Hi Tina,
This is a very common problem I think. Botanical names are not the most user friendly things are they? My only suggestion is that if you can understand the latin origins of the names it may help you remember them. If you Google in 'understanding botanical names' you will find a lot of useful information.
Apart from that and plain old repetition (both saying and writing them over and over again) I can't really think of anything else. You've already tried my favoured method of playing with the words.
Don't give up, the more you do it the more familiar it will all become. It really is like learning another language. Good luck.
Cheers.
Dee.

Hi, I second Dee's suggestion. I try and find out what the name actually means. I find this helps. For example, the Cherry Ballart is Exocarpus cupressiformis. The 'ex' part means outside and 'carpus' means fruit. Indeed, the seed sits oddly outside the fruit.
As a beginning, have a look at Botany and How She is Spoke.
Hope this helps.
Ray

Thankyou so much for your input I will try your suggestions. My favourite so far with the play on words is PAPILIONACEAE Jacksonia fursellata = Grey Stinkwood. which equates to a stinky grey furry butterfly called jackson! But I will check out your sites and see how I go, thanks again, Tina

I still think that like the three R's, there is a lot to be said for rote learning. Repetition and more repetition as the others have said.

Tina, Ray is absolutely correct. The name is in a lot of cases morphologically based so if you break down the syllabls in the name you get a big clue. (in ID as well as naming)
I did Latin and Greek roots in State school in Qld and that has helped a lot. International students have a lot of trouble because their language(s) is/are not based on Latin or Greek.

I completed my Diploma in Landscape design quite a few years ago at Ryde. I am told that we had to learn a lot more names than you folk do today.

Most of us just learnt them the hard way. Some of us would write them out lots of times and we would test each other when we had breaks. Most of us collected photos of each plant and put the name on the back. That way you can test yourself.

You will find they will come to you the more you use/say/write them. When there is limited time, I find wrote learning tends to be the best way.

Trust me, I have been writing lines and lines!!It's just like being back at school. Robert, one of my lecturers has said that it is much easier now than what it used to be so I guess I should just put my head down and bottom up and do more lines!! with the testing of each other, one of my school friends (I love that!! she's only 50 and I'm 41 and we act like kids!!) we will ring each other, no hello, just rapid fire questions, what's the common name for...? what's the genus of...? So much fun, and I love the fact that we're using our brains and learning so much. Thankyou all for your help, Tina

Well 99% was a really nice surprise today...forgot one family name and that was the only mistake!! Thanks again for your ideas, I will certainly use them. Tina

Congratulations, Tina, well done.

Go Tina!!! Congrats.

Well done! I think the best way to really remember them long term, as opposed to cramming them for exams, is practical hands on experience. Get out and meet them in person wherever you can, and talk about them by both their botanical and common names.
I think it came relatively easy to me because I used to listen a lot to my father and grandfather talking in the garden, when I was very young, and they used the bot. names much of the time.

thankyou all!! Wow sparaxis how wonderful to have all that knowledge to listen to, and I think as children so much gets absorbed without our knowing it...I did spend time with my dad in the garden but it was all vege gardening, but that is coming to the fore now which is great. Thanks again for the encouragement, Tina

Tina, its just a matter of time. I remember when I was 12 saying to my mentour-Im never going to remember these botanical names, now Im forgetting the common names because I dont use them that often anymore.
As everyone has mentioned try and figure out the latin derivative and then you can learn what the plant looks like before youve even seen it!

Another method is to grow them and attach a label to the tree, that way you are always walking past your plant and can always check the name if you happen to forget. In the end you remember its name- thats what I do and I have thousands of plants which I can remember their names and where I got them from.

All the best from Kris

Hi Tina, remembering anything is the problem not Botanical names. The technique is use is to think that the name of the plant is the same as the name of a person. Associate that plant's name with it's most striking characteristic, just as you would a person. When a friend is trying to describe someone you may have met at a party they say something like ' you remember Tim the tall guy with redhair' and 9 times out of 10 you will remember! Using this same logic I apply it to plants eg: 'that vine with the bright orange flowers' which is Flame Vine and it's botanic name is Pyrostegia venusta, then link this back to the first part of it's botanic name 'PYRO' as in maniac, as in fire, as in flame!
Sounds a bit strange but it works for me.
Cheers.

Bit late but well-done Tina. Wow, 99%!
Ray

Hey there Tina,
I did hort down here in Melbourne many moons ago. We had a 50 per fornight plant list with 25 random test. I found besides rote learning, was to walk the streets with plant list in hand. And, every time I spotted one in someones garden I would ID it. And, if I got stuck, I would try again to remember b4 I looked at the plant list. I also used to do it while driving (in fact I still do it) not so safe I know, but sometimes you just see a X that is just so wonderful you cant help yourself.Start buiding a latin dictionary on your computer for the repeated words ie. Alba - white. Cheers on your 99!