Flora of Israel: Quidproquo confusum

Quidproquo confusum, Raphanus aucheri, Sinapis aucheri,
Hebrew: צנון משתלשל, Arabic: دانه گرده، خردل زاگرسی

Scientific name:   Quidproquo confusum Greuter & Burdet
Synonym name:   Raphanus aucheri Boiss., Sinapis aucheri (Boiss.) O. E. Schulz
Hebrew name:   צנון משתלשל
Arabic name:   دانه گرده، خردل زاگرسی
Family:   Cruciferae / Brassicaceae, מצליבים


Life form:   Annual
Leaves:   Alternate, dissected, dentate or serrate
Flowers:   Hermaphrodite, yellow
Flowering Period:   February, March, April, May
Habitat:   Batha, Phrygana
Distribution:   Mediterranean Woodlands and Shrublands, Semi-steppe shrublands, Montane vegetation of Mt. Hermon
Chorotype:   Med – Irano-Turanian
Summer shedding:   Ephemeral


Derivation of the botanical name:

Quidproquo, “what for what,” “something for something,” meaning a misunderstanding.

confusum, confused; apt to be taken for another species.
Raphanus, Greek raphanos, “quick-appearing” because of the rapid germination of the seeds.
Sinapis, sinapi, Latin name for the mustard plant, from the flavor of the seeds.
aucheri, named for Pierre Martin Rémi Aucher-Éloy (1792 – 1838), a French pharmacist and botanist.
The Hebrew name: צנון, znon, radish (Probably so called because of its bad odor and related to Arabic: sunan ( = bad odor).]

  • The standard author abbreviation Greuter is used to indicate Werner Rodolfo Greuter (born 1938), a Swiss botanist.
  • The standard author abbreviation Burdet is used to indicate Hervé Maurice Burdet (born 1939), a Swiss botanist.
  • The standard author abbreviation Boiss. is used to indicate Pierre Edmond Boissier (1810 – 1885), a Swiss botanist, explorer and mathematician.
  • The standard author abbreviation O. E. Schulz is used to indicate Otto Eugen Schulz (1874 – 1936), a German botanist.