In a moment of optimism — or madness or both — I bought a Lechenaultia biloba to plant in the front garden. I have no idea if it will take, because they are as sensitive as they are glamorous. We'll see. If it doesn't succeed, I'll always have the memories ...Lechenaultia is named after French botanist Jean-Baptiste Louis Claude Théodore Leschenault de la Tour, who sailed on the Naturaliste under Nicholas Baudin. Lechenaultia and Leschenault? There's surely some mistake. Well, yes and no.
During the voyage, Leschenault met British botanist Robert Brown, who was travelling on Matthew Flinders' vessel, HMS Investigator. When Brown described the genus in his colleague's honour, he used what he thought was the correct spelling of his name (Morrison 1986). He was wrong but the generic name is valid. It can't be changed simply for politeness' sake.
Still, although Lechenaultia remains as the generic name, Leschenault is celebrated in the common name.
Reference
Morrison, D.A. (1986). Taxonomic and nomenclatural notes of Lechenaultia R. Br. (Goodeniaceae). Brunonia 9: 1–28. (PDF, 1.7MB)
