Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

500 results found

hornbeam

(Encyclopedia)hornbeam or ironwood, name in North America for two groups of trees of the family Betulaceae (birch family), native to the eastern half of the continent. Carpinus caroliniana, also called blue beech a...

goatsbeard

(Encyclopedia)goatsbeard, common name for plants of the genus Tragopogon (see salsify) of the family Asteraceae (aster family) and of the genus Aruncus of the family Rosaceae (rose family), related to the spiraeas....

forsythia

(Encyclopedia)forsythia fôrsĭthˈēə [key], common name for any member of the small genus Forsythia of the family Oleaceae (olive family), European and Asian shrubs with abundant bell-shaped yellow flowers that ...

fleabane

(Encyclopedia)fleabane, any plant of the genus Erigeron, widely distributed herbs of the family Asteraceae (aster family), especially abundant in temperate and mountainous regions of North America. The flowers, ran...

diapensia

(Encyclopedia)diapensia dīəpĕnˈsēə [key], common name for the Diapensiaceae, a family of low evergreen shrubs native to cool and arctic regions of the Northern Hemisphere. The species that are restricted to t...

dogtooth violet

(Encyclopedia)dogtooth violet, originally a name for the Old World plant Erythronium denscanis, now applied also to several North American species of the same genus of the family Liliaceae (lily family). The most c...

cowpea

(Encyclopedia)cowpea, black-eyed pea, or black-eyed bean, annual legume (Vigna sinensis) of the pulse family. Introduced in the early 18th cent. from the Old World to the S United States, it has become a staple of...

Christmasberry

(Encyclopedia)Christmasberry or toyon tōˈyən [key], evergreen tree or shrub (Photinia arbutifolia) of the family Rosaceae (rose family), found on the Pacific coast of North America. Its white flowers are followe...

peppergrass

(Encyclopedia)peppergrass, any species of the genus Lepidium, widely distributed peppery-tasting herbs of the family Cruciferae (or Brassicaceae; mustard family). They commonly have toothed leaves, clusters of smal...

poinciana

(Encyclopedia)poinciana poinsēāˈnə, –ăˈnə [key], any shrub or tree of the tropical and subtropical genus Poinciana of the family Leguminosae (pulse family). Poincianas are popular ornamentals for their sho...