Hi skylark,
Looking for plants:
Searching: Using the search bar is like doing a google search with all that inherent randomness included.
As was noted, Poinsettia didn't yield results because the Common name hadn't yet been added. Plantladylin resolved that with her proposal.
Browsing: is a much more targeted method of finding a plant. You should take advantage of it.
There are several ways to browse the database. To browse you must get to the
browse by Genus page or a
Custom Database/Parent Plant page.
Here are examples of a few ways (there are others).
ex. Here I
searched Musa.
http://garden.org/plants/searc...
-select
Click here to view all plants in the genus: musa and you get the complete list.
http://garden.org/plants/brows...
-As previously described select a letter to find a specific cultivar. Again, here are the cultivars beginning with A.
http://garden.org/plants/brows...
As an aside Musa x paradisiaca and Aeae have been included as Also sold as names in this entry. These are widely used names which are usually incorrect or not substantiated by an authoritative source. Including Also sold as names is very useful in finding a plant.
I believe the reason 'Ae Ae' doesn't show up in a search is because it is less than 3 (consecutive) letters long.
Selecting a
Custom Database from the list on the database homepage is what I often do. Be aware that most plants don't yet have a Custom Database.
-Select
Bananas for
The Bananas Database and
Browse the full list of bananas to get to
Viewing all plants under Bananas
Browsing is a very powerful targeted way to find a plant. Give it a try.