Specifying Trees by Botanical Names
We refer to it as a landscape palette and, much like the traditional artist palette, landscape architects and contractors use this unique collection of plants to bring color and texture to the build environment. For the contractor to successfully construct what the landscape architect envisioned they must both agree as to what parts of the palette are being used. In these instances the correct botanical and common name of trees and shrubs (common and botanical) matters.
Taxonomy (Systematics) is a branch of biology dedicated to describing, classifying and naming living organisms. Taxonomists assign organisms a scientific name or Latin binomial (two names) identifying them to genus and species. These names, like Zea mays, in the case of corn, are useful within the scientific/academic communities as they provide scientist with an agreed upon name when discussing specific organisms. Latin is used as it is considered a dead (static) language, free of slang or new interpretations of existing words.
For all the apparent intellectual rigor, scientific names, particular within Botany, have been remarkable fluid and over the last half-century and some have changed frequently. For example, within the desert landscape palette the genus Senna was changed to Cassia and then recently changed back to Senna. Our Arizona Native Mesquite, Prosopis velutina, was once considered a variety of P. juliflora (as P. juliflora var. velutina), but is now considered a unique species.
Landscape professionals (landscape architects, growers, and contractors) use both common and scientific names (Latin binomials) almost interchangeably which, in itself, can lead to misunderstandings. Among state and local plant regulators these names represent units of commerce or regulated items (e.g. ADWR Approved Plant Lists, pesticide labels). Changing the botanical names of commercially important landscape plants can create confusion among growers, landscape architects, contractors, regulatory officials, and both retail and wholesale end users. With these factors in mind, botanical name changes, especially among commercially important species, should be carefully considered, well researched and ideally, as with all scientific work, published in respected and reviewed science publications. Within the commercial sphere, there needs to be some flexibility with the interpretation of “new” plant botanical names so they don’t compromise approved landscape plans and existing plant inventories. This is further complicated by the array of trademarked, patented or proprietary (like Variety AZT) tree within the current desert landscape palette.
Arid Zone Trees has elected to adopt the taxonomic scheme published in 2001, by Felger, Johnson, and Wilson in their book The Trees of Sonora, Mexico (Oxford University Press, New York, New York). This book represents a comprehensive taxonomic review of plants native to the Sonoran desert. This is, by no means, the final word on desert landscape tree taxonomy but we believe it to be a well sourced, credible approach to tree names. It is our way of being a part of the conversation and giving our clients a sense of how we identify these tree species in both botanical and common names. Our objective continues to be offering the professional landscape community the quality trees they desire to create and construct their projects. Coordination between the design, construction, and grower can serve to reduce confusion and ensure that the built landscape meets the expectations of all concerned.