Mexican Campion

November 01, 2017 5:06
Mexican Campion
Growing Native with Petey Mesquitey
Mexican Campion

Nov 01 2017 | 5:06

/

Show Notes

Sometimes the setting of the moon is as spectacular as the rising. As it slides down toward the mountains in the horizon it appears larger and larger. A few days a week I drive east to work in the early morning and I do stop and watch the moon, or sing softly to it, or photograph it as it disappears behind the Dragoon Mountains. Always a nice start to the day.

Caryophyllaceae is the pink family or carnation family and as I write this I’m wondering why isn’t it the campion family, but oh well, according to my Hortus Third there around five hundred species of Silene found around the world in the Northern Hemisphere. Nine species are found here in Arizona. And by the way, it was Linnaeus that named the genus after Silenus, the drunken tutor of Bacchus, an obscure fact that I found in the book Gods and Goddesses in the Garden by Peter Bernhardt. A book only a plant geek would own, and yes, I do, but listen, a plant named after the drool of a drunk.

A couple notes: the photos are mine and you can see the cardinal red pinked petals of Silene lanciniata. Pretty showy, right? And that is the moon going down over the Dragoons. The blacktop highway to the left is 191 or the old 666.

Other Episodes

Episode

November 13, 2016
Episode Cover

Desert Dreamscapes

I love the botanical name Amoreuxia. I think it may be the “euxia” part that feels so pleasant to say. And the specific epithet...

Listen

Episode

December 04, 2019 00:04:59
Episode Cover

Petey’s Fall Hunt and Gather

White-tailed deer in southwest North America are Odocoileus virginiana couesi or Coues white-tailed deer. The naturalist Elliot Coues is probably rolling in his grave...

Listen

Episode 0

August 02, 2021 00:04:52
Episode Cover

Turtles, Dogs, Plants

I’m so lucky to live in the land of the ornate box turtle (Terrepene ornata luteola). For me it has been a wonderful journey...

Listen