The World's Sexiest Plants (Part II)
Emily Ellis
You don’t have to be a botanist (or a pollinator) to agree that plants are sexy. Whether it’s because of their stunning beauty, their mysterious mood-boosting properties, or their uncanny resemblance to our anatomy, plants have been helping to set the stage for love for thousands of years. Even the sort of flowers you wouldn’t necessarily want scattered over your bedspread have their own special sex appeal, engaging with insects and each other in ways that rival even the steamiest romance novels.
To celebrate Valentine’s Day this year, we’re bringing you a second round-up of the World’s Sexiest Plants, since we couldn’t stop at just one. Find last year’s list here, and scroll down to learn about 2021’s tantalizing lineup.
Fly Orchid (Ophrys insectifera)
Most orchids are pretty sexy by default. Their name comes from the Greek word for testicle (take a look at their roots to see why) and they are inarguably one of history’s most alluring and sought-after plants. However, it’s their relationship with their pollinators - a tale so rife with deceit and sexual intrigue that it’s worthy of a soap opera - that gives orchids a place on our list.
Orchid species like the fly orchid and its cousin, the bee orchid, pollinate by “pseudocopulation,” which means they use their botanical wiles to trick male insects into having sex with them. While a flower that resembles a fly might not look particularly sexy to us, a lovesick male insect finds it positively irresistible - especially since some orchids put out pheromones that can rival those of an actual female insect. The game goes like this: the insect tries to mate with what he thinks is a lady fly, and gets covered in pollen during the unsuccessful attempt. He then moves onto the next orchid and, forgetting his frustration and once again taken getting taken in by false appearances, pollinates it.
If you’re curious about the other ways that orchids intrigue and deceive, visit the Barry Art Museum’s new exhibition, Orchids: Attract and Deception, which displays several illustrated books from the Oak Spring Garden Library.
Avocado (Persea americana)
“Fruits of the Lima Market” (1850-1853) by Dorothea Eliza Smith.
Everyone’s favorite toast topper, the avocado, has also been used as an aphrodisiac for centuries. Aside from growing in suggestive dangling pairs, the fruit has high levels of Vitamin B6, which has been linked to testosterone production; in 16th-century Mexico, the Nahuatl word for avocado, ahuacatl, was sometimes used for “testicle” as well. There are even stories about people in the Aztec Empire keeping young women indoors during the avocado harvest as a precaution. After the fruit made its way to Europe, Louis XIV supposedly used the “la bonne poire” (the good pear) for a little energy boost in the bedroom.
Aphrodisiac qualities aside, avocado trees have quite an interesting sex life themselves. Their flowers have both male and female parts (like most flowers), but both of these parts are active at different times of the day, giving the plant a male stage and a female stage, probably to reduce the chance of self-pollination. Ooh la la!
Pomegranate (Punica granatum)
“Fruits of the Lima Market” (1850-1853) by Dorothea Eliza Smith.
With their abundant, glistening clusters of ruby-red seeds, pomegranates certainly look like they could help you out in the baby-making department. Our ancestors thought so too: pomegranates, native to the Middle East, have been associated with love and fertility for thousands of years. Along with appearing in a range of religious texts, they also play symbolic roles in many myths and legends centered around love and sex: in Greek mythology, for instance, the Goddess Aphrodite - from whom we get the word “aphrodisiac” - was credited with planting the first pomegranate tree. Some scholars believe that it was the pomegranate, not the apple, that got Adam and Eve into so much trouble.
Pomegranates are packed with antioxidants, which can help reduce inflammation and increase blood flow to all parts of the body; some studies have even suggested that the fruit may help with erectile dysfunction. Regardless of your intentions, most nutritionists agree that it’s a tasty, nutrient-packed superfood - so eat up!
Quince (Cydonia oblonga)
Like the pomegranate, quince is a fruit that has been cultivated for a good part of human history. It may not be as sexy-looking as the pomegranate, but don’t be fooled by appearances: according to Greek legend, this humble fruit supposedly helped to start the Trojan War when Helen of Troy bribed Paris to award a quince to Aphrodite as the prize in a beauty contest. Also like the pomegranate, it is believed by some scholars to be the actual Biblical forbidden fruit (we’re not taking a stance either way on this one, but the quince certainly looks more like an apple!)
