A fun riddle

I read this last night in a book on botanical names (yeah, that's what I do in my free time, LOL.) Anyway, I thought it was pretty funny (guess my sense of humor is getting weird, too.) But who can guess which plant this refers to?

Linneaus named this three-petaled flowering plant after a family of Dutch botanists. As a private joke, the petals were intended to represent the brothers, two of whom were dedicated scientists and well-regarded; the third memorialized a brother who didn't amount to much.

Likewise the flower has two upper petals that are fairly equal and noteworthy in size, the third is smaller and rather inconspicuous.

I'll drop some hints if you need them, but I'm betting someone here will guess pretty quick :)

hint?

Was it named for the Jussieu brothers??
Never mind. They are FRENCH. lol


This message was edited Friday, Jun 14th 6:08 PM

How about Antirrhinum Orontium, a member of the snapdragon family?? Okay, I poop out and admit defeat. Is it a snapdragon?? LOL

Badseed not if it is the one I'm thinking of ;)

If it's a Dutch family it can only be the Commelijn brothers, so is the flower Commelina?

*Furried brow*

Wintermoor

Wintermoor

Jan and Kaspar Commelin were the people I was thinking of too.

I didn't know their first names, but I know they had a brother who was a bit of a drinker, and 'went with loose women'.

Lucky guy!!

Wintermoor

Warning ... short thread hijacking

Wintermoor

I've never understood the term loose women. Do they mean women who aren't sown up at the seams or just generally wobble about? I think in reality it just means women who aren't caged ;)

Back to subject

I understood them to be an uncle and nephew team, which was why I wasn't too eager to name them straight away.

Threadnapping!!

He would really have been some lush if he hung about with anybody who wasn't sewn-up at the seams, and I don't know if it would have been a wobble, more a dangle methinks;-)

Thread recovery!!

I read they were brothers..... so there!! :-P

And furthermore, they'd have been neighbours of mine from just across the border. I heard the lush bro. hung around with the women with the sheepskin-lined clogs ;-)

Internationally yours

Wintermoor

You guys are soooooo funny!

LOLOLOL. This thread appparently went AWOL while I was away.

Yes, indeed it was the Commelina plant, named for the Commelin brothers. (Who I thought were uncle and nephew too.) Apparently the ne'er do well brother died before Species Planatarum was published, so he didn't know that Linne had a chuckle at his expense.

If I get a chance, I'll post another one tomorrow :)

Wintermoor

Do you often come across dangling women? .... Come to think of it I don't want to know, I'm sure in your line of work you've met all sorts of people ;)

As to whether they wear sheepskin clogs, I really wouldn't like to say. But it does explain all those men who make sheep's eyes at me when I run outside with them on *G*

Sorry Vols I just couldn't resist a short trip to sureal land.