Rare plant named after legendary guitarist Jimi Hendrix
December 19, 2016 - 6:03 pm
SAN DIEGO — California researchers have named a newly discovered rare plant after Jimi Hendrix.
The plant, found in Baja California, Mexico, has been christened Dudleya hendrixii , or “Hendrix’s liveforever.”
Liveforevers are a kind of succulent with enormous lifespans.
This one is a stalky plant less than a foot tall with pinkish-white flowers that dies in summer and re-sprouts in fall.
San Diego State University says a former graduate student, Mark Dodero, discovered the plant — supposedly while listening to Hendrix’s song “Voodoo Child.”
The university says Dodero and Stephen McCabe of the University of California, Santa Cruz, decided to name it for the late rock guitarist.
However, unlike Hendrix’s music, the plant is in peril. San Diego State says its two-acre habitat is threatened by farming, off-road vehicles and development.