Quince has long been used as an aphrodisiac around the world: in ancient Greece, brides would chew on the fruit prior to their wedding ceremony, and in Tudor England, wealthy nobility such as the lady-chasing Henry VIII would eat quince marmalade wrapped in gold foil for libido enhancement. They may have been on to something, as some scientific studies have shown that quince has increased sexual activity in rats.
Butterfly Pea (Clitoria ternatea)
The butterfly pea’s scientific name, Clitoria ternatea, tells you what its namer was thinking of. While many flowers are at least somewhat reminiscent of female anatomy - just ask Georgia O’Keefe - the resemblance is obvious in the case of this pretty blue climbing flower.
Native to Asia, the butterfly pea has primarily been used in teas, as a food dye, and as a side dish. Like most plants that remind us of genitalia, it’s also found its way into traditional medicine, and was prescribed to women in particular to increase sexual desire. While there’s no evidence that it has actual aphrodisiac properties, there’s no denying that it would make a lovely addition to a date-night cocktail or garden salad.
Damiana (Turnera diffusa)
Damiana, a flowering shrub native to Mexico and Central America, is one of history’s most celebrated aphrodisiacs. Used for centuries in its native region, it first came to the attention of the Western world when a Spanish missionary wrote that the Maya people stewed the leaves into a tea for love-enhancing purposes. Hundreds of years later in the U.S. in 1870, it was included in patented medicines that promised to aid the libidos of the “enfeebled and aged” in particular. It experienced somewhat or a revival in popularity in the 1960s, and is still a sought-after aphrodisiac herb today.
Although called a hoax by some members of the scientific community, recent small-scale scientific studies have shown that damiana does have some compounds that act similarly to steroidal sex hormones. If you want to give this famous love shrub a try, however, make sure you purchase it from a trustworthy herbalist or herb seller: Turnera ulmifolia, or false damiana, sometimes makes its way into consumer products, and certainly won’t have the same effect as the real deal.
African Marigold (Tagetes erecta)
More commonly known as American marigolds or Mexican marigolds, this common autumn flower seems innocent enough. In the Victorian Era, however, it was the naughtiest flower you could give to the object of your affection.
In an age that was less-than-open about human sexuality, communicating with flowers was a fashionable way to express what society dictated couldn’t be said out loud - and a carefully arranged bouquet could be just as blush-inducing as one of today’s sext messages. According to Kate Greenaway’s The Language of Flowers, African marigolds symbolize “vulgar minds” - implying that the giver had less-than-pure thoughts about the person receiving the bouquet. (Greenaway doesn’t explain why marigolds receive this distinction, but we think it might be because of the blossom’s brain-like appearance!)
If you really want to make your significant other hot and bothered this Valentine’s Day, try adding peach blossoms (I am your captive) everlasting pea (everlasting pleasure) and tuberose (pleasure and pain) to the arrangement as well - just be sure to include a book on Victorian floriography so they know what they heck you’re talking about.
Peter Pepper (Capsicum annuum var. annuum)
This heirloom variety was judged “Most Pornagraphic Pepper” by Organic Gardening Magazine, and it’s easy to see why. While many of the world’s plants are suggestively oblong, you don’t have to use your imagination when it comes to the peter pepper, a type of Capsicum annuum that is chiefly found in Louisiana, Texas, and Mexico. Although the origins of this distinctive pepper is unknown (and we can assume “peter” doesn’t refer to the name of its grower in this case), the seeds can now be easily found online.
As the pepper has a relatively high Scoville Rating of spiciness, it’s generally grown as a conversation piece - although including this chili willy in your Valentine’s Day menu could help to heat up some other things as well. While the jury’s still out on whether spicy peppers actually have aphrodisiac properties, hot peppers do contain capsaicin, which can cause increased heart rate, red face, and sweating - reminding us of our physiological reaction to a certain other activity.
If you’d like to learn more about the world’s wonderful plants - some of which are, well, kind of sexy - head over to our new Fantastic Flora website!
Banner image: “Cupid Inspiring the Plants with Love.” Thornton, Robert John. Picturesque Botanical Plates of the New Illustration of the Sexual System of Linnaeus . . . London, 1798-1805.
Thanks to the Biocultural Conservation Farm, Library, and Gardening teams for their sexy plant suggestions!