Well, here's a funny coincidence. The very next episode of 'JEOPARDY!' aired after I made my post about it contained a big botanical error in ones of the clues.
In the "South Dakota" category, the person in the video clue said "All-natural soap made right here in South Dakota with Salvia officinalis, this native aromatic herb that wise men know grows wild on the prairie" while holding up a dried plant. Obviously, Salvia officinalis isn't native to the South Dakota prairie since it is actually native to the Mediterranean area (not even on the right continent, silly clue writers!) The native "sages" of that area used as herbs are species of Artemisia which aren't even in the same family as Salvias.
Has anyone else noticed how ridiculously bad American (USA) television is at getting their botanical references correct? I'm always noticing obvious errors, even in gardening shows like 'Garden Smart' and such. It seems odd that with on-staff fact checkers and the resources of the internet that so many errors should find their way into the final product. However, I'm usually pleasantly surprised when I watch shows produced in the UK (including dramas, mysteries, etc) because they usually have their botanical facts straight.
Perhaps we need to market our collective skills as botanical fact checkers for the television industry.
