Bright in the Rain. Ipomoea lobata, Firecracker Vine, Hortus Botanicus, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
The Mexican collector of this fine flower, Juan José Martínez Lejarza (Lexarza) (1785-1824), is primarily known for his great work on orchids. His contributions to botany were published posthumously in 1824. Lejarza was also a poet in Ovidian fashion; at least, Ovid was his own hero. Love and poetry are for him closely connected in his Poesías of 1827: 'Los que buscaren / finos amores, / en mi cestillo/ escojan flores.'
An earlier name for our vine was 'Mina lobata'. 'Mina' is for Francisco Javier Mina Larrea (1789-executed in 1817), a hero of the Mexican War for Independence from Spain. Ironically, the flower bears resemblance to the colors of the Spanish flag, and indeed often goes by that name.
Bright in the Rain. Ipomoea lobata, Firecracker Vine, Hortus Botanicus, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
The Mexican collector of this fine flower, Juan José Martínez Lejarza (Lexarza) (1785-1824), is primarily known for his great work on orchids. His contributions to botany were published posthumously in 1824. Lejarza was also a poet in Ovidian fashion; at least, Ovid was his own hero. Love and poetry are for him closely connected in his Poesías of 1827: 'Los que buscaren / finos amores, / en mi cestillo/ escojan flores.'
An earlier name for our vine was 'Mina lobata'. 'Mina' is for Francisco Javier Mina Larrea (1789-executed in 1817), a hero of the Mexican War for Independence from Spain. Ironically, the flower bears resemblance to the colors of the Spanish flag, and indeed often goes by that name.