Silver Roses Quiz | Flowers, Plants & Gardens

Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. This flower, which is from the genus "tropaeolum", actually is a word that means "nose twister". I, on the other hand, think it sounds like it should be quite a salty plant. It seems that an appropriate "symbol" for this plant is the same as that of element number 11. Which plant is it?

Answer: Nasturtium

Nasturtium means "nose-twister" or "nose-tweaker". The flower got the name "nasturtium" because it produces an oil very similar to that of watercress, which is from the genus "nasturtium".

Element number 11 happens to be sodium. That does not seem very similar to nasturtium, until you look at the symbol. Sodium's symbol is Na, because the Latin name is natrium. Natrium, nasturtium; you can see how I'd confuse the plant with the element!

2. The larkspur is a plant from a genus of flowers with an aquatic sounding name. It also, however, sounds like it should be on the Periodic Table of Elements. In fact, I think that cesium sounds like where this plant would live... What is the genus that claims the larkspur?

Answer: Delphinium

The larkspur is perhaps the most common of all the delphiniums.

The delphinium; sounds a lot like a dolphin, doesn't it? And where do dolphins live; in the seas of course.

Perhaps that is why I also think that the delphinium lives in the cesium (dolphin [ium] in the seas [ium]).

3. I think the cranesbill is a neat looking flower. It belongs to a genus that sounds a lot like an element to me! Element 32, to be exact, though it is missing a letter. What genus does the cranesbill belong to?

Answer: Geranium

The cranesbill is a common flower from the geranium family, and can be found in the Mediterranean. It got its name because the flower looks like the long neck and beak of a crane.

The 32nd element of the Periodic Table happens to be germanium. To me, that sounds a lot like the flower, the geranium. Heck, it's even only a single letter off! No wonder that when I always tell people that I have a garden full of germaniums, they look at me like I'm an idiot.

4. I could not help but guffaw every time I hear the nickname of a certain species of stonecrop; "Welcome Home Husband Though Never So Drunk". Speaking of drunk, I somehow always seem to call the flower "beerium", so I seem to get it mixed up with element 56. What genus does the stonecrop belong to?

Answer: Sedum

Stonecrops are part of the sedum genus, and perhaps the most well known stonecrop is the sedum acre. It is known as the goldmoss stonecrop, biting stonecrop, goldmoss sedum, wallpepper, and of course, my favorite, the "welcome home husband though never so drunk".

Of course, element 56 is not "beerium" but "barium". Somehow, though, I always misspeak and call it "beerium". That's why I call the "drunk flower" the beerium instead of the sedum. When will I learn the different between plants and elements?

5. Tansy is also called Golden Buttons. They are from a genus which has the same name as element 73. Okay, so it's not quite the exact same name, but to someone like me, element 73 and this plant genus sound the same to me! What genus does the tansy belong to?

Answer: Tanacetum

The tanacetum genus contains flowers that are commonly known as tansies. The tansy is also known as bitter buttons, cow bitter, golden buttons, and mugwort. Tanacetum is from the aster family.

Of course, element 73 is not "tanacetum" but is actually "tantalum". But, for someone who is not a science guy nor a gardener, they might as well be the same to me. Perhaps I need to go back to high school.

6. In my opinion, the bluemink is a beautiful flower. It is from a genus that is commonly referred to as whiteweed. Though, if it were me, I'd call it the silverweed. That's because, to me, it looks like a mangled version of the Latin word meaning "silver". What genus is the bluemink from?

Answer: Ageratum

Whiteweeds and blueminks are from the sunflower family. Whiteweeds are so named because as they grow, they are very susceptible to weed growth around the plants. Many species of ageratum are toxic.

Silver is element number 47. I call the ageratum genus "silverweeds" because it looks like silver to me. You see, silver has the chemical symbol "Ag". This is actually because Latin for silver is "argentum".

Now, I'm no scientist, or botanist, but don't "argentum" and "ageratum" look like the same word to you, too?

7. This genus of plants is often called the onion genus, because these globular flowers are what grow on top of many types of onions. The name comes from the Latin for "garlic". Of course, to me, the genus looks like it is simply element number 81 with the first two letters chopped off. What is the genus?

Answer: Allium

Species of allium are the leek, shallot, and chives. The allium forms a gorgeous (in my opinion) bulbous flower on top.

The 81st element on the Periodic Table is thallium, symbol Tl. If you'll notice, please, the genus "allium". Now closely examine that word. Add a "t" and an "h" in front of it, in that order. You get thallium. See why I often mistakenly tell people that I just love thallium flowers?

8. This genus is a group of flowering evergreens, oftentimes called the mallow or Chinese bell flower. It sounds like it should be a noble gas, though. Perhaps it's the future name of element 118. Of course, it's not an element. What genus is called the mallow?

Answer: Abutilon

Plants of this genus are often called abutilon, Chinese bell flower, flowering maple, Chinese lantern, mallow, or Indian mallow. The name "flowering maple" is given due to some species appearing as though they are maple trees. The truth, however, is that they are not related to the maple.

Noble gases, as one person has so kindly pointed out to me, end in "on". When I learned of this, I thought that abutilon must be the missing 118th element, and a noble gas! I thought that perhaps the gas was found within the flower's petals. Of course, that's not the case. It's just my botany and chemistry getting mixed up again.

9. This flower sometimes resembles an open mouth with a hairy tongue sticking out, which gave it the name "beard tongue". I think this genus is related to element number five in some way. The first half reminds me of the number five, and the second half reminds me of element number five! What genus is it?

Answer: Penstemon

The penstemon genus of flowers are sometimes known as "beard-tongues". This is because the staminode (infertile stamen) comes out of the flower in such a way that it looks like it is coming out of an open mouth. It is also very hairy, which is why it is called "beard tongue".

It turns out, penstemon and boron are in no way connected. To the untrained (aka me), it sounds like a perfect description for the 5th element, boron, as it looks like it says "penta-boron" to me. Of course, penstemon is not penta-boron. It never has been, and it never will be.

10. This genus is made up of a group of very small flowering plants called avens. Avens goes by another name, too, which to me sounds like it is element 31 with all the middle taken out. What is the genus?

Answer: Geum

There are around fifty species of geum, including the yellow avens and the herb bennett (wood avens).

Doesn't it sound like "gallium" to you, without "all" that in the middle? Gallium - all = gium, after all, and that's only one letter change away from "geum". So I knew it, they must have something in common.

Truth is; there is nothing in common with the flower and the element. It's just one more case of botemistry (botany-chemistry).

Source: Author salami_swami

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor WesleyCrusher before going online.
Any errors found in FunTrivia content are routinely corrected through our feedback system.

Silver Roses Trivia Quiz

Okay, so these flowers won't be as simple sounding as "silver roses", but they all have something in common. It looks to me that these flowers really should be found on the Periodic Table of Elements!

NEXT>

NEXT>

NEXT>

NEXT>

NEXT>

NEXT>

NEXT>

NEXT>

NEXT>