Why is the genus of pitcher plants named after the drug of forgetfulness?

The pitcher plant contains a liquid, in a pitcher-like vessel… so, to the finders of it, like some sort of magical beverage dispenser in the woods.

That reminded them of the story of the Ancient Greek stories of an “anti-sorrow” drink, which morphed into “forgetfulness”, along the lines of those who “drink to forget” their sorrow.

So, Helen, daughter of Zeus, spiked a pitcher of wine with it…. in Homer’s forth book of the Odyssey.

To be clear, the plant has zero to do with that… it just looked like a pitcher.

:D

ἔνθ᾽ αὖτ᾽ ἄλλ᾽ ἐνόησ᾽ Ἑλένη Διὸς ἐκγεγαυῖα:
αὐτίκ᾽ ἄρ᾽ εἰς οἶνον βάλε φάρμακον, ἔνθεν ἔπινον,
νηπενθές τ᾽ ἄχολόν τε, κακῶν ἐπίληθον ἁπάντων.

Then Helen, daughter of Zeus, took other counsel.
Straightway she cast into the wine of which they were drinking a drug
to quiet all pain and strife, and bring forgetfulness of every ill.

—Odyssey, Book 4, v. 219–221