International Registry Of Cultivars & Germplasm Of The Genus Amelanchier

 

Richard G. St-Pierre, Ph.D., Research Scientist, Plant Gene Resources of Canada, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, Saskatoon, SK, Canada

 

 

 

 

 

 

Registry of cultivars & germplasm of the genus Amelanchier Medik. (144KB pdf)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

International Cultivar Registration

 

The International Society For Horticultural Science has a Commission for Nomenclature and Cultivar Registration which appoints International Cultivar Registration Authorities (ICRAs) for plant genera. The ICRA system has been in operation for over 50 years and has contributed significantly to the stability and fixity of cultivated plant nomenclature. The scheme operates under the International Code of Nomenclature for Cultivated Plants (ICNCP) and its chief aim is to prevent duplicated uses of cultivar and Group epithets within a defined denomination class (usually a genus), as well as ensuring that names are in all other respects in accord with the latest edition of the ICNCP. The system is a voluntary, non-statutory one and does not confer any legal protection over the name or the plant. The success of the ICRA system depends upon the co-operation of all those involved with the creation and marketing of new plants. Generally all that is required is the submission of the name and any other relevant data to the ICRA, in order to registrar a cultivar name. The ICRA will check each new epithet to ensure that it has not been used before and that in all other respects it is in accord with the ICNCP and then notify the registrant accordingly. Applicants should remember that registration may be refused if the name has been used before and should await the ICRA’s decision before implementing any marketing for the plant. ICRAs are not responsible for assessing the distinctiveness of the plant in question. Each ICRA is also charged with ensuring that new names are formally established (i.e. published in hard copy, with a description in a dated publication). Establishment in this context is an important concept since it is only after such publication that the name has precedence for its use for a particular plant. Whilst the ICRA will ensure through its own publications that names are established, registrants should not necessarily rely on this and should try to ensure that their new names are securely established as soon after registration as possible. ICRAs will also ask the applicant to provide some further details about the plant, such as parentage, the names of those concerned with its development and introduction, together with a basic description which highlights its distinctive characters. It is essential that some descriptive element is provided and the more authentic data that can be provided at this stage the more valuable will be the store of data held by the ICRA in its Register and Checklist. This database soon becomes a valuable resource for all those interested in that group of plants.