Uncommon Silverweeds
My top five favourite Silverweeds
For convenience, here is an index of my Silverweed related content.
Whilst researching Argentina anserina, I very occasionally encounter other plants in the Argentina genus.
I’m not a huge fan of the choice of name - I’ve got nothing against the country of Argentina, but I just like the sound and meaning of Potentilla more - so when I discovered that it was reclassified into a different genus I was disappointed.
The etymological history of the genus Potentilla ultimately can be traced to the Latin word potens, which means “strong” or “powerful”.
As far as I’m aware, the etymological history of the genus Argentina is underwhelming. I believe the first species to be named in this genus (using the Linnaeus binomial system) was located in Argentina. This is fine, but Common Silverweed has been around since the Pliocene, so the term “Argentina” is somewhat disingenuous in my opinion. It’s worth noting that some scholars disagree with this reclassification, though I can’t find a clear example of a scientist saying the equivalent of “I disagree!”.
I do, however, love the common name “Silverweed”.
Disgruntled nomenclature choices aside (you name it first, you claim it), there are some truly beautiful Silverweeds.
On the Kew Garden’s page on the Argentina genus, there are 71 listed species. I went and clicked through all 71 links, and I did the same for the equivalent iNaturalist page. All told, there are 22 Silverweeds with photos. And yes, I did make the spreadsheet. I’ll keep it up to date so feel free to look around. It’s a shame really, there should be easily accessible photos for all 71 species. I’ll keep poking at this particular thread.
Top Five Silverweeds
I’ll now show my top five favourite Silverweeds (excluding Common Silverweed). I feel this will be a palate cleanser from the recent text heavy content.
1. A. tugitakensis
Source: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/172495541
Just look at the beautifully textured leaves on this Silverweed. It’s only found in Taiwan and considered endangered there. Thanks to a friend who pointed out that the species name is taken from Mount Xueshan in Taiwan.
2. A. lignosa
Source: https://www.flickr.com/photos/ninara/4914338412/
Found from Türkiye to Central Asia, this gorgeous specimen was photographed in Tehran, Iran. I’m particularly gripped by the distinct white flowers with orange centres, unusual when most are white in this genus. The flowers contrast the dark green leaves very well. Lignosa is from the Latin lignosus, meaning woody, so presumably the stems are such.
3. A. tapetodes
Source: https://inaturalist.org/observations/129785457
A great example of the morphological gymnastics a plant can undergo, this particular Silverweed seems to have evolved to fit a similar niche to mosses. It’s found only in Tibet. I think tapetodes means “tapestry” in Latin, which if it is true, is very well named!
4. A. pacifica
Source: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/167142651
A Silverweed that needs no introduction really (if you’ve been following along with this substack), Pacific Silverweed is by all counts the wilder cousin to Common Silverweed. I’ve read that it is more vigorous and cold-hardy, which is certainly saying something considering how Common Silverweed grows!
5. A. micropetala
Source: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/174116151
Just look at the tiny petals on this Silverweed - I wonder what situation led to the evolution of these cute tiny petals.
I diagnose an acute case of horticultural fever. I know all the signs since I used to suffer it from childhood, collecting every damn weird plant I could get my hands on. When you start cooing at cushiony alpines covered in teeny weeny flowers you know there is no hope for a cure.