In article ,
Malcolm writes:
|
| Anyway, Equisetum species have been called horsetails or marestails
| according to the whim of the speaker for centuries. Mr Charles Bailey
| is wrong.
|
| No, he's not wrong, he is just expressing an opinion which is quite
| widely shared, including by me, even though it may not be by you.

It is also not shared by the editors of the Oxford English Dictionary,
which is more to the point. You may well claim that they are wrong,
but they have provided evidence, and I assert that they know rather
more about the English language than you do.

To imply (let alone state) that applying the term marestail to
Equisetum is wrong is just plain wrong. YOU may prefer not to do it,
but it is perfectly correct English usage, including in a scientific
context where the vernacular names are acceptable (see the OED).

Just as claiming that bluebell means the bulbous plant, and that alone,
is just plain wrong.

| It would, actually, be quite helpful to firmly pin just one vernacular
| name to each plant in order to remove all doubt in discussions such as
| this. ...

Now, THAT is just expressing an opinion, which is not as widely
shared as you seem to think that it is.

As I said, if you want to be botanically precise, then use correct
botanic terminology, which is to use Equisetum or Hippurus. What's
the problem with that?


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.