Misleading Plant Names

Post Reply New Topic

coconut
eggplant
peanut
pineapple
strawberry
sweet potato

Turnips don't turn, and they don't nip

Gooseberries - they do not resemble geese in the slightest.
Crab apples - nor do crab apples look like crabs.
Buttercups - They are not used to make butter. In fact they are toxic and should not be eaten.
Tulips - they do not have any number of lips.
Hogweed - It does not resemble a hog or anything pig-related, and they definitely should not be eaten.
Fiddlehead ferns - in spite of their resemblance to a fiddle's head, picking up a bow and playing a tune on one would not be a very good idea.
Sea cucumber - oh wait that's an animal with a misleading plant-sounding name. Sorry!

^ According to what I read they should not be eaten by livestock, which they normally don't unless out of desperation because there's nothing else, because they are not only bitter tasting but cause symptoms like severe burning and blistering of the mouth, bloody diarrhea, colic, and excessive salvation. They can also irritate your skin, but I think picking a few probably won't hurt you since I used to play that kid's game where you see if someone likes butter by holding one under their chin.

We have a small fern bush called "Hundkex" (Dogs bisquit), looks nothing like it's name.