Re: Cultivar registration

From: SelbyHort at aol.com on 2000.05.10 at 00:08:23(4557) I can see that there is a big misunderstanding about what a cultivar registrar is supposed to do. First of all, parentage is not required information, although there will be space for this information (if known) on the registration form. We may have some dynomite clone that needs to be registered and not know a thing about its lineage. The plant will still be registered even if nothing is known about how it arose. There may be misidentification of one or both parents, so why bother with recording lineages unless every plant that contributed to the cultivar has been properly identified. This will never happen, folks! There is no verification of orchid hybrids simply because there is no way to identify hybrids, and it is the same with aroids. I am sure to get plants submitted for registration that have incorrectly identified parents. I will just have to register what I get. +More Secondly, it is not up to the registrar to make any value judgements about what is good and acceptable and what is a lousy cultivar. That responsibilty belongs to the breeder or registrant or whoever is submitting the plant for cultivar status. If a person wants to have a legacy of registering worthless material, that is their choice. The only choice a registrar makes if whether there is enough evidence to support accepting or rejecting the cultivar, so in some cases questionable material may be evaluated by another party if needed. The registrar makes no independent decision about whether the clone is "worthy". This kind of judging is not the authority or responsibility of the registrar. I think if the IAS is concerned about quality control, then there will need to be another process for evaluating any registered cultivars, such as a judging program. I will just be keeping the cultivar records, making sure the submitted names are appropriate and comply with the Code, and publishing checklists and Registers. As long as the required information and fee is submitted and the rules of naming are followed, then a cultivar will probably get registered. Donna Atwood Selby Gardens

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