea spp.)
cranesbill (Geranium spp.) or geranium (Pelargonium spp.)
chrysanthemum (Leucanthemum spp.)
vanilla: extract of beans from the Vanilla vine, which also produces orchids
 

SIM plant names style
• Common names
• Parentheses
• Scientific names
• Trademarked plants

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