TROPAEOLUM HOOKERIANUM

This member of the Tropaeolaceae family was given this name by François Marius Barnéoud in 1845. It is found in central Chile, at the coast, growing in a well drained soil with little water but some fog and some sun. The caudex can grow to five centimetres in diameter, the entire plant to 60 or even 150 centimetres in height. The flowers are blue to pale purple, or bright yellow

The genera name is the diminutive of trophy; given by Carl Linnaeus, who chose the genus name because the plant reminded him of an ancient custom: After victory in battle, the Romans erected a trophy pole (or tropaeum, from the Greek tropaion, source of English "trophy") on which the vanquished foe's armour and weapons were hung. The species is named after Joseph Dalton Hooker, 1817-1911, a British botanist and explorer. This is a winter-grower.