Flashcards on Ethnobotany and Plant Symbolism
Ethnobotany and Plant Symbolism: A Student's SEO Guide
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Notable plants
36 cards
Card 1
Question: What is the scientific name and family of the Talipot palm?
Answer: Corypha umbraculifera L. (Arecaceae)
Card 2
Question: Where is the Talipot palm native to and where is it cultivated?
Answer: Native to southern India and Sri Lanka; cultivated across Southeast Asia up to southern China.
Card 3
Question: How tall can the Talipot palm grow and how wide can its stem be?
Answer: Up to 25 m tall with stems up to 1.3 m in diameter.
Card 4
Question: What is notable about the Talipot palm's inflorescence and flowering habit?
Answer: It has the largest inflorescence of any plant (6–8 m long, with one to several million flowers) and is monocarpic, flowering once at 30–80 years old.
Card 5
Question: List three traditional uses of the Talipot palm.
Answer: Thatching, palm leaf manuscripts, and sap (palm wine).
Card 6
Question: What is the scientific name and family of the titan arum?
Answer: Amorphophallus titanum Becc. (Araceae)
Card 7
Question: What is notable about the titan arum's inflorescence and scent?
Answer: It has the largest unbranched inflorescence in the world (over 3 m) and emits a smell of decomposing mammal to attract pollinators.
Card 8
Question: Which pollinators does the titan arum attract with its smell?
Answer: Carrion-eating beetles and flesh flies.
Card 9
Question: Which species is described as having the largest individual flower on earth and what is its relationship with its host?
Answer: Rafflesia arnoldii (Rafflesiaceae) has the largest individual flower and is a parasite on the Tetrastigma vine (its host).
Card 10
Question: Where does Rafflesia arnoldii occur and what makes its flowering hard to observe?
Answer: Occurs only in the rainforests of Sumatra and Borneo; buds take many months to develop and the flower lasts just a few days.