{"id":612676,"date":"2026-04-21T09:06:42","date_gmt":"2026-04-21T13:06:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.earthrangers.com\/EN\/CA\/?p=612676"},"modified":"2026-04-21T09:06:45","modified_gmt":"2026-04-21T13:06:45","slug":"top-ten-weird-plant-names","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.earthrangers.com\/EN\/CA\/top-10\/top-ten-weird-plant-names\/","title":{"rendered":"Top Ten Weird Plant Names"},"content":{"rendered":"

Ever heard of a Sneezewort, or a Monkey Puzzle Tree? We’ve got a whole list of wonky plants and the inside scoop on where they got their funny names!<\/p>\n

#1 Sneezewort Yarrow (Achillea ptarmica<\/em>)<\/h2>\n
\"Sneezewort\"
Sneezewort<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Also known as:<\/strong> Sneezeweed<\/p>\n

I\u2019m named this because\u2026 <\/strong>I was once used as a sneezing powder. Sneezeweed was dried up and used to get people to sneeze to clear out their sinuses!<\/p>\n

Fun fact:<\/strong> This plant doesn\u2019t just make people sneeze; it can also be eaten in salads or used as an insect repellent.<\/p>\n

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#2 Hooded Skullcap (Scutellaria galericulata<\/em>)<\/h2>\n
\"Hooded
Hooded Skullcap. Photo Credit: Fornax<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Also known as:<\/strong> Marsh Skullcap<\/p>\n

I\u2019m named this because\u2026<\/strong> my flowers look like caps<\/p>\n

Fun fact:<\/strong> The Hooded Skullcap is part of the mint family but it doesn\u2019t taste like mint! One of its relatives is also famous, the plant, called mad-dog weed, was used in medieval times as a remedy for rabid-dog bites.<\/p>\n

#3 Monkey Puzzle Tree (Araucaria araucana<\/em>)<\/h2>\n
\"Monkey
Monkey Puzzle Tree<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Also known as:<\/strong> Chilean Pine<\/p>\n

I\u2019m named this because\u2026<\/strong> an Englishman in the early 1800s said that the tree would be a puzzle for a monkey to climb, even though there are no monkeys where this tree grows!<\/p>\n

Fun fact:<\/strong> These trees can live for many years; the oldest is over 800 years old! These trees can also grow as big as 150 feet tall with a trunk diameter of 7 feet.<\/p>\n

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#4 Devil\u2019s Walkingstick (Aralia spinosa<\/em>)<\/h2>\n
\"Devils
Devils Walking StickPhoto Credit: Richard Chambers<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Also known as:<\/strong> Angelica-Tree, Prickly Elder, Hercules Club<\/p>\n

Fun fact:<\/strong> The stems of the shrub have long \u201cprickles\u201d and it is not uncommon to see them grow 15 cm long!<\/p>\n

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#5 Turkey Corn (Dicentra eximia<\/em>)<\/h2>\n
\"Turkey
Turkey Corn. Photo Credit: Kurt Stuber<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Also known as:<\/strong> Fringed Bleeding Heart<\/p>\n

Fun fact:<\/strong> This is the most heat tolerant plant in the Dicentra family. It will continue to grow throughout the summer, as long as the soil does not dry out.<\/p>\n

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#6 Kangaroo Paws (<\/em>Anigozanthos flavidus)<\/em><\/h2>\n
\"Tall
Tall Kangaroo Paw<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

I\u2019m named this because\u2026<\/strong> clusters of my flowers look like a paw.<\/p>\n

Fun fact:<\/strong> In the wild Kangaroo Paws can only be found in South Western Australia.<\/p>\n

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# 7 Butter and Eggs (Linaria vulgaris<\/em>)<\/h2>\n
\"Butter
Butter and Eggs<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Also known as:<\/strong> Yellow Toadflax, Brideweed<\/p>\n

I\u2019m named this because\u2026<\/strong> my flower looks like an egg yolk<\/p>\n

Fun fact:<\/strong> According to myth, Butter and Eggs was originally a yellow dragon that transformed, sadly it then choked on a fried egg.<\/p>\n

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# 8 Hens and Chicks (Sempervivum tectorum<\/em>)<\/h2>\n
\"Hen
Hen and Chicks. Photo Credit: Kurt Stuber<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Also known as:<\/strong> House Leeks<\/p>\n

I\u2019<\/strong>m named this because\u2026<\/strong> I form in a large cluster (the hen) surrounded by smaller patches (the chicks)<\/p>\n

Fun Fact:<\/strong> Hen and Chicks were originally planted on roofs as protection against lightning because they are linked to Thor and Zeus, the two mythical gods of lightning.<\/p>\n

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#9 Lambsquarters (Chenopodium album<\/em>)<\/h2>\n
\"Lambquarters\"
Lambquarters. Photo Credit: rasbak<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Also known as:<\/strong> Fat Hen, White Goosefoot, Wild Spinach<\/p>\n

I\u2019m named this because\u2026<\/strong> the word Lambsquarters comes from lammas quarter which is a harvest festival that was held on August 1st in 9th century England where this plant was eaten. The nickname goosefoot comes from the leaves that look like a goose\u2019s foot.<\/p>\n

Fun fact:<\/strong> This plant can produce 75,000 seeds and can grow in many soil types. Lambsquarters is also very healthy for you; it contains more vitamins and essential minerals than many vegetables, especially Lettuce, Spinach and Cabbage<\/p>\n

# 10 Cheeseweed Mallow (Malva parviflora<\/em>)<\/h2>\n
\"Cheeseweed
Cheeseweed Forest Photo Credit: Kim Starr<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Also known as:<\/strong> Little Mallow<\/p>\n

I\u2019m named this because\u2026<\/strong> the shape of my fruit looks like mini cheese rounds but they do not taste like cheese!<\/p>\n

Fun fact:<\/strong> Stay away from this plant if you\u2019re a chicken, poultry that eat this plant\u2019s seeds or leaves may produce lower quality eggs.<\/p>\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Ever heard of a Sneezewort, or a Monkey Puzzle Tree? We’ve got a whole list of wonky plants and the inside scoop on where they got their funny names!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":236039,"featured_media":10893,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[453,411,931],"tags":[128,335],"class_list":{"0":"post-612676","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-plants-2","8":"category-top-10","9":"category-all","10":"tag-plants","11":"tag-top-ten"},"pp_force_visibility":null,"pp_subpost_visibility":null,"pp_inherited_force_visibility":null,"pp_inherited_subpost_visibility":null,"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.earthrangers.com\/EN\/CA\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/612676","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.earthrangers.com\/EN\/CA\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.earthrangers.com\/EN\/CA\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.earthrangers.com\/EN\/CA\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/236039"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.earthrangers.com\/EN\/CA\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=612676"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.earthrangers.com\/EN\/CA\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/612676\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":612681,"href":"https:\/\/www.earthrangers.com\/EN\/CA\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/612676\/revisions\/612681"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.earthrangers.com\/EN\/CA\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/10893"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.earthrangers.com\/EN\/CA\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=612676"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.earthrangers.com\/EN\/CA\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=612676"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.earthrangers.com\/EN\/CA\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=612676"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}