Cultivars vs Trademarks - Can they make it any more confusing?

14 years ago

This trend towards trademarks is muddying the gardening waters and making my record-keeping a difficult task. In the last year, I've purchased at least 10 plants that were sold under their trademark name (Knockout, Sunburst, Mesa Verde, Mystic Spires, etc) instead of their true cultivar name. This means that I, like a plant cop, have to perform a background check on every plant I buy just to see if it has any other aliases. Am I the only one annoyed by this?

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Comments (7)

ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
14 years ago
arent you supposed to be gardening to relax????

your aerobics .... and YOUR THERAPY ... ????

may i suggest that if you are getting this wound up about the names.. that it is defeating the therapy part of the equation ....

listen spaz .... note one name .. if and when you ever need to research every other name known.. DO IT THEN .... of what interest is all this info right now ???? .. odds are.. you will NEVER NEED THE OTHER INFO.. EVER!!!!

been there.. done that..20 years later.. realized i wasted a lot of time collating data NO ONE EVER CARED ABOUT ...

dig hole.. insert plant.. water it.. add latin name to database.. crack beer.. get chair.. go look at plant...

whats important.. the list.. or the pleasure of looking at the plant ...

good luck

ken
gardengal48 (PNW Z8/9)
14 years ago
My question would be why you feel the need to do more research than what you already have at hand? Typically, only patented plants are trademarked and the registered cultivar name is too much of a mouthful or too awkward to use easily (e.g. 'Radtko', 'Radtkopink', 'Radrazz', 'Radsunny', etc, for various of the Knock Out rose selections). Do you really need to use 'Balsalmist' to refer to Salvia 'Mystic Spires Blue'? So just use the trademarked name and call it good! That's how the plant is going to be advertised and the name you will find the most published info under.

I think Ken's got it figured out pretty much right :-)
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I agree with Tony's article and am just stunned at what I see folks do to rush out to name a plant even without proper testing. But again some of the societies don't have a clue either. What we did here is trademark our name when registering for our business license, that way when I send out seeds to test they get the kht and either a letter if the batch of seeds are small or a given series of numbers that go along with a series of numbers for the parents of the plants we currently grow. These numbers are a meaning for our business only. That way the testers have no clue as to what they are testing and are not told until they give us an honest opinion of what they grow. This is the first year and we do not name as the society states we can in the first year. We have testers across the nation and the second year they get them to test for a 2 year period. We relie heavy on our testers but again if the seeds/plants are special it's best to do the research first at the place they are founded, but again you need your testers all over to make sure the new plant will grow every where. Contacting a attorney is needed these days in the name game but again folks just will put their mark on anything to make a buck!
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spazzycat_1
Original Author
14 years ago
I AM THE ONLY ONE! LOL!

Sorry, I'm a technical writer by trade and if I didn't care about technical accuracy and wrote my documentation like a marketing person, I wouldn't have any respect for myself. It's sort of an occupational hazard. But cracking a beer does sound good!
ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
14 years ago
OH MY GAWD ....

I THINK GAL JUST AGREED WITH ME ....!!!!!... lol

you said: I'm a technical writer by trade and if I didn't care about technical accuracy and wrote my documentation like a marketing person, I wouldn't have any respect for myself.

============

yes but you miss my point perhaps ... you suggest your profession requires a certain level of anal retentiveness ... i respect that ...

the garden is to ESCAPE from work .. why carry over the obsessive repulsive.. lol .. to the garden ..

gardening should be a zen thing... your frustration is contrary to zen ..

oooohhhhhhmmmmmmmmm

ken
spazzycat_1
Original Author
14 years ago
Oh I do see your point, but record-keeping (even if it is about plants) is a documentation task, not a true get-your-hands-dirty gardening task. I think it should be approached as such if it's to be useful.

Now, when this evening I go to water the perennials I recently planted, I will be sure to breathe, chant, and meditate a little.(-:
tennecil_6b7a
14 years ago
Also, when watering in the evening, while you are breathing, chanting and meditating,be sure to have an adult beverage in hand.I usually do!
diggerdee zone 6 CT
14 years ago
Well, I for one didn't think spazzycat (and I thought the name was kind of funny in this situation, lol!) was overreacting or "spazzing" out. I think she was just making an observation. So many times I see here where someone makes an observation and people respond by saying "chill out" when the OP wasn't really that unchilled. :)

I have noticed myself some of the confusing names, but it doesn't bother me much. I do know, however, that some people enjoy keeping records, lists, etc. My mother is an incredible list-maker - making lists of the most inane things, lol. For instance, when she comes to visit, she makes lists of what clothes she will pack, what books she will bring, what stops the train makes, etc. I think it's crazy; she thinks its fun. It's her nature.

So, one person's anal retentiveness is another's fun, and we all relax differently. My husband comes home at 10:30 at night after working 15 hours and an hour commute and actually COOKS to relax! Ugh! I detest cooking and only do it because I have to feed my children, lol. Now that they're teens, they pretty much have to fend for themselves!

So, spazz, perhaps you should change your focus a bit, or approach things differently. Perhaps instead of trying to sort things out meticulously, you can keep records of all the different names a plant goes by, kind of like compiling your favorite athlete's stats, lol. Maybe then it won't be so annoying, and you can keep records as to which plant has the most names!

:)
Dee

Cultivars vs Trademarks - Can they make it any more confusing?

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ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5

gardengal48 (PNW Z8/9)

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Cultivars vs Trademarks - Can they make it any more confusing?

Comments (7)

ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5

gardengal48 (PNW Z8/9)

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spazzycat_1Original Author

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