What's in a Name?

Amorpha Fruticosa L...a big name for a small shrub! Sometimes I wonder about the naming of plants and animals in the world. Just how, for Pete's sake, are we ever supposed to remember something like Amorpha Fruticosa L.? It is not one of those names that stays on the tongue or in the brain more than about a split second unless you have studied to become a botanist! And that..I have not! So I call my Amorpha Fruticosa by the much simpler moniker of False Indigo Shrub. This, in itself, can be most confusing as there is a "False Indigo Plant" as well! The two share no traits other than the name. My False Indigo is a small shrub that I dug up from the creekbed years and years ago. It is a lovely little shrub that stays sort of lanky. It never gets "girthful" as Son would call it. The trunks of the shrub have never reached more than approximately two inches in diameter. It does, however, make tons of stalks which gives it a nice, graceful appearance! And..did I mention, it has a confusing name??

Until this spring, I had thought I might contact some Notable-Person-in-Charge-of-Naming-Plants and ask them to change the name! Considering the confusion that could arise over the two "False Indigo Plants", I figure that a name change would be quite desirable! Usually, this shrub is in full bloom during the month of February which gave me the idea to call it "Mardi Gras Bush"! It seemed that for years, the bush would invariably bloom the same week as the holiday regardless of the fact that Mardi Gras season is never a set day! It also contained all the "colors" of the season..purple, green and gold! Hence..Mardi Gras Bush! This seems to me a far cry better than trying to remember the true name and much simpler than trying to distinguish between two plants with such similar names! In my brain, my idea was perfect and I was sure that the Notable-Person-in-Charge-of-Naming-Plants (whoever that may be) would be tickled pink when I explained all of the reasoning behind said change! Think of the marketing surge that would come about merely by the name change! Why..anyone who participates in the revelry of the Mardi Gras Season would surely want one or a dozen of these shrubs to decorate their landscape! I am a genius!

But now that has changed simply because of a fluke in the growing season! The weather has not been agreeable with my name-changing plans! With the warm winter and other craziness going on weatherwise, my poor, little bush is totally discombobulated! Here it is the end of March and it is just now setting blooms! Something is surely amiss here! This should not happen! My plans for changing the name of the bush have gone kaput all due to a mild winter! I suppose I should just be happy that the shrub has decided to grace my yard with the presence of showy blooms and not complain about the name. Amorpha Fruticosa L., the confusing name that just would not go away!.......(Secretly...I still like the name Mardi Gras Bush!).....Maybe next year...hmmmmm??