This is a public-interest archive. Personal data is pseudonymized and retained under GDPR Article 89.

Name tangles and the Vicomte de Noailles

First the name tangle and a (final? pl-e-ease!) question to Nick (I'll
keep this brief, for the sake of those banging their heads against the
walls or hitting the scotch - the real virtuosos may be doing both at
once - at the prospect of yet another 12-round championship taxonomic
bout) : Is it the case, then, that 'my' Temu divaricata is NOT
Myrciaria dubia, because that relates to the Eugenia of Bentham in
1840, whereas 'my' Temu relates to the Eugenia of Berg in 1856. Huh?
Yes? Which would account for the pics. of Myrciaria d. not really
looking like what I have. If that's so, (a) I can breathe at least one
sigh of relief, (b) then I can set about trying to track down a pic.
of (and more info. about origins and possible hardiness of) 'the other
Eugenia,' the one I (presumably) have. Wow! By comparison, actually
growing the brute is a breeze...

Re the late, great plantsman: just to echo Eric's opinion of the
Noailles/Lancaster book. It's short but it embodies a lifetime of
high-level plantsmanship (the writing is essentially by R.L., I think,
but with the V de N looking beadily over his shoulder...) (UK edition
originally by Floraprint 1977; I don't know if it's been reprinted
since); and also to echo the praises of the Quest-Ritson book. As for
that book's occasional bitchiness: depends what takes your fancy, I
suppose. Personally, I enjoy it. So many gardening books are so bland
- purveying a world in which all the gardens are perfect, all the
gardeners are Sweethearts of the Compost Heap -, it's a positive
relief to come across a garden writer who can BITE! A pleasurable
relief which reveals my deplorable character, I guess...
Tim Longville
Other Mailing lists | Author Index | Date Index | Subject Index | Thread Index